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Charity: Doing Christmas a little different this year...

So a conversation was started in my family this autumn, about Christmas, and gifts and such...

It basically went this way.

My Dad didn't want to have to ask us what we wanted for Christmas, any found it to be getting more and more expensive as we were gaining in significant others and children. So, he brought up the idea of making donations to charity in each others names instead of going out and buying each other gifts.

Very quickly, my siblings and I all bought into it, as well as our significant others...

We're still buying gifts for the children, after all there are only 2 at the moment, and the day will be more magical for them, but for the adults, only an exchange of a piece of paper, "A donation has been made on your behalf...".

So, where does that leave us? Oh, yeah. Where to give? And how to pick the charity to give to?

Some ideas have been tossed about, with all of them, once a charity has 'won' it is no longer eligable:
  • each person picks one charity and they all get added to a hat. One gets picked randomly to receive all funds, you can change your charity next year providing it didn't win
  • cycle charity selection by age, youngest person picks this year, next youngest next year, etc.
  • put all charities on a wheel and spin for elimination, the last charity left get all funds
  • each person selects their charity and their 'gift' goes to that charity
  • pool the money and dole it out to random charities in lots of $100
  • invest it through the Community Association of Ottawa and dole out the interest every year
Your thoughts?

Comments

  1. I donate to charity in name of adults on my list according to what I think honours them or their interests (kind of hokey to write it). For example, DH's grandmother knits for charity - she "gets" donation to Snowsuit fund; DH's mother likes to cook - she "gets" donation of chickens from World Vision catalogue, father-in-law is outdoorsy - he "gets" nature conservancy, etc. This way, the person feels the "oh, they thought about what makes me unique" that a good gift brings without the clutter a gift brings.

    We've asked for Humane Society donations in the past. We always donate as one present for our daughter, too, by "adopting" a polar bear or something from WWF or that sort of thing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I agree with the previous poster. We do some charitable gifting within our family as well, particualrly for the older people who don't want junk gifts. While it is nice if people designate their favorite charity, it is best to leave the giver the option to give to any charity - or to donate Time or Goods to a charity instead of money. This is particularly an important option in a tight economy. It may also be more meaningful for the giver. If there are people in your group who are at different economic levels, you might want to encourage everyone NOT to name a monetary amount, but just to say that a donation was made.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I agree with the previous poster. We do some charitable gifting within our family as well, particualrly for the older people who don't want junk gifts. While it is nice if people designate their favorite charity, it is best to leave the giver the option to give to any charity - or to donate Time or Goods to a charity instead of money. This is particularly an important option in a tight economy. It may also be more meaningful for the giver. If there are people in your group who are at different economic levels, you might want to encourage everyone NOT to name a monetary amount, but just to say that a donation was made.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I donate to charity in name of adults on my list according to what I think honours them or their interests (kind of hokey to write it). For example, DH's grandmother knits for charity - she "gets" donation to Snowsuit fund; DH's mother likes to cook - she "gets" donation of chickens from World Vision catalogue, father-in-law is outdoorsy - he "gets" nature conservancy, etc. This way, the person feels the "oh, they thought about what makes me unique" that a good gift brings without the clutter a gift brings.

    We've asked for Humane Society donations in the past. We always donate as one present for our daughter, too, by "adopting" a polar bear or something from WWF or that sort of thing.

    ReplyDelete

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