by guest writer Niccole Perez

With only two days left until Christmas, shoppers everywhere are scurrying to scratch last-minute tasks and gifts off of their lists. As the hours tick by, this year’s latest gadgets, toys, clothes, and game systems are being snatched off of shelves nationwide. And that hard-to-shop-for person on each shopper’s list is likely generating second-guesses and cries for creative gift ideas. Amongst all of this holiday consumption, one organization is offering just that - a different kind of gift. Their gifts will neither go out of style, end up in a thrift store, nor will they be lost at the bottom of any toy boxes in the years to come.

Instead, Blood: Water Mission’s Filters for Families campaign means a one-time gift this holiday season will generate clean water for a Zambian family for as much as twenty years’ time. Earlier this decade, Blood: Water Mission was started by the Grammy-winning group Jars of Clay with the goals of “creatively and thoughtfully raising awareness and the necessary funds for the provision of clean blood and clean water in sub-Saharan Africa.”

Through their 1000 Wells campaign, Blood: Water Mission has built wells for villages throughout Africa and taught the villagers processes for maintaining their water systems and ensuring proper sanitation. Each village that has received clean water has seen diseases, stomach aches, and diarrhea vanish. And people with clean water and HIV are now living longer and feeling their strength restored, thanks to the efforts of this organization.

Blood: Water Mission has also launched the Filters for Families campaign with a goal of providing 1,640 filters to villagers this Christmas. For $85, anyone can buy a filter for one family in need of clean water. As part of the giving process, Blood: Water Mission provides a downloadable, printable card on their website, with which to recognize and present your gift. This convenient giving process is quick, and it spares you one more trip into the Christmas shopping frenzy.

Are you still stumped on what to get that person on your list that has everything? Two decades from now, long after we will have forgotten what we gave or received for Christmas ‘09, a whole family could still be receiving clean water thanks to your choice to give a unique and generous gift through Blood: Water Mission.

Niccole Perez is a grateful believer in Jesus Christ, a stay-at-home Wife, and a Mommy to three amazing little ones. Her focus is providing her family with a healthy home and diet. Over the years she has learned to cook balanced meals, maintain a home with non-toxic cleaning products, and encourage her family towards a wholesome lifestyle.