Make Mother's Day Extra Happy

Use your Mother's Day present to help mothers you've never met! The links below will take you to catalogs which allow you to buy gifts that help others, the purchase of which directly help international aid organizations at work in Africa. All the charities listed in this post have gotten an "A" rating from the American Institute of Philanthropy (charitywatch.org), indicating that over 90% of their budget goes to relief work. In addition to supporting charities (or, in the case of ONE, an advocacy campaign), many of these products are FAIR TRADE or the handiwork of impoverished people. By purchasing from most of these sites, you are "giving" two times over: helping individuals directly and supporting a relief organization.

• A Greater Gift


• CARE: Magazine Subscriptions


• CAREWear


• Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade Chocolate Program


• Catholic Relief Services Map of Fair Trade Coffee Roasters


• Co-op America's National Green Pages


• Doctors of the World Gift Catalog


• Equal Exchange, for the benefit of Lutheran World Relief


• Global Exchange


• Medical Teams International Online Store


• Northwest Medical Teams International E-Cards


• Oxfam America Unwrapped


• Save the Children Gift Shop


• Ten Thousand Villages Gift Shop/Mennonite Central Committee


• The Child Health Site Store - $1 SHIPPING


• The ONE Campaign Store


• UNICEF Cards and E-Cards


• World Neighbors Coffee & WOW! Store

If you have a mom (or wife) who says "It's the thought that counts" and MEANS IT, try one of the choices below. These links also take you to places to buy gifts online which support "A"-rated relief organizations. In the cases below, however, the "gift" is really a personalized donation, which allows you to give the intended recipient of your gift a card stating that you bought school supplies for a classroom, or food rations or courses of AIDS drugs in the name of the recipient. Unlike raw donations, the amounts correlate to a specific usage, making the gift more "tangible" and meaningful.

• Church World Service Gift Catalog


• American Friends Service Committee - Gifts with Heart & Hope


• World Concern Global Gift Guide


• Mercy Corp. - Mercy Kits

Happy Mother's Day!