Give the gift of giving at the Alternative Gift Fair this year

What do you get the person who has everything? Something for someone who doesn’t.

A philanthropic gift to a worthy organization is one of the socially-conscious gifts available this weekend at the annual Alternative Gift Fair at Monroe’s Morningstar Lutheran Church.

At the fair, merchants from around the world sell handcrafted items, some made of recycled materials, others from indigenous wood and other natural, regionally-sourced materials.

Among about 20 international vendors at the fair this year will be African Team Ministries, selling African crafts, jewelry and soapstone; Ushkush, selling the work of Mayan textile artisans; Thursday’s Child, selling recycled wool ornaments and dolls and Rwanda Partners, selling baskets.

There are also opportunities to buy “alternative gifts.” Those are donations made to an organization in honor of a person.

Examples of alternative gifts available at the fair include a flock of chicks for a family in Bolivia through Heifer International; a window for a unit of affordable housing through Housing Hope or a meal to feed a homeless person or animal in the Sky Valley through the Brown Bag Brigade and Austin’s Angels.

For each item you purchase, you receive a gift card or other item, with an insert describing your gift, which you can give to the person you are honoring in this way.

At the MSLC Alternative Gift Fair there will be a variety of such local, national and international organizations working to provide short-term relief for those in need and long-term development assistance to address the underlying causes of hunger and poverty.

The Alternative Gift Fair will take place Saturday, Dec. 15 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Morningstar Lutheran Church, 639 W. Main St. in Monroe. There will be live music from 1-4 p.m., and soup and pie will be available from 12-4 p.m.