Young Presbyterian Scholars Offer Unique Holiday Giving Opportunities

The Westminster College Young Presbyterian Scholars are sponsoring an "Alternative Gift Market" Saturday, Dec. 4, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. in the Berlin Lounge located in the McKelvey Campus Center.

 "Shoppers can browse through display booths to find a gift to fit any budget from $1 to as much as you would like to spend," said Carey Anne Meyer-LaSor, coordinator of the Young Presbyterian Scholars Program.  "Many of us are past where we actually "need' gifts, but many people in the world are not.  We wanted to supply a way to share what we have, but still recognize and honor our friends and relatives."

 Alternative Gifts International gives people a way to help the poor and the planet, while honoring a friend or family member.  Westminster students will display nine of the 36 world-wide projects including: Blankets for Recovery/North Korea; Purify Water with Solar Power/Tanzania; A New Start for Women/U.S.A.; Revive the Rainforest/Chile; Breaking the Silence; AIDS & Women's Rights/Kenya; Educate with Solar Power/Honduras & Dominican Republic (sponsored by the Sierra Club); Back to School/Iraq; Caution: Children at Work/Egypt; and Gardens for a Healthy Planet/Global.

 Alternative Gifts catalogues will be available so that shoppers can view the remaining projects.  The fair will also include items from the New Wilmington Presbyterian SERRV/a Greater Gift Shop, which represents crafts from 33 third-world counties, and a refreshment table selling fair trade coffee from the Presbyterian Coffee Project.

 For more information, contact Meyer-LaSor at (724) 946-7365 or e-mail meyerca@westminster.edu.

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