Every year, men, women, and children with a passion for helping families in poverty generously use what God has given them to bless others by giving to World Renew’s Gift Catalog. So far this year, over $1,457,183.53 has been raised through the Gift Catalog –and orders are still coming in!
Since July 2014, over $1,457,183.53 has been raised through the Gift Catalog – and orders are still coming in!
Since every item in the Gift Catalog represents a practical step toward renewal for individuals, families, and communities around the world, one of the many highlights for World Renew is seeing the results that come when these generous gifts are put to use.
Consider chickens, for example. Over 2,000 chickens have already been purchased through the 2014-15 Gift Catalog to help equip poor families in Honduras to strengthen their income through poultry farming.
For the women in Olancho, Honduras, these chickens have provided an opportunity to contribute to their families in a new way.
As in many rural communities of Honduras, women in Olancho are traditionally engaged in housework and raising children and do not work outside the home. This means that most women depend on the men of their households—husbands, fathers and sons—to provide them with funds for the family’s clothing, education, and health care. When all goes well, this system works. When crops fail, all that changes.
In recent years, the seasonal rains have become more unpredictable. This greatly affects the agricultural productivity and food security of the communities in Olancho. Many of the women have come to realize that they can no longer rely on the traditional harvests of corn and beans as the sole source of income and food for their families.
Through chickens provided by World Renew’s Gift Catalog and training from World Renew’s partner, Diaconia Nacional, the women in the community have been empowered to provide for their families in a new way.
Today, the women successfully breed chickens, and eventually sell the meat in their community. Beyond their traditional tasks of housework and caring for children, these women are now contributing to the income of their families. They are also able to meet other family needs such as clothing, education, and health care. In times of increased production, they hire other people to help them, creating additional employment in their community.
“This project has been a blessing to the families and communities in Olancho—but it has been especially good for the women,” said Eduardo Artica, a World Renew staff member in Honduras. “We hope that these successful experiences motivate more women’s groups in other communities.”
Changes for families in places like Olancho are possible in part because of the compassion of families in North America who are been inspired by World Renew’s Gift Catalog and come up with creative and thoughtful ways to share God’s blessings with others.
Whether it’s picking out gifts with kids for a birthday, choosing farm animals to donate as a church offerings, or honoring a loved one at Christmas, these actions build relationships over a shared concern for families in need.
For Doreen Horlings, the Gift Catalog gave her the opportunity to help her grandchildren imagine what life is like for a family living in a poor community and to show them that the gift of a goat can help give them milk to drink and sell.
“My children and I have been through some tough times over the years but God has blessed us through all of it. By His grace we’ve been able to “pay forward” His blessings.” – Ken Goud
Doreen and her husband have a total of 13 grandchildren aged 4 months to 12 years. This year for Christmas they gave their grandchildren the gift of a goat through World Renew’s Gift Catalog,”
“In order to make it a little more interesting and real for them, I wrote a story about a family to go along with the gift cards,” explained Horlings. “I read this story to them and then handed them each the card with their name on it. You could have heard a pin drop while I was reading it to them.”
“I told them that this goat is not coming to their house, but going way across the ocean to a village where there are mommies and daddies and kids just like them only they are very poor. Because of the goat given through them, a family will not be hungry anymore.”
For Ken Goud, another Canadian World Renew supporter, the Gift Catalog gave him the opportunity to ‘give back’ to his community after they supported him and his family in an extremely difficult time.
In 1999, Goud received devastating medical news about Ashley, his 18-month-old daughter: she had a very rare form of cancer.
Goud and his family hoped and prayed for Ashley as she fought for her life. They did not know what the future would hold, but their friends and neighbors made sure they knew that they were not alone.
“During Ashley’s courageous battle with this horrible disease, our family was blessed with overwhelming support from both our church and local community,” said Goud.
After three and a half years, Ashley passed away in November of 2002.
“As the years went by I really felt the desire to say thank you and pay forward all the incredible generosity we had received,” said Goud. “So in 2009 I decided to cook a Christmas dinner in our home in hopes of raising enough money to buy four or five goats through for World Renew’s gift catalog program.”
Goud had recently discovered he had a talent for cooking—so he planned a menu that included delectable dishes such as curry coconut cream mussels, Belgium endive salad, roast potatoes, and fall a-part roast beef. His three children agreed to help out with setting up tables, doing the dishes, and preparing and serving the meals.
The dinner, fellowship, and delicious food was a huge success!
“One dinner quickly turned into 8 dinners with 80 guests and we raised enough money to buy 94 Goats—just a few more than the 4 or 5 we were hoping for!” said Goud.
Just like that, a tradition of serving the international community through a local community event was born. Every year, more people got involved and more goats were purchased with each year that followed.
By the time Christmas 2010 came around, Goud had started volunteering at Mission Services in Hamilton. He realized that many of the clients there had no home to go to for a Christmas dinner. So he invited them to come to his home and he sent emails to some of his business suppliers and asked if they would consider sponsoring the 40-50 meals for the Mission Services guests. He would cover the cost of the meals, so everyone would get a tax receipt for 100% of their donation—and all of the money donated could then go to buy goats through World Renew.
In 2013, Goud decided to ask his congregation at Dundas CRC to get involved. That year they were able to serve an additional dinner for the clients of Drummond House, a local Christian nonprofit that offers temporary housing for women and children.
Last Christmas—2014—Goud and his dinner sponsors and guests hit a new record: 272 goats—pushing the 6 year total to 862 goats!
“The heartfelt gratitude of our Mission guests touches and humbles us year after year, said Goud. “I am a bit of a quiet Christian so I’m thankful that our guests can experience God’s grace in such a simple and loving way.
He, his family, and his entire community are amazed to see God working through them and look forward to seeing what He will do next.
“My children and I have been through some tough times over the years but God has blessed us through all of it. By His grace we’ve been able to “pay forward” His blessings,” he said.
“What started as a simple Christmas dinner six years ago has allowed us to have such an impact on so many lives both near and far. I cannot imagine the impact that those goats have made on the lives of so many families living in poverty all over the world. And I can’t wait to see what we can do in 2015!”
