The Gift That Keeps Giving: What Children Taught Us About Generosity
Every year, Christmas invites us into generosity.
We give more during the holidays than at any other time of year. We donate. We shop. We look for ways to express care and gratitude through tangible gifts. The season opens our hearts, often in beautiful ways.
And yet, while generosity peaks during the holidays, the needs people face do not follow a seasonal calendar. Most families who are struggling were struggling long before December arrived.
Last year, the children at Old Mill Creek Schoolhouse began to notice this difference.
As part of their learning, they spent time researching the ethics of holiday giving. They asked honest, thoughtful questions:
- Why does giving increase so dramatically in December?
- Why does the need remain steady throughout the year?
- What makes a gift truly helpful, not just meaningful in the moment?
What they discovered shaped everything that followed.
Thinking Beyond the Moment
The children learned that while generosity increases during the holidays, hunger, poverty, and instability do not follow the same seasonal rhythm. That realization stayed with them.
They wanted to help, but did not want to give in a way that felt temporary or symbolic. They wanted to do something that would last – something that would support families long after Christmas morning.
In their words, they wanted a gift that keeps on giving – a lasting gift.
That search led them to Gifts for Life (by way of St. Cecilia’s Episcopal Church in Round Top, Texas), a program of Episcopal Relief Fund that focuses on sustainable, dignity-centered support for families. Instead of short-term aid, Gifts for Life offers tangible resources like livestock, beehives, and farming tools, along with training when needed, so families can build income, nourishment, and long-term stability.
For the children, the appeal was simple and practical. A goat could help a family earn income and meet daily needs. A cow could strengthen food security in a lasting way. A beehive could provide ongoing income through honey. Each gift carried the possibility of continuity rather than consumption.
Where Art Meets Impact
Once the children chose the gifts they wanted to support, they looked for a way to invite others into the project. They turned to art.
Each child created an original drawing inspired by a Gifts for Life offering, and those drawings were transformed into small magnets that include information about the gift. When someone supports a family through Gifts for Life, they receive one of these magnets as a simple reminder of the connection they helped create.
The response was immediate.
People were drawn to the chance to support families in a lasting way. Grandparents purchased gifts in honor of their grandchildren, and families used the magnets to spark conversations about generosity and responsibility.
Long after the holidays ended, the artwork remained visible, quietly telling the story of what had been made possible. By the end of the season, this small school community in partnership with St. Cecilia’s Round Top, had raised more than $7,000. Seeing that impact mattered for the children. Their ideas had traveled far beyond the classroom and that understanding stayed with them.
Growing the Vision This Year
This year, the project has grown alongside the children.
In addition to new artwork representing additional Gifts for Life options, the children have created full-size drawings that are now available as framed prints through a silent auction. All proceeds from the auction go directly toward funding Gifts for Life. If an auction raises more than the cost of a single gift, the additional funds simply purchase several gifts, supporting more families through the same life-giving program.
Most importantly, the children will be able to see the total raised. They will know what their work made possible. After all, children deserve to understand their impact. They deserve to see that their ideas, creativity, and care can move beyond intention and into real change.
Choose a Gift That Gives Life
This season, you are invited to take part in the work these children have been shaping with care and intention.
Each gift below supports a family through Episcopal Relief Fund’s Gifts for Life program, offering sustainable resources like livestock and beehives that help meet daily needs while building long-term stability. When you choose a gift, you will receive a piece of original artwork created by a child from Old Mill Creek Schoolhouse, a small but meaningful reminder of the connection you helped create.
You may also choose to participate in the silent auction for framed, full-size prints of the children’s artwork, with all proceeds supporting Gifts for Life and extending the impact even further.
If you feel drawn to this work, we welcome you to take part. Your choice helps families build stability and allows children to see the impact of what they have created.
Thank you for being part of this story, and may this season bring warmth, meaning, and care into your days.
TWO WAYS TO GIVE: This Holiday Give the Gift of Sustainability
- Bid in our Silent Auction to own a framed print of the children’s artwork!
All proceeds go to Gifts for Life via St. Cecilia’s, so the kids can see the difference they’re making. Click here to bid!
- Give online and receive a magnet featuring the children’s artwork
Donate online via St. Cecilia’s (choose “Gifts for Life” at the very bottom of the drop down menu) or give cash/check at St. Cecilia’s in Round Top, Texas.
After you have donated, fill out this form telling us how much you donated and which gift you want to buy so we can send you a magnet featuring the children’s artwork and make sure your money goes to the correct gift.
Double your impact! Gifts for Life is matching donations up to $1 million this holiday season!
Check out the available gifts below!
Provide Care for Moms and Newborns
$35 for one Mother and Child
Purchase this gift to connect expectant mothers with local health care providers and critical education programming about food and nutrition to keep both mother and baby healthy.
Artwork by Mabel Jobe ~ 7 years old (2025)
Give Fruit Trees
$35 for a share
Purchase this gift to provide fruit trees such as passion fruit, mango, avocado, and banana, which provide long-term sustainable sources of nutrition and income – and can be planted on hillsides for erosion control.
Artwork by Cooper Jobe ~ 11 years old (2025)
Give a Bicycle
$95 for one bike
Purchase this gift to help community volunteers in rural areas cover greater distances, reach more homes, and spend more time with their families.
Artwork by Adeline Forman ~ 8 years old (2025)
Give a Family Garden
$175 for one Family Garden
Purchase this gift to provide seeds, training, and education for families to created low-cost, low-effort kitchen gardens that produce fresh fruits and vegetables they can use to diversify the nutritional value of meals and generate income by selling surpluses.
Artwork by Hudson Forman ~ 11 years old (2025)
Provide Education for Children Affected by AIDS
$80 for one Child
Purchase this gift to bring trained volunteer teachers, school supplies, curriculum, and learning materials to pre-school children whose lives have been impacted by HIV/AIDS.
Artwork by Rocco Kenisell ~ 9 years old (2025)
Give Seeds, Tools, and Training
$45 for a share
Purchase this gift to help communities thrive with seeds, climate-smart agricultural training, and quality farm tools to cultivate a sustainable food supply.
Artwork by Silas Brewster ~ 6 years old (2025)
Give a Beehive
$35 for One Hive
Purchase this gift which leads to increased food security and helps provide their keepers with a reliable source of income.
Artwork by Cooper Jobe ~ 10 years old (2024)
Give a Cow
$65 for a Share
or
$630 for One Cow
With a milk-producing cow, a family has a steady supply of nourishment and can sell surplus milk to better provide for themselves.
Artwork by Mabel Jobe ~ 6 years old (2024)
Give a Flock of Chickens
$25 for One Share
or
$135 for One Flock
Purchase this gift as animals are often at the center of investment and income generation. Empower families to make their own financial choices with a flock of chickens to raise additional poultry and sell surplus stock and eggs in the marketplace.
Artwork by Cooper Jobe ~ 10 years old (2024)
Give a Pig
$20 for One Share
or
$100 for One Pig
Offer families financial security and access to food by training them to raise and sell pigs, which reproduce quickly and are ready for market in just six months.
Artwork by Hudson Forman ~ 10 years old
Give a Goat
$80 for One Goat
Purchase this gift so a family may have a stable source of milk, cheese and manure for farming.
Artwork by Hudson Forman, 10 years old (2024)
Give a Gift of Clean Water
$35 for One Person
or
$215 for One Family
Purchase this gift to ensure access to the most crucial element of health and resilience – clean water – which prevents the spread of illness and deadly disease.
Artwork by Mabel Jobe ~ 6 years old (2024)
Give Today
Remember, there are two ways to give:
- Bid in our Silent Auction to own a framed print of the children’s artwork!
All proceeds go to Gifts for Life via St. Cecilia’s, so the kids can see the difference they’re making. Click here to bid!
- Give online and receive a magnet featuring the children’s artwork
Donate online via St. Cecilia’s (choose “Gifts for Life” at the very bottom of the drop down menu) or give cash/check at St. Cecilia’s in Round Top, Texas.
After you have donated, fill out this form telling us how much you donated and which gift you want to buy so we can send you a magnet featuring the children’s artwork and make sure your money goes to the correct gift.
Double your impact! Gifts for Life is matching donations up to $1 million this holiday season!