What is your immediate thought on this?

[Anonymous]

Immediate reaction Is that she is joking

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see how this is a problem, honestly.

Let's say the PTA is in charge of moving the items from lost and found to Goodwill. I am on the PTA, let's say. I am boxing the items for goodwill...I'm putting them in my car. I find nice pants, a jacket, a lunchbox, and more. Can't *I* take those items?!? What difference does it make if I take it, or if I give it to goodwill (which throws a lot away).

Goodwill throws a lot away, but are the things they throw away the same as the things that you'd take? Or are you taking things that are higher quality and would have decent resale value?

I'm a teacher. I've raided lost and found at the end of the year end then traded with teacher friends at other schools, so I have age appropriate stuff to give my kids who don't have enough, and they don't run the risk of meeting the person whose pants they are wearing. But that's taking what was headed for charity and using it for charitable purposes. Taking what is headed for charity for yourself or your own kids is stealing.

That is some questionable logic.

Oh wait-does “my kids” mean your students? That’s makes more sense.

I think this is what she meant. The teachers swap clothes so no one at the school sees a needier kid wearing their lost stuff.

[Anonymous]

I would imagine that if she asked the front office - hey that jacket is not mine but we could use another jacket, the office would say take it. I can’t imagine a planet where the office cares one bit who takes it. It is such a pain to have to do the donation that the fewer the items the better. If it will assuage your tacky feelings, she can ask and then take. I promise she will get the green light to do it. Don’t believe me, ask at your child’s school if after school ends, before they donate, if you could take a few items that would be used by your family. See what the answer is (it will be yes).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would imagine that if she asked the front office - hey that jacket is not mine but we could use another jacket, the office would say take it. I can’t imagine a planet where the office cares one bit who takes it. It is such a pain to have to do the donation that the fewer the items the better. If it will assuage your tacky feelings, she can ask and then take. I promise she will get the green light to do it. Don’t believe me, ask at your child’s school if after school ends, before they donate, if you could take a few items that would be used by your family. See what the answer is (it will be yes).

That would be fine. It's the lying that is unethical!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our school has an overflowing lost and found. They posted a picture of it last night and said anything left will all be donated on the last day of school. At the bus stop, I overhead a mom talking with another mom about this, and how there were some NorthFace jackets and Kleen Kanteen bottles in the mix, and that she was going to go on the last day after pickup and snag those items if they weren’t claimed by then, and that there were probably other “finds” in there as well.

My immediate thought is it is a joke, a bad joke. No one has time to go through a bunch of used ratty stuff to steal this week or next.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Immediate reaction Is that she is joking

+1

Our school has PPA soccer and basketball on the weekends plus the student body. Who knows what’s in those bins or taken.

[Anonymous]

First thought: don't care.
Second thought: perhaps this woman is in need.
Third thought: even so, it's still morally dubious.
Fourth thought: don't care.

[Anonymous]

Immediate reaction is that "the mom you overheard talking at the bus stop" is you OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see how this is a problem, honestly.

Let's say the PTA is in charge of moving the items from lost and found to Goodwill. I am on the PTA, let's say. I am boxing the items for goodwill...I'm putting them in my car. I find nice pants, a jacket, a lunchbox, and more. Can't *I* take those items?!? What difference does it make if I take it, or if I give it to goodwill (which throws a lot away).

Goodwill throws a lot away, but are the things they throw away the same as the things that you'd take? Or are you taking things that are higher quality and would have decent resale value?

I'm a teacher. I've raided lost and found at the end of the year end then traded with teacher friends at other schools, so I have age appropriate stuff to give my kids who don't have enough, and they don't run the risk of meeting the person whose pants they are wearing. But that's taking what was headed for charity and using it for charitable purposes. Taking what is headed for charity for yourself or your own kids is stealing.

That is some questionable logic.

Seriously! So the teacher can take things from Lost and Found and swap with other teachers and it is not stealing, but only the other non teachers who are doing that are stealing. Some twisted logic.

She is doing it for her STUDENTS who need clothes.

This is done by many schools actually. They fill the closet at school to be sure they have clothes for kids who need them (accident at school/uniform violation/whatever) before they donate what is left. Our school did this and also mixed the lost and found stuff in with stuff brought by families for the uniform swap. Both of these things worked well. I would not do what this mom is doing. It feels underhanded. I personally was one of the parent volunteers who washed and dried stuff from lost and found for the school closet and for the uniform swap.

[Anonymous]

I'm a teacher who manages our school's lost and found.

If it's the end of the year and no one has picked up the stuff from lost and found, I have to cart it all over to the thrift store. I am TOTALLY FINE at that point with anyone who wants to come and lighten the load. If you offered to take it all over for me (keeping whatever you want) I'm fine with that, too.

Donating lost items to the thrift store is not really part of the school mandate. We do it in place of just throwing it out.

Most people at our school don't like wearing used clothes so this doesn't happen very often, but if you are interested in used or handmedown clothing for your kids, and you can find it in the stuff we are just going to drop off at a thrift store anyhow, have at it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your kid loses an item, why wouldn't you go claim it from Lost and Found? The kid/parent clearly isn't missing that item, so who cares if it goes to another kid in their school or to Good Will?

Yes this. They are taking home UNCLAIMED items that the school has repeatedly posted about and said to pick up by said date. At that point it is fair game for anyone to claim because the items have been deemed abandoned by the school.

If you leave stuff unclaimed at a college dorm or classroom, street fair,summer camp, restaurant, hotel room etc. The employees will claim it and take it home for their kids. They are underpaid and refer to these items as fringe benefits. You get a company car and they get your child's old hoodie. You guys know nothing about being poor!

[Anonymous]

New fundraiser for the PTA...selling off the lost and found!

[Anonymous]

First thought?
I don't do drop off/pick ups at the school and have no idea where the lost and found is.
I only heard recently about things being donated that were not collected. DS lost a jacket back in October so odds are it is long gone.
I think school or PTA facebook pages should include photos of lost and found items so parents know to go in and get what is theirs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a teacher who manages our school's lost and found.

If it's the end of the year and no one has picked up the stuff from lost and found, I have to cart it all over to the thrift store. I am TOTALLY FINE at that point with anyone who wants to come and lighten the load. If you offered to take it all over for me (keeping whatever you want) I'm fine with that, too.

Donating lost items to the thrift store is not really part of the school mandate. We do it in place of just throwing it out.

Most people at our school don't like wearing used clothes so this doesn't happen very often, but if you are interested in used or handmedown clothing for your kids, and you can find it in the stuff we are just going to drop off at a thrift store anyhow, have at it!

Yes. I’m a teacher and lots of teachers go through that L and F bin before it gets taken away. If you have a huge problem with this then you have too much stiff. Because listen, if you could afford only one coat and the kid lost it, you’d have already gone through the lost and found.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First thought?
I don't do drop off/pick ups at the school and have no idea where the lost and found is.
I only heard recently about things being donated that were not collected. DS lost a jacket back in October so odds are it is long gone.
I think school or PTA facebook pages should include photos of lost and found items so parents know to go in and get what is theirs.

The most logical thing is to go to the school and look through the L/F when it’s lost. If you can’t remember what you have to know it’s lost, if you don’t know something you own is lost until it shows up on the L/F Facebook page, then it’s not lost. That’s when you have more than you need.