FDN is participating in this year’s Ithaca Alternative Gift Fair, which offers an opportunity to give charitable donations as holiday gifts for friends and relatives. The Fair will be held from 11 am to 7 pm, Saturday, December 5, in two adjacent locations:  the First Presbyterian Church, 315 North Cayuga Street, and the First Baptist Church, 309 North Cayuga Street. Over 55 organizations will be represented at the Fair, which started in 2004 and has grown each year. Gifts at the Fair start at $5, and each gift you buy comes with a free greeting card and an insert about the organization you are supporting. All of the money collected at the Fair goes directly to the participating organizations. The Ithaca Alternative Gift Fair is sponsored by the Center for Transformative Action and TCAction, with financial support from Alternatives Federal Credit Union.

The gifts we are offering this year are:

• $5 – Provides 73 lbs of milk and cheese to a youth program or a school
• $10 – Provides 145 lbs of fresh fruits and vegetables to 5 poor families at a food pantry
• $20 – Provides 623 bagels plus 145 lbs of milk, eggs, yogurt, cheese and sandwich meats to workers at 3 low-wage worksites
• $25 – Provides 364 lbs of meat, groceries, fruits, vegetables and bread to 12 poor families
• Open – Helps support FDN to alleviate hunger in our community: just $ 1 provides 14.6 lbs of assorted food to needy families