To some, holiday gift giving is joy; to others, it’s an obligation. If it seems the true spirit of giving somehow gets trampled by the herd of holiday shoppers at the mall, then maybe it’s time to rethink our gift choices.

Thanks to Geist resident Stephen Farber, there is now a way to give a gift while making a charitable contribution at the same time. Now that’s giving – times two!

Farber has started Heart to Heart Gifts, a unique company which offers tins of high-quality nut products as holiday gifts. Not only does the recipient get a tasty treat in the mail, but all profits from the sale go to the Indiana Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the Indiana Center for MS Foundation Inc.

The vision for this unique effort struck Farber shortly after he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) in October 2006. Fortunately, the incurable neurological disease was in its early stages and is now controlled with medications, allowing Farber to continue enjoying his life and using his time to help others.

“It’s a pretty impactful moment in a person’s life when they get the diagnosis,” said Farber, a Hamilton Proper resident who is now on the Indiana MS Society board. “There are additional challenges in my life, but there are certainly ways I can grow… As it’s often said, ‘I have MS, but it doesn’t have me.’”

Since Farber once owned a candy and snackfood business (Golden Stream Quality Foods Inc.), it was only natural to combine his background with his desire to support the MS Society. Farber’s main purpose in starting Heart to Heart Gifts was to raise awareness of the early symptoms of MS (vision problems, numbness or tingling in the limbs, heat sensitivity and exhaustion). But Farber doesn’t want to stop there. He hopes eventually to add other charities to the list of organizations customers may choose to support with their purchases.

“People want to do more then just give a gift,” he said. “Heart to Heart is a way to give a gift and contribute at the same time. Hopefully the words MS will mean one day, ‘Mystery Solved!’”

So this holiday season, you may want to forgo the mall and visit www.hearttoheartgifts.org instead. Make a gift to humanity!

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