Gifts that give back
Support Socks A charitable take on Christmas stockings, SOCAN has introduces “Music Loves Everybody” knit socks. Priced at $17 all proceeds from the sale of the socks go to the Unison Benevolent Fund, a non-profit charity that provides emergency relief services to the Canadian music community in times of personal or professional crisis. Socks can be purchased at shopkt8merch. Ivy and Alex Dresses Designed by an 11-year old Canadian for Canadian children in order to support children from around the world, proceeds from this dress go directly to World Vision. Available at worldvision.ca/gifts. $55
Hospital gift shops
Shopping at hospital gift shops is one way to contribute to the funding of local health care. Each of Halton region’s hospitals has a gift shop operated by the respective auxiliaries. At Milton District, Oakville Trafalgar Memorial and Joseph Brant hospitals, the volunteer-operated gift shops have a long legacy of supporting programs and equipment purchases. In addition to daytime hours of operation, the shops are open limited hours on weekends and evenings Pet friendly Make an animal’s stay at Burlington Humane a little more comfortable and fun with a $20 “cage enrichment” donation.This directed donation will be used to purchase toys and bedding for animals housed at the local shelter. Go to www.burlingtonhumane.ca and click on “donate” to make an online donation. Rover: Wagmore Edition By Andrew Grant Firefly Books is publishing a popularly-priced trade edition of “Rover: Wagmore Edition”. It contains 360 of Andrew Grant’s most appealing photographs of dogs. Some are the best friends of lucky owners, and some, sadly, are homeless. Firefly Books pledges a portion of the revenue from sales to dog rescue. Available wherever books are sold. $40 ROM Membership ROM membership provides essential funding for educational programs, research, collections, community outreach and operations and offers members such benefits as unlimited free admission to ticketed special exhibitions and permanent galleries all year long. Holiday Slipper Socks Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada partnered with Canadian retailer Bootlegger to launch this limited edition collection of socks. $1 of each pair sold directly benefits the charity. Available at Bootlegger. $10 (Alessi) Red Dressed Ornament Show off your holiday spirit while providing five days of life- saving medication for someone with HIV as part of the (Red) campaign. Available at alessi.com/red. $32 (S’Well) Red Limited Edition 17oz Bottle Crafted from S’Well’s premium stainless steel in brilliant red, the purchase of this bottle provides 23 days of life-saving medication to someone with AIDS. Available at SwellBottle. com. $35 Annie Sloan Lem Lem paint Annie Sloan, the creator of Chalk Paint decorative paint has teamed up with the global charity, Oxfam, for their 75th Anniversary. ‘Lem Lem’ is a soft green, inspired by a visit she made to Ethiopia with Oxfam. A portion of sales go to Oxfam. Available at Chalk Paint stockists’ shops. 1L $49.95; 100mL $15 Giftgowns Redefining the hospital gown with graphics and quotes to inspire patients, these gowns are available in adult and children’s sizes. The kids’ collection includes a custom gown to help promote a new fundraising campaign for The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), which is available in the 5Fifty5 Shop at SickKids. Run by the Women’s Auxiliary Volunteers, a registered charity that raises funds to help SickKids. Available at select hospitals and giftgowns.com. From $39.95 La Petite Écolière girlswear This inspirational line of clothing not only encourages girls to pursue their education and become lifelong learners, it also supports Plan International Canada as they educate girls, give them nourishment, healthcare and protection. Choose from an adorable collection of clothing that benefits girls in developing countries. Available at lapetiteecoliere.com. Various prices Starlight Children’s Foundation Bear Sloan is the ninth limited edition collectible Starlight Children’s Foundation bear for 2017, designed by fiveyear-old Sloan, who lives with a life-threatening intestinal disease. Inspired by her love of purple, the butterfly on its foot represents the magic she finds within herself to spread her wings and soar above each obstacle she faces every day. Proceeds from the sale helps Starlight continue to brighten the lives of kids and families. Available at Toys R Us. $19.99