"Tired of crass consumerism dominating Christmas?"
This subtitle accompanied a New Zealand Herald article by Jan Corbett way back in December 2000.
Jan described how the previous Christmas, PR firm The Dock Street Group had done something shocking: it didn't send a single present to a single client. Instead it sent a gift-wrapped certificate saying that in lieu of a gift, the firm was making a donation to the Fred Hollows Foundation, to support its wonderful work restoring sight to cataract-blinded people in the developing world. The Foundation was one of the firm's clients, so perhaps this was an obvious move - but it has had an ever-widening spinoff.
By the time I saw the article, I'd already bought Christmas presents for my clients - but the following year, 2001, I did some research, found two charities to support, created a certificate and included it with my clients' Christmas cards.
Working as I do in the environmental area, I decided to "balance my portfolio" by supporting two social charities with my Christmas donations, Amnesty International and the then-named "Domestic Violence Centre" in Auckland.
I was a bit nervous about this, because statistically it was probable that of the people to whom I sent cards, some would be more or less guilty of domestic violence. But I plucked up my moral courage and did it anyway.
To my surprise, I got a raft of emails and phone calls from my clients congratulating me on this move - far more than had ever thanked me for my gifts. Over the years, I've seen more and more people do the same, with of course the fantastic opportunities opened up by agencies such as OxFam and other allowing anyone to support more and more good causes.
Other reasons make this a good idea - many of my clients work for government agencies of various kinds, and have very high standards and even rules about accepting gifts from people with whom they have a commercial relationship. So these charity gift certificates are a great way of letting my wonderful clients know how much I enjoy working with them, while still preserving their independance.
A second reason for me is that there are so many worthwhile charities out there and I felt that giving a bigger sum to two of them would be better than giving dribs and drabs of coins to street collectors on a random basis (though I still sometimes do this, especially to surf lifesavers). When I say No and explain why, these people are always very understanding.
Now in 2011, this is the tenth year I have supported my two chosen charities, with the DVC now re-named SHINE, or "Safe Homes In Nz for Everyone". And of course, I've moved to e-cards as well....
I'll take a break from this blog over the holiday season and will resume sometime in the New Year.
Wishing you all the best for the end of year break, be it with snow and skiing or sun and swimming! - and for a very happy and fulfilling new year in 2012.
