Greetings Money Saving Lords and Ladies! Today I’d love for us to think about helping others saving money. Now while I’m not exactly a Karma/My Name is Earl sort of girl, I do think that helping others always ends up giving back to you in some shape or form. My philosophy is better summed here. So I’m always looking at what I have and don’t use with an eye on how it might help someone else.
Obviously, you can choose to donate gently used items to a charity. I prefer the Salvation Army and organizations like Soles4Souls. But there are also people in your path daily who might be able to benefit from some hand-me-downs. Here are a few non-traditional giving ideas.
- Don’t limit yourselves to clothes. My inspiration for this post was a bag of un-used Pull Ups (Holla Lady Anita!) and Swim Diapers. Is your baby no longer a baby and you have some baby items (wipes, diapers, swim diapers especially) laying in the closet and have no younger sibling in the house? Find someone to give those suckers to! The Youngest Princess is VERY proud of her Cars Pull-Ups this week and I don’t have to purchase a week’s supply. Score.
- I also recently saw a friend give away some baby food and cereal that wasn’t expired/opened, etc. using Facebook to find someone. A “Does anyone use or need ‘x’?” status just might make someone’s day today!
- Large plastic toys can also be a huge win for a family who doesn’t have the budget. Don’t just drop them off at Goodwill, ask around and see if someone needs something. Or you can use Craigslist or Freecycle to give it away for free.
- Office Supplies. Did you accidentally buy the wrong printer ink and lose your receipt? Now it’s just collecting dust in the bookcase, right? Send an e-mail around to friends to see if anyone can use it.
- Somehow have you amassed a large amount of coffee cans, yogurt dishes, boxes, wrapping paper or odd items? Check out your county’s Solid Waste Management Department. Ours has what they call the Creative Re-Sources store where you can give such items and then local educators, churches, homeschoolers, scout troops, or non-profit creative crafty people can pay $5 for one shopping trip/month and pick up the items they need. Thanks for the reminder Lady Julie!
- While it’s hard to think about it now, in the coming chillier months you can keep a bag of old and/or outgrown mittens, hats, scarves, and small blankets (we always seem to have more than we need) in the car to give to people you encounter who might need them. It’s also a great idea to donate those types of items to nursing homes. Oftentimes, residents will need them when going to and from doctor’s appointments or the hospital and since they rarely leave the facility, they don’t have them. Obviously, call ahead to make sure the facility you’d like to donate the items to would actually like them or need them.
What about you? How do you think outside of the box (or bag) when it comes to Hand Me Downs? For more ideas, check out the Queen of Free Facebook Page where other Money Saving Lords and Ladies are weighing in with their creativity on being generous with what you’ve already got.
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