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Empower Children with Charity Donation Choices

snapshot-2008-02-04-09-49-56.jpgA couple of weeks ago, Beth wrote about alternatives to birthday gift giving, and I allowed my daughter to select our Kiva loan recipient. Recently, I discovered another option for low impact birthday giving: markmakers.org. These charitable gift cards allow children to choose goods and services in need around the world.

There are over 40 choices for children on markmakers.org. Once a child receives a gift card from markmakers.org, they enter the number to begin “shopping” for ways they want to give. Children may allocate the money in small increments to as many projects as they want. The presentation is kid-friendly on markmakers.org, and parents are raving about the service. One mother wrote, “My 8-year-old loves the idea that she can help feed homeless dogs!” With their gift card, children can “shop” in six shops:

  • Environmental Protection,
  • Peace & Justice,
  • Kids in Need,
  • Disease Prevention & Healthcare,
  • Poverty & Hunger and,
  • Animal Protection

Over $70,000 was given away by kids last year using markmakers.org. Here’s how it works:

Markmakers Foundation was founded by Eric and Diane Garfinkel and their 4 children, ages 22, 20, 15 and 7. The idea, conceived at the dinner table, was to give kids the freedom to make their own choices when it came to making a difference in the world.

Markmakers is an IRS approved, 501c3 not for profit. Markmakers is staffed on an unpaid, volunteer basis by the Garfinkel family. The 7% service fee collected from card buyers defrays, in part, credit card processing, web programming and hosting, legal and media relations expenses. 100% of the amount placed on a markmakers card is distributed to the organizations listed here. We deduct nothing.

I think this is a fabulous idea, and one I will encourage my family and friends to use. After seeing how my daughter enjoyed picking out our Kiva loan recipient, I can see her really getting into this. It is also a great idea for the classroom! As Markmakers explains,

Markmakers can be used in the classroom to introduce children to the concept of charitable giving and social activism. One idea is to ask childern to bring in 50 cents or $1 each and then pool their funds. The teacher uses the funds to purchase a markmakers card. The class then explores each of the six areas for giving within markmakers (kids in need, poverty, disease, animal welfare, the environment, peace & justice) and discusses where among these categories to allocate the class’ funds.

I will definitely be forwarding this to my daughter’s teacher!

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Comments

  1. Sharon says

    February 4, 2008 at 11:47 am

    This is awesome! I love that it’s a family-run organization. Also, I think your idea of integrating this into school curriculum is a great one. Get a dialogue started, rather than just having a bakesale.

    Reply
  2. Beth says

    February 4, 2008 at 7:45 pm

    A friend told me about doing her kids allowances so that each week a portion of the allowance is earmarked for charity. The child chooses the charity. This would be an ideal way to “bank” the allowance money and then spend it together choosing an organization. Thanks!

    Reply
  3. Frances says

    February 23, 2008 at 6:06 pm

    This is such a great idea!

    Reply
  4. eric garfinkel says

    April 8, 2008 at 5:32 am

    Thank you so much for the encouraging words and support.

    Reply
  5. Judy says

    November 27, 2012 at 12:07 pm

    Sounded great but when I clicked on the link, it came up (multiple times) in a foreign language.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Empower Children with Charity Donation Choices says:
    February 4, 2008 at 10:46 am

    […] post by Jennifer Lance and software by Elliott […]

    Reply
  2. Go Green Mommy and Discourage Gluttony : Eco Child’s Play says:
    August 14, 2008 at 1:25 pm

    […] importantly, and often forgotten, is giving. Children who give are happy children. Children who are programmed to give from a very young age will continue to give as they come into […]

    Reply
  3. Go Green by Doing Good : Eat. Drink. Better. says:
    September 2, 2008 at 7:01 am

    […] eco-charity ideas from GO Network: Empower Children with Charity Donation Choices Eco-Angels: Venture Capital For Socially Responsiblity Top 15 Charity Search Engines: Donate to […]

    Reply
  4. Farm Aid 2008 : Eat. Drink. Better. says:
    September 5, 2008 at 7:32 am

    […] eco-charity ideas from GO Network: Go Green by Doing Good Empower Children with Charity Donation Choices Eco-Angels: Venture Capital For Socially Responsiblity Top 15 Charity Search Engines: Donate to […]

    Reply
  5. Go Green by Doing Good « says:
    September 9, 2008 at 8:20 am

    […] eco-charity ideas from GO Network: Empower Children with Charity Donation Choices Eco-Angels: Venture Capital For Socially Responsiblity Top 15 Charity Search Engines: Donate to […]

    Reply
  6. Farm Aid 2008 « says:
    September 13, 2008 at 1:54 pm

    […] eco-charity ideas from GO Network: Go Green by Doing Good Empower Children with Charity Donation Choices Eco-Angels: Venture Capital For Socially Responsiblity Top 15 Charity Search Engines: Donate to […]

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Our ethos is to provide news, information, and opinions on natural, green parenting to help your family live a greener, healthier life! Additionally, we offer personal consulting services to help you achieve your green living goals.

Jennifer is a vegetarian, yoga teacher, gardener, hiker, teacher, and mother that has been living off-the-grid for over 20 years.

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