He's just letting us hash it out, before he swoops in with another, I had a great idea!!!!

I do agree, something would be nice for a post / list just not sure what..

Yes, it will stink when (and they have) some companies cut back doantions.

That was exactly my point in being against posting a "here's who will donate" list. I honestly believe that publishing such a list will hasten that process.

Some time ago, somebody posted on these boards that they had received a guitar from some company, and published the information for the company. The poor guy was completely overwhelmed after that--he actually came on the board and made a post that said "OK, I never expected this, and there's no way I can handle them all--send me all your requests until (date), then I'll put them all in a hat and draw for one and be done with it." (Obviously paraphrased.) I certainly don't believe he, or anyone else, would get 10,000+ requests. But with the growing popularity of auctions and the availability of such a list on the Internet, I can easily see companies being inundated. Kind of a "no good deed goes unpunished" thing....

And now we know why Tim has been shying away from this whole topic!

[ 11-05-2005, 12:24 AM: Message edited by: mum24kids ]

I feel that there should be some sort of list that we could get on this board. Once someone says they have gotten various donations..the 'me too' requests start pouring in. At my school, the donations committee is a 2 year committment. When my time is up next year (and my son is out of the elementary school) someone else will be seeking this same information.

Let's not waste time overthinking this.

I thought my idea was a good one but from all the dialog, it would seem not. I agree that noting companies that don't donate would be a waste of time. I also think that the likelyhood of all 10,000+ members of this message board sending in requests for donations at the same time is highly unlikely.

As I said initially, when I read threads looking for possible companies to solicit and all I see are 'me too' requests but no substance, it is rather frustrating.

Originally posted by mum24kids:
These lists are somewhat helpful, but I'm not in favor of putting a list out there that has all the contact information for the companies that donate, for a few reasons.

The biggest reason is the one that my3strongtikes expressed--companies are going to get inundated with requests and either stop giving, or give items too small to be of much use at an auction. I've worked on various auctions for the last 6 or 7 years, and on the 2 I worked on in the last year, I heard the same thing over and over--companies are just getting far more requests than they can handle. I heard this much more often in the last year than I ever had before. Think about it--this site has over 10,000 registered users, plus heaven knows how many more thousands of people could get their hands on the list with a simple Google search.

Related to that, if there are companies that don't do corporate donations, they only consider them through local stores (and vice versa), that would be great to know.

Another thing that would be helpful would be the types of companies that donate. For example, we have always had great luck with local toy stores, local museums/attractions, and parents who own vacation homes.

I agree with some above on both sides (this is not a personal attack, just trying to understand the logic) but why would I post what companies dont donate, if someone has companies that donate but wont post a list because they're afraid they wont get a donation. Isnt' this a you scratch my back type deal. If someone has no info it would still be available.

Yes, lots of companies are revamping their donation/ grant policies.


I thought we were here to help each other, NOT TO reinvent the wheel. Yes, it will stink when (and they have) some companies cut back doantions.

These lists are somewhat helpful, but I'm not in favor of putting a list out there that has all the contact information for the companies that donate, for a few reasons.

The biggest reason is the one that my3strongtikes expressed--companies are going to get inundated with requests and either stop giving, or give items too small to be of much use at an auction. I've worked on various auctions for the last 6 or 7 years, and on the 2 I worked on in the last year, I heard the same thing over and over--companies are just getting far more requests than they can handle. I heard this much more often in the last year than I ever had before. Think about it--this site has over 10,000 registered users, plus heaven knows how many more thousands of people could get their hands on the list with a simple Google search.

In many cases when we've used a standard list, the items donated are too small to be auctioned, so we end up using them as a door prize, or have to find some way to combine them to make a worthwhile item. You can actually reach a point where you have too many auction items. (I'm intrigued by MaryAnn5's post--I honestly have no idea how I would go about auctioning off 63 autographed pictures.) Last year, our school auction raised about $27k on roughly 150 items.

I think there is other information out there that is much more helpful for getting donations, and I'm in favor of posting that. For example, a list of companies that don't donate--AMC Theatres is currently revamping their donation policy and not donating to anyone these days. American Girl won't donate if you received anything from them within the last three years. Knowing stuff like that saves me time and a stamp.

Related to that, if there are companies that don't do corporate donations, they only consider them through local stores (and vice versa), that would be great to know.

Another thing that would be helpful would be the types of companies that donate. For example, we have always had great luck with local toy stores, local museums/attractions, and parents who own vacation homes.

Also, any items that anyone has had particular success with would be great to hear about. One local school auctioned off the front place in line for the kiss and ride at the end of the school day for the whole year--they got thousands for it. Another organization auctioned off a ride to school in a firetruck, with a fire safety presentation given to that child's class; it sold for $900. Even though you might not be able to do the same thing, this type of info can spark some other ideas, without necessarily overwhelming generous merchants.