is this a good idea? And if so, what is the best way to go about it?

ECI1151

Hi everyone,

I read the sticky on making a charity donation instead of giving out a favor but I still had a few questions.

Background: Anyone who knows FI and I has heard all about our 3 year old lab/pit mix Ace. (Most have met him at one point or another as well since we take him alot of places with us) We often refer to him as our "four-legged child" and spoil him any chance we get. He also gets alot of credit for FI and I meeting. I went over to my now FI's apartment a little over 3 years ago with my bestfriend (who was friends with my FI) to see Ace when he was only a few months old. I had no clue who my now FI was at the time but I went with my bestfriend because I wanted to see this cute little puppy (I have always been an animal lover!) and that is when my FI and I met and have basically been inseperable ever since. We basically became offical bf and gf a month after meeting, moved in together after 2 years of being together, and got engaged about a month ago. And even though I wasn't there to pick Ace out my FI and I still consider him OUR dog and I'm his "mom".

Okay, so since we like to say that Ace played a role in us meeting we always joked that he should be the RB even though I knew that most venues dont allow pets. Well, we found our dream venue but it doesnt allow pets. I have been brainstorming a way to kind of include Ace in the wedding and I got to thinking that donating to an animal shelter or some type of charity that does alot for dogs, instead of favors, might be a good idea. (Of course, I would definetly research different charities to be sure that the one we donated to would be using the money in the right way) Does this sound like it would work or would people just think its weird and wonder where their favor is?

Also, if we did decide to do this is how do we go about figuring out the appropriate amount of money to donate?

And finally, if we did decide to do this what would be the best way to go about letting our guests know about it and the reasoning behind it?

Sorry this was so long but thanks for reading if you made it all the way to the end!!

kimp67

Like you probably read in the sticky, if you want to make a donation, make a donation but don't call it a favor for your guests.  You can make your donation & put up a little note saying something like "instead of spending money on favors for our guests Jill & Joe made $300.00 donation to ......because of their love of animals" (you could probably word it better),  Here's an idea instead........ Ace's wedding gift to us was a $100.00 donation to ......with a cute little pic of Ace on the gift table. 

marissa_claire

Ditto kimp.  The only way I would ever consider donations to be a favor is if you're donating to charities that are near and dear to your guests' hearts - not your own.  The favors are a gift to your guests, not something that's supposed to be solely about the bride and groom.  If you have money to make $5 or $10 donations on behalf of each guest to a charity they like, that might be a nice idea, but I personally wouldn't do it to a charity that's dear to you.

ECI1151

Thanks for the replies! I think the idea about saying its Ace's wedding gift to us is really cute!! And we will definetly be careful to not make it seem like the favor to our guests was donating to a charity.
 
So now I have another question... If we decide to do this should we give out a tangible favor that guests can take home with them also?

when I'm attending other people's weddings favors are pretty far down on the list of things I remeber about the wedding and I wouldnt care if someone decided not to give out a favor we could take home but I don't know if all my guests will feel the same way I do.

marissa_claire

If you do decide to do the donation, I would definitely get something else for guests.  And to reiterate, even if you haven't noticed favors before, the whole point is that they are a thank you to your guests.  If you were going to give your guest a birthday present and did a donation in her honor, would you donate to a charity that is personal to you or to a charity that is personal to her?   I'm all for donations, but if it is something that's close to you and not your guests, then I just don't think it's much of a "thank you" to them.

mysticl

Maybe you could do chocolates or cookies shaped like pawprints or dogs.  A favor to your guests and incorporates Ace.

marissa_claire

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_favors_this-good-idea-way?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:27Discussion:6990a9c7-77e2-4376-96dd-1f8bae75b9c0Post:371c6c19-b62d-46a4-b362-c92895dcfd01">Re: is this a good idea? And if so, what is the best way to go about it?</a>:
[QUOTE]Maybe you could do chocolates or cookies shaped like pawprints or dogs.  A favor to your guests and incorporates Ace.
Posted by mysticl[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Puppy chow would be totally worth your time - always is.

</div>

ECI1151

Good suggestions!! Thanks yall!!

trix1223

I am the person who wrote part of the sticky about donation "favors" at weddings.  Obviously, I don't care for them.  Make the donation.  Just don't make it a favor, and since it isn't a favor, there's absolutely no need to announce to your guests that you've made a donation.

As for including your well-loved dog:  how about incorporating Ace into the table number signs?  Take pictures of him with numbers and you've got them.

 Incorporate a photo of Ace into your escort cards.  Incorporate a photo of him onto your thank you notes.

Have someone make a cake topper using a photo of the two of you and Ace.

  My DD and SIL made a photobook using shutterfly that had photos of them and their dogs, their family, their friends, and then had guests sign it, yearbook style, for their guestbook.  You could easily do the same with photos of the two of you and your pooch.

Get a bouquet charm and put a picture of your dog in it and attach it to your bouquet.  That way you'd have your dog close to you.

Make cookies shaped like your dog, or a dogbone for a favor. 

There are plenty of ways to incorporate your dog without making a big announcement about donating to a cause.  GL

kimp67

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_favors_this-good-idea-way?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:27Discussion:6990a9c7-77e2-4376-96dd-1f8bae75b9c0Post:371c6c19-b62d-46a4-b362-c92895dcfd01">Re: is this a good idea? And if so, what is the best way to go about it?</a>:
[QUOTE]Maybe you could do chocolates or cookies shaped like pawprints or dogs.  A favor to your guests and incorporates Ace.
Posted by mysticl[/QUOTE]

I like this idea & you could put a little tag on them saying Ace is responsible for you two meeting!

reodic000

We're doing an oscars theme and making a donation to st. jude's children's hospital. We're also including hershey kisses with it, so we made a gift tag:





Text reads:
"In honor and appreciation of our guests, we have made a donation to st. jude children's research hospital. Please enjoy the evening knowing you've made someone else's life a little sweeter."

Just a thought if you're looking for wording. =0)

I love the idea of the chocolate paw prints and pictures of your dog for table names or escort cards. I think that would work really well as a conversation starter among the guests

Ghoti

I went to a wedding that donated money instead of favors ( which I thought was great, btw) and there also was a small bag with a couple chocolate covered pretzels, which was nice