The good folks over at GoodyBlog recently pointed their readers in the direction of MarkMakers.com, a smart new online venue for kids to learn about charitable giving. It’s such an important concept to instill in the short set, one that will hopefully develop into a life long pattern. The basic concept is this, purchase a gift card (which you can either print out or email to the recipient) which kids can then use to shop at the MarkMakers store for goods and services needed around the world. They can spread their funds among more than 40 needs/causes such as vaccines, medicine and eyecare, or saving animals, rain forests and coral reefs.

The site is cleverly divided into ’shops’:
Environmental Protection
Peace & Justice
Kids in Need
Disease Prevention & Healthcare
Poverty & Hunger
Animal Protection

Easy to navigate, each charity is explained in clear terms educating Junior about everything from Human Rights Watch to Seeds of Peace. Below is an example of how a gift-giving option might be formatted.

And in these last few days before Christmas, know that you can purchase a MarkMaker’s gift card up until the very last minute! Print it out, roll it up, tie with a ribbon and stuff in stocking.

In 1995, Brown’s Foster Home, a facility in Rome, Maine for developmentally disabled men, began a wood shop program and their first project was to build a classic birdhouse. The guys enjoyed the collaborative process and began experimenting with not only various house shapes and rooflines but also with recycled and repurposed materials. As their skill improved and they refined their designs Recycled Reflections became a full fledged enterprise. And now more than 15 years since inception the guys at Brown’s have made literally thousands of birdhouses all of which they catalogued: stamping, numbering, dating and photographing each piece.

Inspiring story aside, the birdhouses really are quite remarkable with their trademark pine cone shingled roofs, patina of age lent by the recycled materials and quirky personality acquired from their unexpected perches. They average between $65. and $75., a price tag tempered by the knowledge of the sense of accomplishment and dignity the guys get from their efforts building birdhouses.