‘tis the season to be giving, fa la la la la, la la la la.

I don’t know about you, but I always feel better when I take the time to volunteer time or donate to a good cause, not just during the holiday season, but year-round. Turns out we have some terrific women in the travel blogosphere who have taken time out of their very busy lives to help make it easier for all of us to give to a worthy cause this holiday season: Heifer International, a global organization with a mission to end world hunger.

How, you ask? With the First Annual Passports With Purpose Raffle.

Here’s the deal:

Several travel industry companies (including TravelMuse) have donated cool travel items and packages, most valued at $100 or more, for readers to lust after, from discounts and gift certificates for hotels, camera shops, and travel gear and gadgets, to complimentary tours and free nights accommodations at resorts. You can check them out on the Passports With Purpose page on Wanderlust and Lipstick.

Each prize has an ID. Write down the ones you want, then head over to the Passports With Purpose page at First Giving, which is facilitating the raffle.

For each $10 donation you make, you’ll be entered into the raffle for the prize of your choice. Please be sure to enter the prize code in the comments field on the form, and don’t hide your e-mail address as it’ll be needed to inform you if you won your prizes. (You do want more than one, don’t you?)

You can make as many donations as you want between now and 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time, Dec. 29, 2008. So tell all your friends, and donate early and donate often (to paraphrase from a favored political idiom from my hometown of Chicago)!

You’ll receive a receipt for each donation, and if you work for a company that has a matching gift program, please provide that information when making your donation. Every bit helps.

All proceeds go directly to Heifer International, save for a small processing fee for First Giving. Winners will be selected Dec. 30.

Who do we have to thank for organizing this terrific event? Debbie Dubrow of Delicious Baby, Beth Whitman of Wanderlust and Lipstick, Michelle Duffy of WanderMom and Pam Mandel of Nerd’s Eye View. A big thanks to you all for launching this effort.

So what are you waiting for? Travel on over to Passports With Purpose and give, give, give!