Gifting is, in my family and among my Numenist co-religionists, a year round event. We gift when we feel like instead of saving it all up for one big blow-out event a year and oh, yeah, birthdays. We gift because we found something we thought someone we loved would want and we pass it along to them quickly because we want them to enjoy it as long as possible.
I used to debate this with my co-religionists. Growing up mostly German where Christmas is a major holiday and being named after a German goddess whose entire purpose for existing is to give out gifts (well, she's more than that, but that's the part most remembered), I felt it was important to give gifts when it seemed the whole world was gifting everyone else.
But they argued that saving gifting up for one day a year was depriving others of the love and care they deserved all year round. And then, we had a loved one in our House die tragically, and the gift I had made for her a month earlier would never be given to her. She'd never enjoy it, never know I'd thought of her. I understood the reason Numenists choose to gift soon after acquiring/making the gift.
I compromised. All during the year, I would gift others when I found/made something for them, but in December, I would call it a "christmas gift" and if I had no gift, I'd give a card (usually handmade - Hallmark hasn't tapped into the Numenist market yet) or food. Also, Numenism has a major holiday in December called Cookie Day, which contributed to the giving food bit.
Since this is the Practical Survivalism and Sustainable Living Group, I think the concept of gifting should be a year-round practice, not limited to a specific holiday or time of year or even to any holiday at all. There are some specific gift categories that are particularly apt for people into practical survivalism, and they can indeed be gifted at any time of the year.
Knives are always a good gift. Kitchen knives, hunting knives, pocket knives, box knives, crafting knives...there are so many choices.
Experiences are also excellent year-round gifts. A cooking class, a fly-fishing class, entrance to a museum, a themed trip, a festival ticket, a first aid class, anything of that sort. They learn a new skill or gain knowledge, and that's always good. Plus, it doesn't clutter up their house (well, maybe not...).
Emergency gear is also an excellent choice. I think gifting people with some piece of emergency gear they'll need for their new home is a thoughtful and life-saving housewarming gift. It can be as simple as a pre-printed on a card list of emergency services contact information or a good quality flashlight. College graduates and newlyweds may particularly benefit from receiving emergency gear as gifts, and children definitely enjoy getting their own manually powered weather radio, or flashlight, or pocket cook stove (like this ecoque grill - and boy has the price gone up since I bought mine! I thought it was expensive at $29 back in the early 90's, when it was known as a Pyromid Pocket Grill.)
Manual Kitchen Equipment. Pressure canners, water bath canners, grills, manual food slicers, manual food mills, hand crank blenders, oil press, cabbage shredder, or almost anything in the Lehman's catalog.
Gardening gear. There are more gadgets and gizmos that are incredibly useful in the gardening gear than in the kitchen equipment that the list would be too long - like this berry picker or the Garden Weasel Cultivator.
This is just a starter idea list. I'm sure all y'all can think of plenty of other gifts you'd give to help your loved ones lives easier and to help them survive the many things life can throw at them.