1. If I sign up, do I have to purchase all items on the registry? More than one person can sign up to purchase gifts for a child so you can buy as little or as much as you wish.

2. Can more than one person purchase the same item from a registry? Once you purchase registry items, that item will be removed from the registry so that duplicate items are not purchased.

3. Do I have to purchase the Target items online? No. You can also print out the registry and take it to the store. Make sure the cashier scans the registry barcode when you check out so that the items are removed from the registry. If you forget to do this, email us at holiday@tswoottonhs.org so we can manually remove the item from the registry.

4. Can I only purchase items off the registry? If you prefer to shop off-registry, please send us an email at holiday@tswoottonhs.org and we can provide you with a list of what the child needs/wants. Also, if you are shopping and find a similar item at a different store and would prefer to purchase that item, please email us so that we can manually remove that item from the child's registry.

5. Can I send money so that you can shop for me? If you don't have time to shop, you can donate a store gift card or send us money electronically and we will shop for you. 

6. Where can I email an electronic gift card? holiday@tswoottonhs.org

7. Where can I electronically send money? Venmo (@Nikki-Bossert) and PayPal/Zelle (nbossert8@gmail.com). Please send an email to holiday@tswoottonhs.org or text Nikki at 239-247-9944 and let us know to expect the money. Nikki will send you a receipt after a purchase is made. You can let us know if you have a preference on how the funds are used (grocery gift card or registry purchase).

8. Where do I drop off physical gift cards? Jen Eisenfeld's house at 10218 Nolan Drive, Rockville (near the Trader Joe's on Travilah). You can either knock on the door and drop off or put in the red lock box on the front porch. Please put gift cards in an envelope with your name on it.

9. Do I have to fill out the sign up form if I want to purchase from a registry? The sign up form is not required but it helps us to track orders (sometimes orders do not have gift receipts but will have something identifying the purchaser).

10. I'm shopping online off of a registry--where do I ship the items? If you are purchasing off of a registry, when you get to checkout you will see a designated address for that registry. Note: if you are shopping for more than one child, please check out separately for each child. If you add items to your cart from multiple registries, the registry address will not appear. It's much easier for us to organize the gifts when they arrive addressed as designated on their registries. 

11. How do I know which kids still need items from their registries? Once a registry has been fully shopped, we will remove the link to that registry. 

12. Why do some kids have more items on their registries than others? Based on counselor recommendations, we know that some families are experiencing a greater need than others. Also, some families may have received partial support from another organization. And then some families may be experiencing an isolated crisis situation. Also, because we receive monetary donations, sometimes we shop off registry for kids if better deals present themselves. 

13. What is the shopping deadline? We need all gifts delivered/dropped off by December 9th. So if you are making an online purchase, please double check the expected delivery address. 

14. Will the families in the program know that I am a donor? No. The gift registry address (although not visible to you) is to Jen's house. All items are shipped to Jen's house to be gift wrapped by students. We remove any identifying information from the gift receipts before giving them to families. Only Jen and Nikki know the names of the donors.

15. Besides shopping off of a registry, how else can I help a family? We also need grocery store gift card donations for each family (we are aiming for $250 per family). 

16. Who are the kids in this program? All children in the program have been referred by their school counselor or pupil personnel worker (PPW). Most of the children supported by this program are part of the Learning for Independence (LFI) program at Lakewood Elementary School or The Learning Center at DuFief Elementary or are a sibling of a child in one of these programs. The LFI program serves students throughout Montgomery County with moderate intellectual disabilities. They learn functional life skills and basic academics in a school environment and community setting. The Learning Center serves students K-5 with a variety of disabilities who are working on the general education curriculum.  Services are provided in self-contained classes that address the goals and objectives in the student's IEP while also ensuring access to the general education curriculum through assistive technology and differentiated instruction. We also have children from low-income families or families experiencing a crisis/emergency situation in the program. Because families are referred by the school counselor/PPW, we rely on them to vet the need of the family.

 

Happy Holidays!

Jen Eisenfeld and Nikki Bossert

Holiday Helping Hands Co-Chairs

 

Questions? Contact us at holiday@tswoottonhs.org

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