Generosity across generations: MCC Christmas Giving

Two millennia ago, a guiding star led a group of wise men across borders so they could share gifts with a young couple in another nation.  

They didn’t know the family — but they knew they could do their part to help the couple’s newborn reach his full potential.  

In the modern day, grandparents across Canada and the U.S. act as guiding stars each Christmas, leading their families toward the time-told tradition of helping others across the world. As Elizabeth Stauffer of Goshen, Indiana, says, “It’s important to know that Christmas is not just about giving to each other, to people from whom we receive. Christmas is also a time to give to people who have less than we do.” 

Every December, the children and grandchildren travel from Kansas to celebrate with Elizabeth and her husband, Don. During that time, each family member explores the MCC Christmas Giving guide and chooses relief, development and peace projects they would like to support. Elizabeth and Don then make donations to MCC on their loved ones’ behalf. They are just one of many families that do so every year.  

Here are three steps to take when starting a Christmas Giving tradition of your own, from the Stauffers and other families dedicated to giving. 

Sometimes, finding Christmas gifts that fit family members perfectly can be tough.  

Each grandchild in a family can have markedly different interests, and those interests can change from year to year. The options in MCC’s Christmas Giving guide speak to a more universal desire to help others, making them great for families looking for one-size-fits-all gift ideas.  

Some families, like Wilf and Pearl Pauls of Kelowna, British Colombia, pair Christmas Giving with a modest but meaningful gift the grandkids can take home with them. (In the case of the Pauls family, each of the eight grandchildren get a book — fitting, as Wilf is a published children’s author.)

Whether or not you’ll be pairing the tradition with additional presents, first run the idea of Christmas Giving by all your family members, including your adult children.  

The families we interviewed were delighted with the idea.  

Janice Malloy says, “I’m thankful that my parents (Ray and Kathy Bauman of Elmira, Ontario) are modeling the gift of giving … my kids have a visual of what the monetary value can purchase and then they see that x amount of dollars will provide enough water for a village or food for a family. It just makes it more tangible and real.”

Jennifer Glover is the daughter of Larry and Maxine Miller of Mashulaville, Mississippi. She says that her son, nephews and niece are happy to partake in Christmas Giving with their grandparents. “They have grown up in an environment of servitude and giving back, so [Christmas Giving] is just a continuation of what they already believe.” 

All five families interviewed for this article let their giftees peruse the Christmas Giving guide and select items that call to them.  

The Pauls family selects gifts ahead of time. Then, on Christmas, Pearl prints information about each grandchild’s selection. Last year, as she passed the printouts around, she commended each child on their choice. Wilf says the grandchildren “lit right up. They remembered everything they’d given.” After this ritual, “the tone was set for a giving Christmas. No one missed a larger gift, and the parents (their adult kids) were so grateful for what had just happened.”  

Among other Christmas traditions (like a meal of fruit, olives and seeds like the shepherds might have eaten), the Baumans give each grandchild a set amount of money they can put toward MCC-supported projects. Through the experience, 13-year-old granddaughter Madison Malloy says, “I’ve learned that Christmas is different all around the world. Some have big parties. Others have little or none. I should definitely be grateful for what I have.”

The breadth of options in the Christmas Giving guide makes it easy for grandchildren to pick presents related to causes they care about. Stauffer recalls that one year, her grandson chose a gift of chickens — at the time, he himself was interested in raising a feathered flock.

The Millers paste each page of the guide onto a display board and place it by the tree. Before Christmas dinner, family members and guests browse the options and make their choices. Jamie Miller, 16, says that he is guided by his grandparents’ interest in gardening and feeding the hungry, and chooses his gifts accordingly.  

Likewise, a couple in North Newton, Kansas, who asked not to be named, say their grandchildren often choose water- or sustainable agriculture-related gifts, based upon their grandparents’ time serving in drought-prone parts of East Africa. 

The Pauls family approached their first year of Christmas Giving as a “family experiment.” They recommend starting simple, then letting God guide your family toward an annual giving tradition.  

Your efforts could multiply in a number of ways.  

The couple in Kansas, for instance, says that one year, their granddaughter returned to college and told her friends about Christmas with her family. They took an interest in MCC and soon began assembling school kits.

Meanwhile, the Miller family’s Christmas table has become open to anyone in the area who needs a place to celebrate.  

Their ministry, the Mennonite Service Center, reaches out to homeless community members year-round. The on-site Mashulaville Dormitory also houses volunteers. December guests from all backgrounds are invited to spend Christmas with the Millers, and to make Christmas Giving selections. Larry and Maxine recall a holiday where “a homeless guest, a prison parolee, an international traveler and a baby were all included in the round table sharing of gift, prayer and [a] scrumptious meal.”

Are you ready to share the giving spirit with your family this Christmas? This year, you and your loved ones can change lives by supporting projects like eco-friendly stoves that help women save time, music lessons that connect youth with their culture and livestock cultivation projects around the world. We invite you to explore this year’s Christmas Giving guide, and consider ways you can be a guiding star for your family. 

Header photo caption: Wilf and Pearl Pauls of Kelowna, British Colombia, have made a Christmas tradition of gifting their eight grandchildren with a book and a selection from the MCC Christmas Giving guide.