Goodly Gifts

By Erica Bray

Luminescent Santa ties, cheap drugstore perfumes and fuzzy bunny slippers--these are the last refuge of the desperate holiday shopper, destined for the New Year's trash heap or some forgotten corner of the attic.

But there's hope, a fresh alternative to the tawdry holiday present: gifts marketed by nonprofit organizations, with proceeds from these purchases going toward either the organization's general cause or a charitable service performed on the donor's behalf. Savvy holiday shoppers with a socially conscious heart often turn to nonprofits to help complete their holiday shopping. In fact, more than 60% of Americans this year plan to buy at least one gift associated with a good cause, according to the strategic marketing firm Cone Inc. By purchasing items from a nonprofit's gift catalog, consumers can support a good cause and possibly score themselves a tax deduction come April. Here are four ways to combine charity with gift giving--and save someone you love from another glow-in-the-dark Santa tie.

LIONS, TIGERS AND BEARS

Rather than brave the holiday-shopping frenzy in search of wool socks and Pokemon paraphernalia, Linda Micke of Daly City, Calif., simply adopts animals from the San Francisco Zoo in her relatives' names. More than 130 zoos nationwide have adopt-an-animal programs, with average yearly adoption fees of $48. The money goes toward the care of the zoo's animals, and "zoo parents" usually receive an adoption packet that includes a photograph of--and facts about--the adopted animal. The gift is tax deductible too. "I'm no dummy," Micke says with a laugh. "I don't throw away my money on something they're never going to wear or look at."

ADOPT-AN-ANIMAL To benefit a beast in San Francisco, call 800-264-6600 or make contact online at www.sfzoo.org/adopt.html Or call your local zoo to see if it has a similar program

CLEVER COLLEGE CRAFTS

Practicing Appalachian craft traditions that are centuries old, some students at Berea College in Berea, Ky., have learned to weave, sculpt and carve an assortment of household items that would make even Martha Stewart jealous. The Berea College Student Crafts catalog features hundreds of handmade products. Proceeds from every couch throw ($90), broom ($9 to $48) and candelabrum ($75) go toward the education of the college's 1,500 students, all of whom work in lieu of tuition. "All you have to do is rub your hands across one of our couch throws, and you'll know there's quality there," says Steve Fain, Berea's craft coordinator.

BEREA COLLEGE CRAFTS can be contacted by phone at 800-347-3892 or online at www.bereacollegecrafts.com

GLOBAL GOOD DEEDS

A goat isn't exactly at the top of every teenager's wish list, but that's what Dee Hahn, 58, of Redmond, Wash., bought her grandson Jeremy, now 14, last Christmas. Through World Vision, a nonprofit humanitarian organization, Hahn spent $75 in Jeremy's name to buy a dairy goat that will supply milk for a child-headed Rwandan family. Other items in the nonprofit's catalog include a birthday party for a Romanian orphanage ($30), and a survival pack for a resettling family from Kosovo ($80). The gifts are tax deductible, and gift recipients receive a card from World Vision describing the contribution made in their names.

WORLD VISION can be contacted online at www.worldvisiongifts.org or by phone at 888-511-6511

THE GIVING TREE

Through the Central Park Conservancy, a nonprofit group that manages New York City's Central Park, Douglas and Anki Leeds were able to endow the very cherry tree their only child Victoria, now 10, played under as a little girl. "It's something real that will be growing with me," says Victoria, who has a framed picture of the tree hanging above her bed. Endowments range from $1,000 to $25,000, with all the money going toward the care of the park's 26,000 trees. The gift is tax deductible.

THE TREE TRUST PROGRAM can be reached by phone at 212-310-6613 or online at www.centralparknyc.org