Make a forever gift to help orphaned and abandoned children. Browse the SOS Children's Villages Gift Catalog at http://sos-usa.org/gifts

November 15, 2010: We’ve all heard of durable goods -- things such as DVD players, fishing rods, or toys that will last for a while. One definition of a durable good is a product that does not quickly wear out and yields utility over time.

This holiday season, it’s natural for us to want to give gifts such as durable goods that will serve friends and family for some time -- housewares, electronic equipment, even cars for anyone who can afford one.

But here’s the thing: Durable goods don’t hang around forever. Time was, they were supposed to last at least five years. More recent definitions, probably reflecting changing manufacturing realities, peg the life of a durable good at three years or more. These days when a durable good breaks, it’s often cheaper to buy a new one than to pay for labor and parts.

Do Durable Good

Make a forever gift to help orphaned and abandoned children. Browse the SOS Children's Villages Gift Catalog at http://sos-usa.org/gifts

This holiday, instead of buying a durable good that isn’t durable for long, do durable good. Join the growing number of people all over the world who are shedding old gift-giving patterns and opting, instead, to change the lives of people in need.

By purchasing a gift through SOS Children’s Villages, you can secure food, clothes, and school supplies for the vulnerable children we raise in 132 countries. You can ensure that a Haitian child still traumatized by losing both parents to this year’s earthquake gets the medical and psychological care and attention he deserves. You can pay the school fee for a girl in Africa whose traditional society does not encourage girls’ education. You can create a modest micro-loan that will give a struggling family in Central America the boost they need to keep their family intact and not need to bring their toddler to SOS to raise.

The Chance to Make a Forever Gift

By making a purchase from the heart, you will be providing a genuine durable good. How so? The latest MP3 player you’re thinking about giving to your niece this year won’t last her a lifetime. But the gift of hope you procure for a young girl in Mali through SOS will. Because there is no end to the utility of transforming a child’s life.

Make your gifts count this year at a time when children all over the globe have witnessed so much tragedy in their short lives.

To help us help them, see our SOS Children’s Villages catalog at http://sos-usa.org/gifts.