Gifts of Love: Heart-warming Traditions

HEAT-AND-EAT DINNERS
Five years ago the Sale family of Carmel, Indiana, cooked up the perfect annual gift for Great-Grandfather Jack, who lives on his own. They realized that he didn't need any more things, says mom Marlene, but would surely appreciate some home-cooked meals, especially his favorite, roast beef and carrots, and pork and sweet potatoes.

So in the weeks leading up to Christmas, the family prepared and froze nine complete meals in microwavable containers. Then they made a card with a picture of Santa roasting a turkey and listed each "frozen dinner from the North Pole" by number. Whenever Jack was ready to eat, he'd just choose a meal, take off the cover, heat it up, and enjoy a home-cooked feast.

"The gift was a huge hit," says Marlene, who adds, "The plates keep coming back from Jack, ready to be filled again."

A FAMILY'S TRADITION OF CHARITABLE GIVING
When Lorraine Orlick was a child, her family decided to forgo swapping gifts one year and instead give to charity. Realizing how meaningful an experience that was for her, Lorraine wanted to provide the same opportunity for her kids. So she and her husband, Marc, initiated a family tradition of "tzedakah," which in Judaism is the act of providing aid to the poor or needy. Throughout the year, the Orlicks put their pocket change in a special decorated can, called a pushka, that 8-year-old Russell made in his Hebrew school.

A week before Hanukkah, the family donates the collected funds to a charity chosen by Russell and his 5-year-old sister, Melissa. Last year, they picked the Double H Ranch, a camp for critically ill children that's close by the Orlicks' annual vacation spot in upstate New York. The kids love the tradition. And while the pushka is worn from age and use, says Lorraine, the tradition of tzedakah will continue.