This holiday season, do you find yourself asking…

“What can I possibly get for ________? He / She already has everything!”

“How can I make this Christmas more meaningful for my family?”

“What does socially responsible gift giving look like?”

Many people in our community are entering this holiday season with already tightened purse strings. As a result, we are looking for gifts that will say a lot but will not cost us much. Yet, there are others in our community, our country and around the world who have no purse strings left to tighten. Their purses and strings have disintegrated, and they are left wondering “From where will my help come?”

Sunrise United Methodist Church in Holly Springs, NC is trying to help those asking that very question this holiday season. On Sunday, November 22 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, Sunrise will be holding an Alternative Christmas Market. This will be your chance to purchase alternative gifts in an alternative economy.

What is an alternative gift, you may be asking? An alternative gift is a gift which embraces the true spirit of gift giving, sharing joy. Sunrise is offering several different ways for you to share joy this holiday season. Let a loved one know they’re special by purchasing Bibles for children without a church family or sponsoring a youth to attend a mission trip. We’ll provide you with a card that you can give to your loved one with the details about the gift. Also, you can share joy with people around our country and around the world by supporting locally based non-profit agencies like Operation Sharehouse, purchasing an animal to provide food for someone in Africa, or many other possibilities.

If you’re interested in purchasing items for your loved ones, we’ll also have a wide variety of fair trade products on hand, courtesy of One World Market in Durham. You will find handmade products ranging from silk scarf and hat sets woven by widows in Bolivia to intricate ornaments crafted by artisans in Bangladesh.

The goal of Sunrise’s Alternative Christmas Market is to provide people in our community with an opportunity to purchase gifts that will say a lot, but will also provide for those in need. Through purchasing socially responsible gifts, you’re empowering the creator of the gift, supporting the community, and of course participating in sharing joy. Alternative gifts bring joy as they are purchased, given and received because you know your gift is improving others lives and because you are confident your gift will be unique and memorable.

We hope to see you Sunday, November 22 from 6:00-8:00 PM at Sunrise United Methodist Church. The church is located at 5420 Sunset Lake Road in Holly Springs, one-half mile south of the intersection of Sunset Lake Road and Holly Springs Road. It is five miles north of the intersection of Sunset Lake Road and Highway 401 in Fuquay-Varina. For more information please visit our web site, www.mysunrise.org or contact the church at (919) 303-3720.