Great Gifting: Giving from the Heart

My idea of the perfect gift has these attributes:

• It doesn't need dusting.
• It reminds you of the person who gave it to you.
• It makes you feel good every time you think of it.

Then add in:

• It makes someone else's life better.
• It benefits the community.
• It may just change the world.

If that sounds like a little bit much to expect from a single gift, consider what Heifer International has done for impoverished families all over the world through donations of farm animals. Or what MercyCorps does for children and families worldwide, not just with disaster relief, but with programs teaching women to read, building irrigation canals, providing safe cookstoves and helping pregnant women with health care and nutritional information.

If you'd rather go hyperlocal and do something right here at home that will benefit your neighbors, consider giving a donation in your giftee's name to any of the following groups.

• Farmers Ending Hunger began with Oregon farmers and ranchers who donating the food from an acre or two to feed the hungry. It resulted in thousands of tons of fresh food going to Oregon Food Bank for distribution throughout Oregon and Clark County, Washington. Consider adopting an acre or even a single row!
• Zenger Farm is a working urban farm that models, promotes and educates the community about sustainable food systems, environmental stewardship, community development and access to good food for all. They also provide training for immigrant and refugee farmers in language and business skills as well as urban agriculture.
• Oregon Food Bank works in Oregon and Clark County, Washington, with partner agencies to distribute emergency food to hungry families. They also address the root cause of hunger through public policy advocacy, nutrition and garden education and helping communities strengthen local food systems.
• The Pongo Fund is Oregon's emergency pet food bank providing nutrition to the pets of the state's homeless and less fortunate men, women and children. It began when Larry Chusid saw two dogs, Jackson and Jewels, living with a homeless family under the Morrison Bridge and struck up a conversation with them. He brought food, treats, dog beds and coats…and that was more than one million meals ago.

If you have a favorite local charity that's making a difference in our community, feel free to leave it in the comments below. Happy holidays!

Read the other Great Gifting posts: The Art Around You, Eating is Believing and Keeping Spirits Bright.

Great Gifting: Giving From the Heart

In the spirit of not burdening our lives or those of our loved ones with more stuff that needs dusting or displaying, yet also lets them know how much we care, I can't think of a better gift than a donation to a cause that would speak to the giftee.

For instance, if one of your friends reminds you just a bit of Dr. Dolittle, a gift to a local pet shelter or emergency pet clinic in their name would be just the ticket. As a personal note in this category, please consider giving to Multnomah County Animal Services, a terribly underfunded agency that handles the bulk of abandoned and injured pets in the city and is working to build a new shelter with public donations.

If your friend is giving CNN a run for its money with continuous e-mail updates on global affairs, consider a donation to Mercy Corps, the Heifer Project or any of dozens of domestic or international aid organizations.

For those concerned about hunger and food issues, there are a myriad of organizations that help the hungry in our communities, starting with the Oregon Food Bank and its network of 947 hunger-relief agencies in Oregon and Clark County, Washington. Even the gardeners on your list can find fertile soil in groups like Growing Gardens (top photo) and Zenger Farm (right).

To that end, a list of ideas and links is below. Feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments section below this post!

Animals

• Multnomah County Animal Services
• Oregon Humane Society
• Dove Lewis Emergency Animal Hospital
• Cat Adoption Team
• Golden Bond Rescue of Golden Retrievers
• Pixie Project

Aid groups

• Mercy Corps
• Heifer Project
• Medical Teams International (formerly NW Medical Teams)
• Doctors Without Borders/Medicines Sans Frontieres

Hunger and Social Services

• Oregon Food Bank
• Friendly House
• Outside In
• Delta Society (provides pet therapy in hospitals and care centers)
• Farmworker Housing and Development Corp.

Gardens

• Growing Gardens
• Zenger Farm
• Adelante Mujeres 

Check out the other gift suggestions in the series: Book by Book, Classic Design, Not Dead Yet! (food magazines you'll love) and Class Acts.

Livin' in the Blurbs: News You Can Use

This week has been big for small-batch coffee roasters. First it was news or, rather, news to some people, that Portland has surpassed Seattle as the big kahuna of coffee in the country. Then it was the cover of the Dining section of the NYTimes trumpeting the news that New Yorkers have a new-found obsession with micro-roasted coffee. And then it was word that the roasts put out by Matt Higgins of Coava Coffee, one of the micro-roasters I profiled in an article for FoodDay last year, have been picked up by online coffee retailer GoCoffeeGo.com. Founded by San Francisco coffee fiends Scott Pritikin and Elise Papazian, the company says it only sells "the ultimate beans from Super-Star Specialty Roasters throughout the country, who are known in their local communities as the 'gods and goddesses' of coffee." Hyperbole aside, Good Stuff NW wishes Matt and Coava the best!

Details: Coava Coffee Roasters, available at Red E, Barista and Crema in PDX.

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Sometimes it takes a community to respond to a disaster, and Eastmoreland Market & Kitchen owner Colleen Mendoza is springing into action with "Hands on for Haiti," an art and culinary auction and benefit for Mercy Corps to be held on Thursday, April 1. Some of the city's best chefs (think Tommy Habetz from Bunk, John Stewart of Meat Cheese Bread, Karl Zenk of the Heathman, Ken Gordon of Kenny & Zuke’s and pastry chef Lauren Fortgang of Paley’s Place) will make mini-sandwiches for $1 each, and there will be a silent auction of artworks from the region’s most progressive and talented artists. And tickets for the event are only $10. No foolin'.

Details: Hands on for Haiti, Thurs., April 1, 6-11 pm; tickets $10 available online or at Eastmoreland Market, 3616 SE SE Knapp St. Event will be held at 1035 NW Lovejoy.

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And in news you can literally get a charge out of, longtime downtown resto Southpark has put in a charging station for electric vehicles in their parking garage next door. It might be a smart business move, since both Nissan and Mitsubishi have chosen Portland as a test market for their new line of electric vehicles. "Electric vehicles have hit home in Portland and we support and applaud these efforts," said Southpark General Manager Karin Devencenzi. "Our new charging station allows electric car owners to free their mind from any ‘range anxiety’ associated with battery usage, while having access to Portland’s city center."

Details: Southpark Seafood Grill, 901 SW Salmon St.; 503-326-1300. Southpark Garage, 914 SW Taylor St.; 503-228-6758.