Every once in a while, I meet someone who is just plain old good. Without guile. My friend Rebecca is one of those people. And so are her kids. Rebecca and her family have a great tradition of family service that she said I could post about here on Doves & Serpents. After you read, consider buying one of the cute eggs her kids are making and selling to earn money for their project.
Rebecca sent me an email this week with the following text:
“The children are selling egg ornaments that they have made to earn money for a project they are doing in Guatemala. Following is the information on their project.
Every time one of our children turns twelve, we take them to Guatemala to do a service project. My parents live there and have lots of experience doing humanitarian work, and thus are able to help us out. When our oldest daughter turned twelve the summer of 2009, we went to Guatemala and bought shoes to take to school children in the highlands and on the banana plantations near the coast.
This year, our second daughter will turn twelve. She has been earning money since last year by selling hats that she crochets. We will be working with an organization in Guatemala called Casa de Sion. They help provide Incaparina (a dietary supplement powder that you mix with water), school supplies, and other necessities for families in several towns. We are going to be taking tie quilts that the girls are making. They have a goal to have 100 quilts. So far they have made 40. The money our children earn will be used to buy school supplies that we will purchase in Guatemala to take to the towns. My mother said that sometimes children can’t go to school because they do not have the required supplies (paper, pencils, etc.) We want to help them make it to school.
We will be spending the days leading up to Christmas and Christmas day passing these gifts out to children.
We are selling the following egg ornaments for five dollars each. First one to email claiming an egg will get it (I have them each numbered). If you live outside of Nacogdoches, you would also need to pay shipping. I would remind you that these are made by children so they are very spontaneous and original (in other words, don’t be expecting perfection). You can buy all twelve eggs for $55.00.”
Here are a couple pictures of the egg ornaments:
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After you read this post, if you’d like to buy an egg or two (or a dozen!), email me at heather@thebeals.net and I’ll hook you up with Rebecca.
What a wonderful post! Thanks for sharing it.
We’ve started a fun tradition in our family. For Christmas we, along with our married children and grandchildren, select a family (or two or three) that we want to help or a cause. We ask that instead of giving us (their parents and grandparents) Christmas presents that we share our love and resources with someone in need. We’ve helped our recent immigrants, refugees, mentally ill, and destitute single moms. I can’t express how joyful this experience has been and how much it has enhanced our Christmas celebration as a family.
There will never be a lack of opportunities to help others. I love Rebecca’s project, and Carol’s from the comment above. One of the best gifts a parent can give to their children is a caring heart and an eye looking for chances to lift another human being in some way. It’s beautiful to read stories like this. :)
I agree completely with what you said. Excellent Stuff. Keep it going..