A Season of Giving: A Charity & Craft Bazaar

Sunday, November 9, 2025
Hosted by the Social Justice Committee of Blessed Sacrament

Looking for a Meaningful Gift?

This holiday season, give gifts that truly make a difference. Join us for A Season of Giving: A Charity & Craft Bazaar — a reimagined version of the beloved Alternative Gift Fair. It’s your opportunity to shop for heartfelt gifts while supporting charitable causes and local artisans.


Visit Us and Make a Difference

Date: November 9
Time: 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
Location: Blessed Sacrament Parish Center

What You’ll Find

Charity Booths & Fair-Trade Goods
Shop from trusted nonprofit and charitable organizations offering gifts that support life-changing missions both locally and globally.

Local Artisans & Crafters
For the first time ever, we’re opening our doors to local artists and creators! Browse handmade goods, art, and more — perfect for thoughtful, one-of-a-kind holiday presents.

Meaningful Giving
Every purchase becomes a ripple of hope. Choose donation-based gifts in honor of loved ones or purchase handmade items from local vendors — either way, you’re giving twice.

Sharing the Joy of Christmas

How It Works

Unique Gifts for Everyone: From handmade crafts to donation-based gifts that honor a loved one, you’ll find something for every person (and every budget).

Gifts that Keep on Giving: Proceeds support essential causes — from clean water to disaster relief to local food programs.

Flexible Giving: Set your own donation amounts for charity booths, making it easy to stay within your budget.

Are You a Maker? Join Us as a Vendor!

The Social Justice Committee is now accepting vendor applications for this year’s event!

Why participate?

  • Sell your handmade merchandise or artwork.
  • Share space with incredible local charities.
  • Enjoy a welcoming new venue and make community connections.
  • Your $30 table fee (includes a table + 2 chairs) will be donated to a local charity or Catholic Relief Services.

Give with Purpose

Come be part of a day where shopping meets compassion, where gifts bring joy and justice, and where your presence makes a real difference.

Let’s make this holiday season one of hope, generosity, and a season of giving.

Featured Organizations & Their Impact:

Aaron’s Gifts From Home

Support U.S. military personnel by sending care packages in memory of Aaron, who was killed in Afghanistan. Shop T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, and more at their Midland Mall store.
Store Hours: Wednesdays, 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Donation Info: 3603 Sweetbrier Terrace, Midland, MI 48642

Learn More

ACT – Agape Community Transformation

Purchase beautiful handcrafted items from Uganda, including baskets, jewelry, and sewn goods. Proceeds empower women in Uganda and support Blessed Sacrament’s partnership with the Muko Sub-County.

Learn More & Shop

Children’s Grief Center

This organization provides a safe and healing environment for children, teens and their families as they grieve the death of a parent, sibling, close family member or friend. They create an atmosphere that fosters healing through peer support and trained volunteers. The participants use art, dance, theatre, storytelling and writing to express their feelings and share their experiences with each other.

Learn More

Civitan Club

The Midland Civitan Club is dedicated to helping people in their own communities with an emphasis on people with disabilities and their families. You can purchase Claxton Fruitcakes to help support their cause.

Visit the Facebook page.

Fair Trade Coffee

Who doesn’t love coffee, tea or chocolate? Fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help producers in developing countries and promote sustainability. The movement advocates the payment of a higher price to producers as well as social and environmental standards in areas related to the production of a wide variety of goods.

 

The United States consumes one-fifth of all the world’s coffee, making it the largest consumer in the world. But few Americans realize that agriculture workers in the coffee industry often toil in what can be described as “sweatshops in the fields.” Many small coffee farmers receive prices for their coffee that are less than the costs of production, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and debt. Fair Trade is a viable solution to this crisis, assuring consumers that the coffee we drink was purchased under fair conditions. To become Fair Trade certified, an importer must meet stringent international criteria; paying a minimum price per pound, providing much needed credit to farmers, and providing technical assistance such as help transitioning to organic farming. Fair Trade for coffee farmers means community development, health, education, and environmental stewardship. We will have Fair Trade coffee and chocolates from Divine Chocolate in Ghana.

Shop Now

Global Compassion

Global Compassion is a nonprofit public charity run by volunteers to help people in need.  Projects include supporting Ukrainian refugees, drilling bore wells for water providing South Sudan educational support. Other endeavors include empowering women to self-sufficiency, and community outreach to help those in emergency needs. You will be able to purchase of Indira’s Homemade Exotic Jams, pure silk scarves, soup packages, jewelry and Ukrainian snacks.

Visit the website

Global Mamas

Global Mamas is a nonprofit organization helping small women-led enterprises in Africa. Purchase handcrafts from women-led businesses in Africa, ensuring sustainable livelihoods for families in need.

Support Global Mamas

Guatemalan Stove Team

Teams from Blessed Sacrament and other churches have gone to Guatemala to install these new fuel efficient and cleaner burning stoves which replace dangerous open cooking fires. Local entrepreneurs have started factories using local labour and materials to produce these stoves. Contribute to cleaner, more efficient stoves for families in Guatemala, helping improve health and the environment.

For more info, contact: Kevin Shaughnessy

Heifer International

Heifer International is a non-profit organization whose goal is to help end world hunger and poverty through self-reliance & sustainability. Heifer projects around the world help families achieve self-reliance through the gift of livestock and training. Over the last year, Heifer was able to assist more than 1.9 million families directly and indirectly. Gifts are passed from recipient to recipient until entire communities are transformed. Heifer was listed by the Harris Interactive Brand survey as one of the top 10 most trusted non-profits in America.  Make a donation to purchase an animal for a family in need.

Learn More

Holy Land Carvings

This group support Christian families in Israel either through creating jobs by selling the handcrafted items, donating to Christian organizations, or directly aiding housing expenses for poor families living there locally. You will be able to purchase religious items made from olive wood.

Check out the shop

Home to Stay Housing Alliance

This agency, previously known as Midland Area Homes, has been serving Midland County for over 40 years improving housing conditions for safe and independent living. They are a resource for rental assistance and furniture pick-up and distribution.

Learn More

Knights of Columbus

A Catholic men’s fraternal service organization where faith is their foundation.

Knights participate in drives to help troubled youth, raise money for individuals who are mentally challenged with an annual Tootsie Roll drive and support Special Olympics. They provide assistance and support to families when and where needed. They support youth-based programs such as the Knights of Columbus Basketball Free Throw Championship and other activities such as Youth outreach retreats and their annual mission trip. They cut firewood to help those who need wood to heat their homes in winter. The Knights will have soup to go to support their many charitable activities.

 

Learn More

Ladies of Blessed Sacrament

This group provides opportunities for women parishioners to become involved in social and service activities and raise funds for and distribute funds to charitable projects within the parish and the Saginaw Diocese. All women registered at Blessed Sacrament Parish are automatically members. The Ladies will have homemade cookies for sale. The Ladies will also be conducting a silent auction of a hand made wood bench that was donated to them.

Learn More

Midland County Food Assistance Network

The goal of this organization is to ensure every family has enough food. In addition to their regular food program, they provide vouchers for nutritional supplements to cancer patients, sponsor monthly mobile pantries and the Backpack Buddies Program which provides a backpack of food each weekend to low-income children.  Make a donation to this agency to honor a family member, neighbor or friend.

Donate Today

Midland’s Open Door

The Open Door is a non-denominational Christian outreach that strives to carry on the mission of Jesus Christ. They minister to the spiritual and physical needs of the hungry, homeless and poor. The ministries include: a men’s crisis shelter, a crisis shelter for women and children, a soup kitchen, jail and prison outreach, clothing ministry, Restoration ministry, bible study, prayer and Christian fellowship.

Learn More

Nonviolent Peaceforce (NP) of Midland

Supports the vision of International NP’s  “Worldwide culture of peace in which conflicts within and between communities and countries are managed through nonviolent means.”  Our local chapter raises donations for international peace and also has helped train Midland area students and adults in conflict resolution skills.

Nothing-But-Nets

Malaria infects more than 500 million people a year and kills more than a million. Malaria is both a preventable and treatable disease.  Despite the magnitude of the problem, there is a simple and cost-effective solution to prevent malaria deaths-bed nets. Bed nets work by creating a protective barrier against mosquitoes at night, when the vast majority of transmissions occur. A family of four can sleep under an insecticide-treated bed net, safe from malaria, for up to four years. The benefits of bed nets extend even further than the family. When enough nets are used, the insecticide used to deter mosquitoes makes entire communities safer—including even those individuals who do not have nets. $10 is all that is needed to purchase one net.

Learn More

Peanut Butter Project

In 1999, Dr.  Mark Manary, a Bay City native, went to Malawi to study malnutrition. He worked with a number of people to develop a therapy food that didn’t spoil or needed to be cooked, was energy dense and could be given in small amounts. Today this peanut butter formula is being given to thousands of malnourished children in Malawi.   95% of children receiving this formula reach their ideal weight for their height   The formulation is produced and packaged in Malawi which helps support the local economy. For $1.00, children will be able decorate sugar cookies with proceeds benefiting the Peanut Butter Project.  You will also be able to make a contribution and receive a peanut ornament.

Learn More

Phoenix Community Farm

A non-profit farm that serves the Midland community with not only fresh produce, but also with education about growing, harvesting, preparing, eating, & preserving produce.  Their produce is often shared with those in need of food. They will have freeze dried herbs for sale.

Visit Phoenix Community Farm

Red Dirt Road

Red Dirt Road was co-founded by the Harpswell Foundation and former parishioner Marie Eckstein. The Harpswell Foundation works to Empower a New Generation of Women Leaders in Cambodia. Red Dirt Road helps women in a remote village in Cambodia design, produce and market beautiful handmade fashion accessories, enabling them to build their own business to support their families in this impoverished country. All profits are returned to the women.

Shop Red Dirt Road

Royal Family Kid’s Club

Royal Family Kid’s Clubs offers a way to mentor foster children at a critical developmental stage (ages 6-12) and build healthy new patterns that can change their lives.  They offer an intensive, year-round program through multi-denominational neighborhood churches – with no fees charged to foster families.  They also provide free 5-day residential summer camps with one counselor for every 2 children building a week of positive memories. They are the nation’s leading network of camps for abused, neglected and abandoned children.

Support Royal Family Kid’s Club

Salvation Army Adopt-A-Family

Make Christmas joyful for a family in need by adopting a family through The Salvation Army’s program. The Adopt-A-Family program, is designed to provide Christmas gifts and food to needy families.  In Midland County many families will sign up to be adopted but few will be adopted.

Call: (989)-496-2787 for more info or visit the website.

Serrv International

SERRV is a nonprofit organization with a mission to eradicate poverty wherever it resides by providing opportunity and support to artisans and farmers worldwide. SERRV works with thousands of small-scale artisans and farmers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and other developing regions of the world by marketing their handcrafts. In addition to purchasing and marketing products,  Serrv works with producers to assist them in becoming economically self sufficient through product design, training, information, technical assistance and market access.  You will be able to purchase a wide variety of hand crafted products that will benefit the artisans supported by Serrv.

Shop Serrv

Shelterhouse

The mission of Shelterhouse it is to serve, heal, and empower survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault by providing safety, shelter, counseling, and advocacy. All of their services are 100% free and confidential.  They provide emergency shelter, transitional supportive housing programs, one-on-one counseling, support groups, legal advocacy, court accompaniment and sexual assault nursing examinations.

Visit the Website

The Arc of Midland

The Arc of Midland is a nonprofit organization which promotes the general welfare of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and increases their presence, participation and inclusion in the community.

Learn More

Featured Craft Vendors:

Debra Smith

Cigar box purses that come in different shapes and sizes.

Janet Karle

Handmade greeting cards crochet slippers and afghans crochet dishcloths and scrubbies crochet baskets

Janet Robertson

Rug hooked pillows & paintings

Nina Bush

One of a kind Artificial Christmas Wreaths ! All hand wired ! Shatter proof ornaments, beautiful bows ! 28”, 20” and 18”

Thomas Peters

Handmade pens and pencils

Wayne Rezmer

Lap quilts and quilted seasonal table runners and bag holders multiple handmade wooden items such as snowmen, bowls and phone holders and tree scapes railroad-pin crosses.

Janet Goold

Towels, pot holders, tote bags

Sew Loopin Adorable

Crochet plushies- chickens, bunnies, mushrooms, etc. Crochet washcloths, hot pads

Cindy Coon

Seasonal crafts as well as Norwex products and demos.

Christine Peitsch

Crocheted purses and bags, patchwork quilted bags and purses, colorful fabric purses and bags, fabric wallets and Kindle/IPad holders

Judy Eastman

Sewn items: table runners, quilts, pillowcases, pot holders; candles

This event is sponsored by the Blessed Sacrament Social Justice Committee.