Charity wedding gifts are becoming increasingly popular with couples who feel that they have all the domestic accessories they need, and who would like to feel that their wedding has had a positive impact on the lives of people less fortunate than themselves.
Some couples simply ask for donations to a charity, but many guests struggle to know how much to donate and would prefer to buy a specific gift. It is now possible to set up a gift list with charities such as World Vision, where guests can pay for a particular charitable item or service on behalf of the couple. Here are a few examples of the type of gifts it is possible to register for on a charity wedding gift list:
Education and training
For charity work to succeed it needs to focus on helping people to help themselves, and providing education and training is a large part of that. The gifts you can register for can be as large as training a teacher, or as small as providing school pencils. You can also register for school books, sports equipment, and the provision of school lunches.
Food and income
As well as education and training, charities try to provide a reliable and sustainable source of food and income for communities. Rather than just feeding them, charities give them the means to produce food for themselves. You could ask you guests to club together and group gift a stable full of animals to a struggling community, or you could register for individual animals such as cows, donkeys, lambs, and chickens. You could also include farming tools, seeds, or fruit trees on your registry.
Health and sanitation
Poor health and sanitation are huge problems in developing countries, and you can help parents to keep their children healthy through your wedding gift registry. If your guests are happy to contribute to a larger gift why not see if you can supply clean drinking water to an entire community? If you’d like to register for smaller gifts you could train a healthcare worker, supply a new-born baby kit, or provide a school toilet. Even low cost gifts such as mosquito nets and childhood immunisations can save lives.
Women and girls
Women do not often have the same status and opportunities in developing countries that we enjoy, and they may need particular help to stand on their own two feet. Make women a priority on your bridal gift list by helping a woman to start her own business, buying a girl a bicycle, paying for a girl to attend school, or providing a sewing machine so a woman can work.
Global emergencies
Unfortunately global disasters and emergencies, both natural and mad made, seem to be occurring all the time, and charities work very hard to bring comfort and hope to families affected by conflicts or natural disasters. Simple gifts you can register for include blankets to keep families warm, and emergency food or medical kits. More expensive gifts might be temporary shelters to keep families safe during these terrible times.
A charity registry is a wonderful way to make a difference with your wedding gifts. You’ll start married life knowing that you have helped people far less fortunate than yourselves. Even if you feel you need to register for more traditional home ware gifts, why not include a few charity gifts on your list as well, and you can have the best of both worlds?
