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Angel Tree Etiquette? XP from Local Board
So... long story short, there were only two angels left on the tree so myself and a coworker caved. (I'm giving in other ways this Christmas and I hope it isn't doesn't sound horrible of me to imply I really had not planned to do this otherwise...) So I hope I wasn't wrong in taking on the resopnsiblity of this Angel from the tree, but if that's your opinion, I'd understand. I'm looking for total honesty here.
The only two left had "Portable Nintendo DS" and "Games 'Wii' " listed as the wants. What would you do? I would love to buy a kid a Ds or a Wii for Christmas, but it's really out of the budget. I'm considering looking into a refurbished DS - even though that can easily be $80-100 alone, plus obviously at least one game to go with it and no clothes or other "needs" fulfilled yet. For the kid that wants the Wii, I can get a game or two, but how do I know for sure that: Games "Wii" means he already has the system and wants games, or if he wants the actual system? What a horrible Christmas if you get games for a system you don't own!!! And there's no way I can afford to buy a kid a Wii for Christmas. My own nephew's gift budget is about $30...
So, what's the etiquette, if you get an angel from the Angel Tree, are you supposed/obligated to get exactly what's listed or do you do your best when possible and fill in with some other budget-friendly gifts instead? Thanks...
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Re: Angel Tree Etiquette? XP from Local Board
You might be thinking more along the lines like I am... I'm not sure they actually own one though, because: Games "Wii" could also mean to me that he wants a Wii system (one reason I'm thinking this is because many in my area are hispanic, and maybe the translation comes out wrong???)
I would be more inclined to go with more sensible items, I mean, even getting a kid a system like that is only going to cause more begging for more expensive games to play, right? Wouldn't they be better off with board games and books and legos or k'nex or something?
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Ok here is my honest opinion. I think there is a chance that someone else ( or a few people) picked up the same angel tag and returned it because they too were not prepared to buy something like that. There is a reason why those tags were the only ones left.
If you too are not prepared to get something like then think about returning the angel tag ( discreetly) and then donate to Toys for Tots or just get a gift card to store where they might be able to buy a game if combined with something else. If you can't do it, you can't do it.
Yes, on my tag the only "want" listed says
Games "Wii"
On my co-workers tag, it says
Portable Nintendo DS
The "needs" section is all clothing/shoe sizes. Which I am obviously happy to oblige, as I can shop around and find good prices on coats, shoes, shirts, pants, etc... but I'm pretty much locked into one price for video games.
I worked at Head Start, we put all our kids [who's parents agreed] on the tree. Most would have been fine for presents if they hadn't gotten on the tree, a few really needed it.
We asked the parents what the kid might like and we made up some things that we knew the kid would like based on toys he used in school.
This tag may have been made by a family, but put in the back of your mind that it could have been made by a social service agency for a child.
When all the gifts got delivered to our center, the staff would look everything over and some stuff would get switched from one kid to another so each kid got about the same share and would filter useless toys out, like a leap pad game with no leap pad. Staff would also go out and spend gift cards given to a child on what the child needed or would like. Many angels came back with not the exact item.
Once a parent said to her daughter, "your brother's present finally came in so we can go home and open them tonight" It was mid december.
So in short - it's a wish, not a demand. Buy [some of] the clothes and get whatever toy you think would be a good fit.
Oh, and we always put fake names on the form and kept a decoded list on site, so nothing personalized, just in case.
If it were me, I wouldn't be buying nintendo games or things of that nature. I used to volunteer with a similar program the the wish lists just got insane! And this actually caused a decrease in the number of families willing to donate. IMO if a child is really in a situation where they would not be having Christmas without the support of these organizations- they will be grateful for whatever gift they are given. I would purchase a few things off the need category and then 1-2 age appropriate toys. You could even include gift receipt if you want.
Also, like PP mentioned (and I also saw this w. the organization I worked with) - the gifts get switched around in order to ensure that all children are getting a gift.
I would get a Wii game or two and include the receipt just in case they don't have the system.
For both of the tags I would ask other co-workers to pitch in. I think you will find that lots of people will be willing to go in on a group gift. They probably just don't want to do the shopping themselves. I don't know how big your work group is but I see nothing wrong with asking others to kick in $10-$20 each.
I would take it that the kid wants games for the Wii. A lot can happen in a year especially in this economy and it is quite possible that parents who could afford a Wii a couple years ago cannot afford gifts for this Christmas. The resell value of a Wii is not very high and I would think selling your kid's game system would be an absolute last resort.
Anyway, there are plenty of older Wii games that are very affordable. I would get a couple of those and spend the rest of the amount you are budgeting on the necessities.