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Gifts That Give Back: 10 Gifts for a Cause
Give a gift that really gives this holiday season. These gifts help those in need, benefit charity, and spread love and goodwill. Your dollar is your voice, so spend wisely.
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Conscious Step Socks
If you haven't stepped into a Ten Thousand Villages store lately—do yourself a favour and pop in. They've got a new look that's modern and fresh and a new e-commerce site that makes shopping online a breeze. Of course, as per their mandate, everything in store gives back to a community in some way, but our top pick this holiday season are their ‘Conscious Step Socks'. Totally fun and funky, step on the cool sock trend and give a pair of socks that combat HIV, protect trees, or (one close to our hearts), feed kids. Each pair sold provides six therapeutic food packs for malnourished children.
$20, available at tenthousandvillages.ca
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Happiness Is Inc.
‘Happiness Is…', or HI, is a line of apparel that is made and designed in Canada and that celebrates all the things about our great country that make us happy. 10% of profits go to Canadian non-profits (the David Suzuki Foundation is one benefiting right now). It's the passion project of 95-years-young Gordon Carton, an entrepreneur, an MPP in the Ontario Provincial Government, and a World War II serviceman. HI apparel comes in men's, women's, and youth sizes.
$29, available at happinessisinc.ca. (Use code SAVVY15 at checkout to save 15%.)
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World Animal Gift from World Animal Protection
Animal lover on our list? There's so much you can do—at any price point. $15 can give four hens a healthier life. $25 vaccinates 25 dogs against rabies. $100 assists animals stranded in natural disasters and gives them access to emergency veterinary services. Looking for something with a permanent, lasting difference? You can free a bear from captivity.
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Stuff a Stocking
Natalie, who blogs at Tales From Mummyland, knows what it is to spend a holiday in a hospital with a sick child—and she wants to give back. Every year Ronald McDonald House assembles a stocking and places one on each door of each family room—and Natalie reached out to Ronald McDonald House directly to find out what they were most in need of. Natalie has organized a Go Fund Me page to help pay for the items that will go in the stockings at the Hamilton RMH. The deadline is this weekend, and Natalie is aiming to help fill 41 stockings.
Read Natalie's story here.
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Lucky Iron Fish
This award-winning little fish (which is made in Bowmanville, Ontario) is so simple and so brilliant. When boiled in water with a squeeze of citrus (use that water for cooking and preparing food or drinking), it naturally adds iron to the water at a rate that is readily absorbed by the body. In fact, one Lucky Iron Fish can provide an entire family with up to 90% of their daily iron intake for up to 5 years. It's great for vegans, vegetarians, anyone with low iron...and lifesaving for people experiencing malnutrition and little or no access to healthy foods. Lucky Iron Fish has a Buy One, Give one policy, so for every fish purchased, one goes to a community in need.
$30, available at luckyironfish.com.
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Flash, the Starlight Bear
This dapper dude is named Flash, and 100% of the proceeds from the sale of Flash will be donated to the Starlight Foundation—an organization that helps seriously ill children. Starlight Canada and ToysRUs have been partners for over 18 years, and Flash is their 8th limited edition collectible Starlight bear. Flash was inspired by Noah, a courageous young boy that was diagnosed with Pompe disease back in 2011 at the age of two. Pompe disease is a rare genetic disease that affects muscle growth, and in Noah's case, means an enlarged heart. Flash encompasses Noah's favourite colour orange, while the rainbow tie reflects his happy disposition despite the many challenges of having a serious illness. The bow tie also represents Noah's love for looking dapper wherever he goes.
$18, available at toysrus.ca.
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Gifts for the Cure
The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation has made gift giving simply effortless. There are three steps: choose a gift online, email (or download and print) your personalised greeting card for the recipient, and your Gift for the Cure will fund research and support programs for Canadians affected by breast cancer. We think this is simply perfect for gift exchanges, Secret Santa's, and tokens of appreciation for bus drivers, teachers, coaches, and car pool friends. Gifts start at just $10.
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Zatoun Olive Oil & Za'atar Combo
In need of a hostess gift or Secret Santa pressie? A bottle of wine is fine, but for a more original spin, give a bottle of high-quality, fair-trade olive oil. It's just as luxe and will last way, way longer. This one comes bundled with a sachet of savoury herbs.
$26, available at tenthousandvillages.ca.
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John Rae Heritage Charity Bear
Hello, handsome! Meet John Rae, the Bay's annual charity bear. 100% of the proceeds from each sale of John Rae go to the HBC Strength in Stripes program—and a limited number were made, so get him while you can.
$22, available at thebay.com.
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Unicef Survival Gifts
Want to give a real gift with real impact? You might never meet the person you help—but you'll make a world of difference in their life. Unicef makes it easy with online gits—and a little can go so far. Just $10 buys 3 bed nets to protect from malaria and mosquito-borne illnesses; $12 buys 21 nutrient-rich bars, and $30 buys 129 (!) polio vaccinations.