What a Christmas Present!
Over the years, I have received all kinds of Christmas presents, many that were appropriate and appreciated and some that were not. Frankly, by now when asked, “What do you want for Christmas?” I am hard pressed to come up with much of a suggestion. The people close to me have managed to come up with some clever and even creative gift ideas that I have been happy with, but this year Patricia and I were given a gift with which I was simply overwhelmed.
We were given bees. That is right, honey bees! Now, let me explain, starting at the beginning.
In the 1930s, during a civil war in Spain, Dan West, a Midwestern farmer and Church of the Brethren youth worker, gave cups of milk to hungry children on both sides of the conflict. It then occurred to him that what these families needed was “not a cup, but a cow.” He asked his friends back home to donate heifers, young cows that had not borne a calf, to families so that they could feed themselves. In return, families who received a heifer could help another family become self-reliant by passing on to them one of their heifer’s female calves.
Giving families a source of food rather than short-term relief is now the ministry of Heifer International, a nonprofit organization founded in 1944. You can give chicks, ducks, or geese for $20, trees for $60, a buffalo for $250, and an ark full of animals for $5000. There are other possible gifts, including giving seedlings for $10. Each gift helps impoverished families become self-reliant by providing food and income as well as training. Since 1944, Heifer has helped more than 4.5 million families in 128 countries. No wonder, Forbes magazine named Heifer International one of 10 “Gold Star Charities” for 2004. (The Gold Star Charities list is Forbes’ annual list of organizations that achieve the highest impact from donors’ gifts.)
This Christmas someone gave a Heifer International gift animal (Bees) to someone in the world in our name. We received a fold-out card with fourteen folds explaining the program in twelve simple, short, colorful panels.
What an idea! What a gift! “Heifer animals (and training in their care) offer hungry families around the world a way to feed themselves and become self-reliant. Children receive nutritious milk or eggs; families earn income for school, health care, and better housing; communities go beyond meeting immediate needs to fulfilling dreams. Farmers learn sustainable, environmentally sound agricultural techniques” (Quoted from Heifer’s website (www.heifer.org. You can call them at 800-422-0474).
Put this idea on your Christmas list for next year. One Christmas, years ago my brother and I gave to the Lord’s work the money we planed to spend on each. Don’t just curse the commercialism of Christmas; give gifts that last, and last, and last, eternally.
© G. Michael Cocoris, 12/31/2003
We were given bees. That is right, honey bees! Now, let me explain, starting at the beginning.
In the 1930s, during a civil war in Spain, Dan West, a Midwestern farmer and Church of the Brethren youth worker, gave cups of milk to hungry children on both sides of the conflict. It then occurred to him that what these families needed was “not a cup, but a cow.” He asked his friends back home to donate heifers, young cows that had not borne a calf, to families so that they could feed themselves. In return, families who received a heifer could help another family become self-reliant by passing on to them one of their heifer’s female calves.
Giving families a source of food rather than short-term relief is now the ministry of Heifer International, a nonprofit organization founded in 1944. You can give chicks, ducks, or geese for $20, trees for $60, a buffalo for $250, and an ark full of animals for $5000. There are other possible gifts, including giving seedlings for $10. Each gift helps impoverished families become self-reliant by providing food and income as well as training. Since 1944, Heifer has helped more than 4.5 million families in 128 countries. No wonder, Forbes magazine named Heifer International one of 10 “Gold Star Charities” for 2004. (The Gold Star Charities list is Forbes’ annual list of organizations that achieve the highest impact from donors’ gifts.)
This Christmas someone gave a Heifer International gift animal (Bees) to someone in the world in our name. We received a fold-out card with fourteen folds explaining the program in twelve simple, short, colorful panels.
What an idea! What a gift! “Heifer animals (and training in their care) offer hungry families around the world a way to feed themselves and become self-reliant. Children receive nutritious milk or eggs; families earn income for school, health care, and better housing; communities go beyond meeting immediate needs to fulfilling dreams. Farmers learn sustainable, environmentally sound agricultural techniques” (Quoted from Heifer’s website (www.heifer.org. You can call them at 800-422-0474).
Put this idea on your Christmas list for next year. One Christmas, years ago my brother and I gave to the Lord’s work the money we planed to spend on each. Don’t just curse the commercialism of Christmas; give gifts that last, and last, and last, eternally.
© G. Michael Cocoris, 12/31/2003