Many couples are choosing to incorporate the values of focusing on the environment and “doing good” in the world into their wedding day. Here are a few ways that you can replace conventional wedding gifts and favors with do-good actions and services.
An increasing number of couples are opting to donate the money that would be spent on favors to their favorite charities in their guests’ honor. Most organizations, such as the American Diabetes Association and Brides Against Breast Cancer will send you customized cards to put at each place setting to announce your gift. Or, you can choose a charity and create your own cards and maybe include a small gift that symbolizes your charity.
This beautiful flat card set by Crane & Co. available from FineStationery.com features a white card with the pink ribbon for breast cancer, as well as a soft pink envelope.
In addition to donating to charity in lieu of favors, couples are now having guests donate directly to charities instead of gifts. Some charities, such as JustGive.org and ChangingThePresent.org are set up as registries. JustGive.org allows couples to set up their own web page for their registry and you can choose from more than 1,000 categories for which guests can donate. ChangingThePresent.org allows your guests to choose from your list of specific good works such as a month’s supply of clean drinking water for a Honduran family.
In addition, if a guest wonders what you would like for a gift, here are some things that you can suggest he or she do to make the world a better place:
- Buy carbon credits to offset wedding travel
- Plant a row of trees
- Donate books to a hospital
- Work at a soup kitchen
- Walk dogs at a shelter
- Recycle used cell phones
- Bake cookies for a firehouse
- Volunteer in a nursing home
- Clean up a local hiking trail
- Send a care package to troops overseas
Hopefully these ideas will help you celebrate the lives of others through the celebration of your wedding!
Information for this entry was taken from Brides Magazine March/April 2009, “Feel Good Gifts”.
- Melissa Raskin of Iris Fields
www.irisfields.com
- Unique Post
Ariana Gordon Stecker
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
It’s so great that more and more couples are doing this now. We hope this is one trend that doesn’t fade. That flat card set is beautiful!
Linda
Hi Linda,
Thanks for your comment. I agree this is a great trend. Our last bride made a donation to a charity instead of favors.
We also provide recommendations to our clients about how to incorporate some green initiatives into their events.
Yes, it’s a nice trend to see. Many charities, like American Cancer Society, give you the choice of printed cards or scrolls to notify your guests. You can also create your own and use your wedding colors, monogram, etc.
Exactly Antoinette, our last bride chose to have a custom design for her donation card so it would match her menus and place settings.
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