I hear the sentiment of the OP's original Q and have considered that organic/very high quality costs more so I can buy and supply fewer. Mainstream quality costs less so I can buy and supply more.

I tend to go with buying more.

But I'm not always secure in this choice.

Anonymous wrote:OMG; let me tell another poverty story. when I was poor, we had a really small tv with bunny ears. We got 1 channel on good days and seriously, I was so skinny, people thought I had an eating disorder...and I did. It was called hunger.

Donate the dammed stained t-shirts. Seriously, sometimes the other option is washing the one shirt every night.

If you want to live in a bubble and pretend that there isn't real poverty, please let me know how you do it b/c my f'ing guilt sometimes gets to me that I escaped and others didn't.

I hear you, but I have a hard time doing so. I dress my 7 yo daughter and 3 yo son in clothing that comes mostly from Target, Sears or TJ Maxx. They look adorable in some of the outfits, and quite frankly, until they reach that age of "designer this and that" and start begging for better brands, a $3 tee from clearance is perfect.

IMO, it's not about spending hundreds; it's about looking presentable and feeling good. I would rather donate something that costs less but that looks nice so that some kid (b/c we donate mainly to young ones) is happy in how s/he looks.

Anonymous wrote:
The options are not just "spaghettios" or "organic spaghetti". there are plenty of inexpensive items that can be donated that are also filling but also nutritious and would not the same sort of crap that the kids probably already eat at home and school.

When I donate items I donate rice, beans, veggies, pasta, pasta sauce, etc. Those will go even further then a can of spaghettios and are a lot healthier.

Just because someone doesn't earn a lot of money does not mean they have to or want to eat like crap.

When you go to a food bank usually you get a choice what you want to take. I assume the people who like Spaghettios choose the Spaghettios, and those who prefer the dried pasta and pasta sauce, choose the dried pasta and pasta sauce.

Older children who are taking care of younger children in the home find it easier to just open a can and heat (i.e. in those microwaves that people trot out to "Prove" that the poor aren't really that destitute) than to boil the water to cook the dried pasta and beans.

I serve old fashioned oatmeal in my home, but donate instant oatmeal to a food bank for the same reason.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I'm asked to donate to a food drive, I go to Aldi's and buy 2 cardboard flats of something like canned spaghettios ($1 each) or a big flat of macaroni and cheese.

My kids love those foods, and though I don't serve them often (not particularly healthy) I know that kids like them and they are filling and EASY to make, which is why I think that people with kids will like them, too.

I don't understand this. Why donate something with no real nutritional value and something that will cause health problems later on? You may serve those once in a while but chances are the kids you are donating to eat that sort of stuff all the time.

Because these are the foods I know that are a) shelf stable and b) large numbers of kids reliably like and c) are extremely easy to just heat and serve. I know when I am in a hurry and can't even think straight, i.e am overwhelmed, it is a lot easier to just open a can of something and feed it to the kids than to take the time to cook something that they may or may not like.

Sure a bag of brown rice and some dried kidney beans would be way cheaper; but it takes more skill to turn those into foods into meals kids like unless they are accustomed to it. And those are foods that are very cheap to buy at the grocery store with food stamps, anyhow.

I tend to feed my kids meals with more fresh ingredients, but those are not the types of foods food banks are looking for. They want shelf-stable items.

I also donate a lot of cooking oil and dish soap.

11/17/2011 23:32 Subject: Do you donate the same or lower quality items?
Anonymous wrote:
This thread has been Freeped: citing the Heritage Foundation for "data" about the poor is laughable.


+1000

I repeat:

Keep right on laughing because that "data" comes straight from the census bureau. I suppose the census bureau are right wing nut jobs.....

Anonymous wrote:This thread has been Freeped: citing the Heritage Foundation for "data" about the poor is laughable.

+1000

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You know what's frustrating, when your donations are considered not good enough. Since when are old clothes and sweaters not considered good enough. Does everything donated have to be brand new?

ITA. My kids wear their older siblings' hand me downs, so if it's good enough for me, it's good enough for you.
Beggars can't be choosers.

Beggars?????

Beggars wear newspaper to keep moist away from their skin so they won't freeze.

We're talking about the mom whose husband left and she needs to find a job and has no clothes to wear for an interview. Have you ever had to explain to HR why you're wearing athletic shoes to an interview? It's HUMILIATION!

Have you?

I'm genuinely curious. And the reason I'm curious is, I can't imagine an HR person actually asking an applicant why she's wearing athletic shoes to an interview during that interview.
Granted, the HR person can think whatever he/she wants, but actually saying it out loud?

Maybe, it's me, and maybe I've been lucky to have worked with professional HRs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Between throwing something perfectly useable in the trash or donating it, I would definitely donate. I wouldn't go out of my way to purchase stuff for donation that I think is unhealthy crap, but honestly I think others would be perfectly happy to have the gerber baby food I recently donated to a food drive, which had been given to me and I wasn't going to use.

I'm making a gift basket for a needy family at the NICU that took care of my daughter. I'm planning to do mainstream items, in part because I don't think any of the moms I met there would want weleda products, organic gender neutral clothes, or handmade toys from etsy., so it's going to be pink clothes from carters, plastic toys, and disposable diapers.

OP here. That's exactly what I was thinking...

Nice to know you're such a kind and caring person.

Seriously, are you in high school? Or do you have tons of money to give to charity?
Personally, I don't know what weleda products are and I would not want anything from etsy. I'd rather have carters clothes, plastic toys, and disposable diapers than fringe stuff.

I agree with the PP, between throwing something perfectly useable in the trash or donating it, I would definitely donate. And when I buy things to donate them, I buy mainstream items.

This. PP, I was about to respond but you beat me to it.

I also have no idea what weleda is, and we're financially comfortable, thank-you-very-much, but I use Pampers, and I donate Pampers. I also donate DD's gently used clothes, some of which include - gasp!!! - pink coats from Carter's. Horror!

OMG; let me tell another poverty story. when I was poor, we had a really small tv with bunny ears. We got 1 channel on good days and seriously, I was so skinny, people thought I had an eating disorder...and I did. It was called hunger.

Donate the dammed stained t-shirts. Seriously, sometimes the other option is washing the one shirt every night.

If you want to live in a bubble and pretend that there isn't real poverty, please let me know how you do it b/c my f'ing guilt sometimes gets to me that I escaped and others didn't.

Anonymous wrote:I donate whatever we cannot use. Sometimes it is new clothing and sometimes it is used. I tend to buy less expensive clothing and toys to donate because I can help more people. The guy with no shoes doesn't care if they are $7 tennis shoes as long as his feet are covered. I could cover 10 peoples feet for the cost of 1 $70 pair. It isn't about being cheap. It is about being practical and helping as many people as possible. Feed one family organic food or 5 families store brand food. What do you think a hungry person would prefer--nothing or store brand? I think the answer is pretty clear.

Most sensible post here, thank you.

This thread has been Freeped: citing the Heritage Foundation for "data" about the poor is laughable.

Keep right on laughing because that "data" comes straight from the census bureau. I suppose the census bureau are right wing nut jobs.....

Anonymous wrote:
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2011/09/understanding-poverty-in-the-united-states-surprising-facts-about-americas-poor


+1

Yes.

It's not the spirit in which you should give. I'm not talking about canned food, etc. here. When someone is hungry any food is better than nothing.

Yes, and when someone is naked any clothing will do. Get off of you high horse.

Yes, poverty in America is wealth in much of this world.

+1

Anonymous wrote:http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2011/09/understanding-poverty-in-the-united-states-surprising-facts-about-americas-poor

Yes, poverty in America is wealth in much of this world.

Looking at this survey and the "average housing size", I remember that Oprah clip on a "typical Danish home." Some of my Danish acquaintances had a really good laugh.