Planning To Give

If you’re like me you cringe when you walk into a store in October and see the Christmas decorations out already.  I’m all about the holidays, but I don’t want to skip the ones between now and the end of December!  However, there are some things that need to be brought up in advance because some planning is required.

I wrote in an earlier post about a friend of mine, Bill Foussard, who is the soul of Meals on Wheels in the St. Paul area of Minnesota.  He is one of those guys with a heart of gold and his actions speak volumes.  Bill fed nearly twenty thousand people last year for Thanksgiving.  Why bring this up now?  Because it’s getting to be that time of the year.  You don’t just wake up one day and cook tens of thousands of dinners for some folks in need.  It requires planning and a lot of volunteers.  These people are needed in advance, not just on Thanksgiving Day.  Who could you help this year?

Another thing to think about is holiday parties.  Are you planning one?  Have you already purchased your centerpieces?  If not, this story and pictures could help.  Last year we decided to forgo the usual greenery at our Minnesota Lodging Association holiday banquet.  Instead we purchased baskets to decorate and filled them with nonperishable food.

I made a detailed spreadsheet, checked and rechecked food prices at the wholesale club, and then made one big purchase.  We bought baskets from a craft store when they went on sale and used tissue for decoration.  By doing this, we were able to donate over 400 pounds of food to local food shelves.  And no one argued over who got to keep the centerpiece.  Another bonus, now we have baskets to reuse this year.

What else could you do?  How about adding some mittens, scarves, and hats to the baskets?  They could be donated to local churches or community organizations that reach out to the homeless.  I rarely leave home without a skein of yarn and a crochet hook.  (I needed something to keep my hands busy after I quit smoking in 2007.  This is a much better habit!)  This year there will be 75 handmade pieces in the baskets with the food.  There are a lot of people out there like me.  Be creative.  Plan ahead.  Most of all; get involved.

The Greenest Centerpieces

Have you ever gone to a banquet or party with a big fancy centerpiece?  Sometimes they’re so tall you can’t even see over them to hold a conversation with someone on the other side of the table.  Sometimes they’re very elaborate and the jockeying begins to see who gets to take it home.  I recently took part in planning a large awards dinner for the Minnesota Lodging Association.  When we were discussing what to put on the tables, our first instinct was to go with something festive and expected at a holiday party.  Then I remembered an event I attended a few years ago in Washington DC.  Instead of flowers or greenery, they had baskets of donated food.  That was our A-Ha! moment.

Our idea started out with a prototype.  Once we knew what we wanted, and about how much we’d need to have to fill our baskets, we set out looking for sponsors.  It didn’t take long for USA Today and AAA to step up and volunteer to sponsor our donation.  We ordered the baskets from Michael’s, got some glittery tissue paper for lining, and made a detailed spread sheet listing what kinds of food and the amounts we would need for each.  After a quick trip to Sam’s Club, we had everything we needed to get ready.

We lined up our baskets and divvied-up the cans.  The food was arranged nicely, and a card was placed next to each basket on the center of the table.  No one missed the tall, view-obstructing traditional centerpieces.  The event went well, the room was full of lively conversation, and a very sizable donation of non-perishables was given to the Second Harvest food bank from the Minnesota Lodging Association.