Ten for Teens Giving Project Update: Last call for gift cards for teens in local foster care

Ten for Teens Giving Project Update

We’re in the home stretch folks! As of this morning, we’ve received about 990 1010 gift cards for our Ten for Teens Giving Project. This means that over ONE THOUSAND teens in Portland Metro area foster card will receive a $10 Gift Card this Christmas.

This is a comment left by Jen:

I just wanted to stop by to say thank you.  I am a case worker with the Department of Human Services.  My coworkers and I work so hard to gather gifts for all the kids on our caseloads to make sure that every child has some wonderful gifts for Christmas.  Teens are definitely the hardest to gather gifts for as most toy drive donations are for the younger kids.  Thanks so much for your generosity!  These kids have been through so much trauma and grief and a gift can go such a long way in lifting their spirits.  It is a wonderful thing to see their reactions when they receive their Christmas gifts.  Thank you!!!

I have a crazy goal of giving all 1230 teens in Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, Marion, and Clark county foster care a $10 gift card. We’re so close to our goal!

Some of these teens live in foster homes, some live in group homes, and some are in treatment facilities for those struggling with addictions and those rescued from the local sex trade. This is serious stuff, guys. What an incredible opportunity to tell these kids “You are important, valuable, and not forgotten.”

There’s still time to make a tremendous impact in the life of a teen in foster care! As long as you get your card(s) in the mail by tomorrow (or Monday :)) we will make sure they get distributed to DHS caseworkers who will give them to young people on their caseload in time for Christmas.

Ready to give? Here’s what to do:

Purchase one or more $10 gift cards. Here are some suggested establishments:

• McDonald’s
• Subway
• Dutch Bros.
• Fred Meyer
• Target
• Walmart
• Amazon
• iTunes
• Old Navy
• Burgerville
• Regal Cinemas
• Game Stop
• Coldstone Creamery
• Claire’s

Or anywhere else you think a teen might enjoy. The  gift cards will be hand-picked for individuals by their case workers, so your choice doesn’t have to be entirely generic. You are welcome to get creative.

*We have A LOT of cards from Starbucks right now. We’re obviously jacked about anything you send, but if you have a choice, it would be great if we had more options for boys.

You are welcome to have the gift cards mailed directly to Frugal Living NW if you are purchasing them online to save time and postage. I will assume that any gift cards that come to my business’s mailbox are for this project and not an anonymous gift to me :). Please make sure you are sending an actual plastic gift card and not an emailed printable form with a barcode. A piece of paper is lame. Plastic is cool.

Write a personal message (optional).

The purpose of this message is to let your teen know that there is a real person or family behind the gift card. Let your teen know he is loved and special. Let her know your family is thinking of her this Christmas. It’s probably best to do this in a note or greeting card (a Christmas card would be perfect). Feel free to have your kids or grandkids draw a picture to go along with your card. No religious messages, such as “God loves you” or “God has a plan for your life,” or “We’re praying for you,” etc. please. It’s fine to use greetings that include “Christmas.”

Stick the gift card inside the greeting card/note and put it in an unsealed, unmarked envelope. If you seal it, we will have to open it and make your envelope look all trashy, so just don’t seal it.

This step is optional. You are welcome to send gift cards without messages.

Mail your gift card(s) and message(s) by December 13, 2013 (ish).

Now put your envelope in a larger one and mail it off! We (Frugal Living NW) will collect the gift cards and deliver them to the folks at Embrace Oregon, who will then distribute them to the case workers at the ten DHS offices in the Portland Metro area. Please mail your gifts to:

Frugal Living NW
2870 NE Hogan Rd, Ste E
PMB 133
Gresham, OR 97030

If you a purchasing a large number of gift cards (preferably more than 10) and would like a receipt for tax purposes, please include a self-addressed, stamp envelope in your package and we will provide one to the name on the envelope. The receipt will come from Portland Leadership Foundation in time for your 2013 tax preparation.

Please DO NOT hand deliver or mail your gifts directly to a DHS office. We (Frugal Living NW and Embrace Oregon) have a system set up to distribute these gifts in a way that doesn’t create extra work and confusion for the staff.

Get more info on the Ten for Teens giving project here.

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