5 Gift Ideas to Simplify the Holidays

The Holidays can be an extremely stressful time of year, especially when it comes to gift buying. Why not think of alternative gifts to cut down on waste, support the environment, support free trade, or commemorate a loved one. Simply the holidays by considering these following gift ideas:

Honor a loved one

Why not consider planting a tree in memory of a loved one? Some local communities
allow people to plant trees in memory of a family member. If your community does not have a program like that, consider planting a tree or a number of trees through American Forests. American Forests is a non-profit organization whose vision is to have healthy forest ecosystems for every community. They have a program to plant living memorials in remembrance of a loved one http://www.americanforests.org/
Some other organizations that have a similar program are;
The National Arbor Day Foundation http://www.arborday.org/join/tictim/
Celebration Forest http://www.celebrationforest.com/
Friends of Trees http://www.friendsoftrees.org/commemorative_trees/index.php
Tree People http://treepeople.org/vfp.dll?OakTree~getPage~&PNPK=76
Tree Givers http://www.treegivers.com/?AID=319313&PID=1380503

Honor your roots

Discover your family's heritage at the Ellis Island Foundation http://www.ellisisland.org/
Search the passenger records immigration database and see where your relatives came from or hire a genealogist to do the work. Passenger records and ship manifests are available for purchase and make a wonderful gift for a family member. Also, you can honor your family by adding your family name or an individual name to the Immigrant Wall of Honor http://www.wallofhonor.org/.

Give a meaningful gift