How do you donate?

If you're saving money on the things you need, couponing is great. But, you know you can get free or really cheap stuff at stores all the time with coupons right?  Even if it's not something you or your family personally use, I encourage you to pick up items when you can and donate them.

Within the past month or two, I have collected 12 bottles of Maalox, 16 bottles of MotrinPM, 30 toothbrushes, 10 packs of floss, 20 packs of sanitary pads & liners and 10 boxes of pasta among other things.  I made money off of most of the items and at most paid the tax.  What can we possibly do with all of that? We certainly can't use them all before they expire!   We donate them to the food bank through our church, to a local woman's shelter or just pass them out to friends & family.
During the holidays you can make Easter Baskets and Christmas stockings or you can fill shoe boxes for the military or Operation Christmas Child.  There are a thousand ways to donate.  If you itemize your taxes, you can get a donation receipt & claim the full retail value of what you donate (NOT what you paid or were paid :) to buy the items).

I enjoy making my donations.  We don't have cash to write big checks for a donation or to support a ton of fundraisers.  We do however have items that the food banks & shelters need.  They don't care if you paid full retail for it!  They don't even care if it was a free sample you signed up for online!

If you're not already shopping for donations, I encourage you to start a donation bag, bucket or box somewhere in your house.  Next time you're out shopping, grab an extra item to put in it & share you're couponing wealth!