Why $650?

07/14/2014 Danielle Brossart 0 2 Comments

$650. That’s what it takes to provide a complete Christmas for the average, struggling family of five through Secret Families. It used to be $550, but due to inflation, we had to up our Meijer gift card in 2021 to $100 and up the gift amount by $10/ person in 2022. This includes:

gifts for every member of in the household
a $100 Meijer gift card to provide for their Christmas dinner
tree supplies: two strands of lights, two boxes of bulbs and a tree stand
a Bible
HOPE that they are cared for by their community

So, why $550?

Let’s break it down:

“gifts” (This item is in quotes because, in truth, much of what these families receive are necessities – which we’ll explore further in another post). We like to use $100 / per person as our benchmark. Since we shop at Meijer, management allows us to take advantage of their sales that day. Last year, most of our volunteers signed up for mPerks and clipped electronic coupons to decrease prices and increase the blessings for these families. **We use Meijer gift cards to pay for these items during our 1st Saturday of December event day. So, like the $50 cards, we can purchase these, on-line, before our event. If we have enough donations in our account, we can pay cash and get the full 4% discount ($18/family). If we don’t, we can use our VISA for a 3% discount ($13.50/family).
a $100 Meijer gift card -$100 is $100, right? Not if you purchase these ahead of time, on-line, at a 4% discount. Cost: Roughly $94, there is a cost for shipping to our location.
tree supplies: Only 60% of our families request trees, which are donated by Blue Grass Farms in Anderson. However, the price of the other items vary widely, depending on if they are donated, on sale, or full price. That’s why we love those after Christmas sales and encourage our supporters to snatch up those items and donate. Costs: $0-35
a Bible: the price of which also varies depending upon receiving donations and the quality of the item given. Costs: $0-10 (We are currently receiving wonderful, quality Bibles from Hope Church in Anderson as a gift to this ministry.)
HOPE – priceless