Share your love for Mercer University this holiday season and support a Mercerian at the same time. The Den’s 2024 Holiday Gift Guide features 10 gifts created, sold by or connected to Mercerians. Whether you’re buying presents for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or just because, this list is sure to have something your friends and family will love.
Mercer Illustrated coffee table book
Bring the beauty of campus to your favorite Mercerian’s living room when you purchase Mercer Illustrated: The People, Places and Experiences of a Uniquely Impactful University, a new coffee table book from Mercer University Press and the University’s Marketing Communications Office. This gorgeous book features more than 250 photos highlighting the places, people, spirit and experiences that collectively contribute to Mercer’s impact on the world. Mercer Illustrated can be purchased at your favorite online bookseller or through the Mercer University Press website. Mercer faculty, staff and students can receive a 40% discount when they order by phone at (478) 301-2880.
Handcrafted bags from Rwanda
A handcrafted bag from Imwe is the gift that keeps on giving. Imwe, formerly Agaciro, is a nonprofit brand formed through a partnership between Mercer business students and women who survived the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. The Rwandan entrepreneurs hand make many different types of bags – from totes to backpacks to clutches – in a variety of fabric patterns. Meanwhile, students help the women with their business and marketing plans, traveling to Rwanda as part of Mercer On Mission. When you buy from Imwe, 100% of the profits go back to the women in Rwanda. Shop online at imwerwanda.com.
Dulces de Luna cat toys and dog treats
Keep your furry friends happy this holiday season with handmade cat toys and gourmet dog treats from Dulces de Luna. Mercer College of Nursing alumni Kia and Daniel Pascal, who graduated in 2012 and 2019, respectively, launched Dulces de Luna in 2020 to provide pet owners with quality toys and treats. The crocheted catnip toys, which come in a variety of cute shapes from a red chili pepper to a pink jellyfish, contain catnip buds and raw wool for the stuffing. The dog biscuits, with flavors from bacon jam to blueberry peanut butter, are made with natural ingredients. You can buy from Dules de Luna on Etsy.
‘Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 1’ album
For the classical music lover, give “Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 1,” a new album from Navona Records composed by Christopher Alan Schmitz, professor of music theory and composition in the School of Music. The album heavily features acclaimed violinist Amy Schwarz Moretti, director of Mercer’s Robert McDuffie Center for Strings, and was recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices under conductor Stefan Sanderling at historic St. Luke’s Church. The album is available for digital download on your favorite streaming platform, or you can purchase sheet music from Alias Press.
Toby’s Campus Tour children’s book
Take the littlest Bears in your life on a whirlwind tour of Mercer’s Macon campus when you give Toby’s Campus Tour, a new children’s book published by Mercer University Press. Francesca Rollins, associate professor of theater, and Tennille Shuster, professor of graphic design, wrote and illustrated the book to give Mercerians a new way to connect with the University. The book, featuring colorful, bold illustrations and a sing-song rhyme, takes readers on a campus tour from the bookstore in Mercer Village to a football game in Five Star Stadium. Buy it now from the Mercer University Press website or your favorite online bookseller.
Kinjo Kitchen + Cocktails gift card
Treat friends and family who live in Macon or the surrounding area to a dinner of Asian-inspired comfort food, with a pinch of Southern flair. Mercer alumna Chelsea Hughes opened Kinjo Kitchen + Cocktails in 2020, and it has since become an integral part of downtown Macon. The dinner menu features a seasonal rotation of small plates, chef’s selection entrees, rice and noodles, ramen, and sushi on the weekends. You can enjoy Kinjo’s craft cocktails during dinner or head downstairs afterward to Hughes’s Black Cat, an underground speakeasy-style cocktail bar. Gift cards are available for purchase at the restaurant, located at 497 Second St. in downtown Macon.
Pretty Lux Co. bath and body products
Give the gift of self-care with bath and body products from Pretty Lux Co., owned by Double Bear Anikitia Abram. Pretty Lux Co. offers a variety of hair and skin care products that are 100% vegan, cruelty free and created with minimal ingredients. Products include shampoo, conditioner, oil and stylers for curly hair, as well as body butter, cleansers and artisan soap bars for the body. Hand-poured candles also are available in scents like white tea orchid and sultry rose. Buy online at prettyluxco.com, or visit her store in downtown Macon at 536 Third St.
Longleaf Distilling Co. spirits
Cocktail connoisseurs will appreciate the care that goes into each bottle of spirits from Longleaf Distilling Co., which is co-owned by Mercer alumnus Will Robinson. Not only does Longleaf distill classic liquors like vodka, gin and bourbon, but it also revives old spirits whose recipes were lost to history. For example, its Alba thistle liqueur dates back centuries to the small town of Alba in Northern Italy. Plus, for every bottle you buy, the distillery will plant a longleaf pine. You can purchase Longleaf’s award-winning spirits at its downtown Macon distillery at 664 Second St. or find a retailer elsewhere in Georgia using this store locator.
Brent Cobb’s ‘Southern Star’
Share the sounds of the South by giving Brent Cobb’s latest album, “Southern Star,” this holiday season. Cobb, a Grammy-nominated musician, recorded the album at Capricorn Sound Studios, which is part of Mercer Music at Capricorn. Mercer alumnus and Capricorn Chief Engineer Rob Evans is named as a producer on the album, which Saving Country Music describes as “like a lazy afternoon on a back porch with a jar of tea, just watching life pass you by and loving every minute of it.” Find it online anywhere CDs and vinyl records are sold.
Veto, the Governor’s Cat children’s book
Curious kids will delight in Veto, the Governor’s Cat by former Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal. The book is written from the perspective of Veto, who along with his brother, Bill, find themselves living in the Governor’s Mansion and then moving with the Deals when the governor leaves office. Deal, a Double Bear, wrote the book in honor of his late wife, Sandra Deal, whose passion for literacy led her to read to children in more than 1,000 schools and pre-K programs across each of the state’s 159 counties. Find the book at your favorite online bookseller.
