Pass it forward

Giving is the new receiving! The recession has hit us all hard, but charities especially have been badly affected. With many charities holding accounts with Icelandic banks, their money has simply disappeared, swallowed up by a failing sector.

Weddings are costly affairs and doesn’t everyone know it, but couples are now using their special days to raise some money for charities close to their hearts. The most popular ways of doing this are:

Charity Gift List - These days it is very rare for a couple not to have set up a home before they get married: they no longer need the obligatory toaster and duvet sets that were once the gift of choice from their guests. They are now providing their guests with links to websites where they can purchase such items as seeds and tools for those in less fortunate countries or donate to a worthy cause.

Charitable Favours – Instead of a little token gift that may be left in a drawer and forgotten about, some couples are choosing to buy charity ribbons, wrist bands and trinkets from charities to present to their guests. Others are simply donating the money they would have spent on favours to a charity and letting their guests know on the day of the wedding in their speeches or by little cards left on the table with the full details.


Charity Friendly Companies – Many businesses have periods where they offer to donate a percentage of their profits to a charity. By choosing to use these companies where possible you can sit back and enjoy that warm-hearted glow of having done a good deed.

Personally, Cancer Research UK is my charity of choice. Cancer is a battle that we’re not quite winning yet. We can reattach limbs, give people back their memories, use muscles and skin from other parts of our bodies to repair broken parts yet we cannot beat this disease in every case. We’re not finding the disease fast enough for some people and this is something deeply passionate about. I’m sure you have a cause that is close to your heart, why not consider including it in your wedding day making it extra special for you and those that your hard earned money will help?



It’s the little things that matter most to charities, as they say every little helps. Why not donate your bouquet, centrepieces and other left over flowers to a local hospice or hospital to brighten up the day of the residents and patients? Leftover food and cake can be delivered to a hospice rather than being binned. Dresses and other outfits can be donated to local charity stores where they can sell them on and make some pennies for the good cause.



Written by Jac at Little Tiger Creations