I will never, never understand (book drives)

[Alessandra]

This is a bit of a mini-vent, but not a JAWM....

 

I called a nearby public library in a struggling area -- they are having a book drive, so that they can give books to kids who may have few or no books. I love the idea of kids owning their own books. But the books have to be either new (preferred) or very gently used.

 

In our family, we buy lots of used books from Abebooks and from local library sales, hs conventions, etc. Not always gently used, but we are fine with this. So it puzzles me (to put it politely) that donated books have to new or new looking.

 

Am I being insensitive? Do people without much money just presume that more middle class types always buy new, and that being given something old is an insult? Or perhaps I am being overly strict about what gently used means?

 

What do you think?

[Heatherwith4]

I would think that maybe they are trying to discourage people from donating books that are written in and have pages or covers missing. I could be wrong, though.

[Mom2TheTeam]

I agree with you. That kind of situation frustrates me too. I am certainly able to donate things I already own, but I don't have the money to go buy new things to donate. I have 6 small children. I like my things to stay nice, but let's face it, 6 kids means we really use things. LOL.

[Whereneverever]

From working years of donation drives it's to keep out garbage quality items. Books covered in animal urine, missing lots of pages, ink spilled on them, ect.

 

I would not phrase this as people without money presuming things, btw. That comes off kind of rude. It's the guideline of the charity. If you have an issue with the wording, take it up with them, not the less fortunate kids in your community.

[Mom2TheTeam]

I would think that maybe they are trying to discourage people from donating books that are written in and have pages or covers missing. I could be wrong, though.

 

We posted at the same time. :)

 

This is a good point I guess. I guess they don't want people donating their books in really bad condition and this helps control that.

[dangermom]

When we donate, we should give things in good condition. It's one thing to decide that my own kids can have shelves of ancient library discards (which they do), and another to give those as gifts to someone else.

[bobbeym]

I agree. I think kids that's don't have any books would be grateful to be given free books period if they wanted them, regardless of them being well read.

 

We do a donation drive for our homeless patients every winter. It always bothers me that they want only new items. I tell my staff to bring in gently used anyway (defined as no faded writing, holes , stains, missing buttons or broken zippers, and very little fraying). I figure if they're homeless, they don't care if the FREE clothing and blankets they get are used or not as long as they are clean and keep them warm and dry.

[Chris in VA]

To me, it's like having a canned food drive in which some people go thru their pantries and give the really crappy food, because "poor people appreciate anything" and somehow don't deserve new.

[OrganicAnn]

I was part of a drive to give things to seniors in nursing homes - one thing we were collecting toiletry items. I was surprised how many almost empty bottles of shampoo, lotion etc that was donated.

 

They probably do that to keep out the really torn up stuff. If you have books that are worn, but aren't written in or torn up, they would probably take them.

[Giraffe]

Whenever I start to get frustrated at such rules I call to mind the scene in The Walton's:

 

http://www.christmastvhistory.com/2011/11/homecoming-christmas-story-1971.html

 

The heartbreak on the Elizabeth's face when she receives a doll with a shattered face broke my heart. I wasn't a whole lot older than Elizabeth and couldn't imagine giving someone a broken toy as their only Christmas present.

[happypamama]

As others have said, I'm sure it's to discourage people from donating true trash. It sounds like this libary is planning to give away the books, permanently, but for a rotating collection, I could see wanting newer books so they would stand up to more and longer use. Also, they may want to counteract the idea of "the poor will take anything" and give them something really nice for a change.

 

But yes, it would bother me as well. I almost never buy books brand-new.

[happi duck]

Others have said it but I need to chime in that people truly do donate trash and think people should appreciate it. I've dealt with this in several different venues and dealing with the trash people donate costs time and money. When trash does make its way to someone in need it is discouraging. Saying "gently used" opens the flood gates for trash. IME, saying new only is the only way to try and keep trash out.

[PrairieSong]

Just take in any books you consider gently used and ask if they are acceptable. I agree with the other posters who said that they are trying to keep people from giving tattered, mildewed, trashed books.

[NotSoObvious]

Also, they don't want books that smell like smoke or come from unclean homes, etc.

 

It's just a lot of extra work for someone to have to sort through trashy books and then figure out what to do with all the rejects.

[AngieC]

Just recently I donated several boxes of books to a charity that gives them out to kids in need who may not have any books of their own. The director of this particular charity explained to me that it was possible that this would be the first book some of these kids had ever been given and that they wanted it to be something special that the child would remember - that is why they preferred new or like-new condition.

 

I explained that in the hundreds of books I had given, many were in like-new condition, but there were also plenty that were not. She said not to worry that they would find homes for any of the books that did not meet their criteria to give out.

[KungFuPanda]

If someone is already an avid reader, they will understand that even well-loved-but-used books are fine. In this particular situation, they are trying to entice kids from non-reading households to read. I'm not sure that goal is best served by handing them what looks like someone else's cast-off trash. If you're building a collection, by all means get anything serviceable you can get your hands on, but if this is the ONLY book in the house, it makes sense that it's a nice one.

[WishboneDawn]

I would think that maybe they are trying to discourage people from donating books that are written in and have pages or covers missing. I could be wrong, though.

 

 

Yup. A lot of people see things like this as an opportunity to dump their junk on somebody else.

[SKL]

Personally I would rather gather in all the books that people want to donate, then pay some people to sift through them and discard anything that is really un-useable.

 

When I was a kid, the only books I got (outside of Xmas) were purchased from second-hand sources. My favorite book ever - Little House in the Big Woods - came from the Salvation Army. We got some from "rummage sales" and the like. We were blessed to have books in our home and never cared whether they were "like new" when we got them. (In those days, there was no school library, and we were only allowed to borrow 2 books at a time from the public library, for 2 weeks. Inevitably we were late returning the books and then procrastinated some more as we worked out how to come up with the fine money. So a book at home was a true luxury.)

 

I understand that nobody wants to recycle garbage, and some people truly have no sense in that regard. I used to own a used-book store, and it is amazing what some people actually expect to be paid for. The cat urine, worms, water damage, etc. Honestly, it is disgusting. But most people just don't want to see their used, useable books go to waste. It is a shame to prevent the re-use of decent books just because they are not nearly perfect.

[redsquirrel]

Well, as someone who worked for an agency that collected very much needed items for people who were in absolute need (a domestic violence agency) I have to say that you cannot BELIEVE what people donate. Clothing with holes and rips, household items that are broken...what is the point? When we would tell them that we couldn't accept items that were broken or not in usable condition we were met with such horrid attitudes. What did we mean? I thought these people had nothing? People who have nothing should be happy to have anything no matter if it is rubbish.

 

And we didn't have the staff to sift through 15 garbage bags of stuff when only 1 bagful would be useable. it takes staff, it takes money, it takes time to sort, clean, bring garbage to the dump etc.

 

They don't assume that you only have new things. It isn't about you. It is about the people they serve and what the agency can provide.

 

I donate books I bought second hand, are more than a little 'gently' used etc to our local library sale. Mine will take it as long as it isn't dirty, etc. They can actually sell it. At least if it is being sold then people can make a decision if they want it or not.

[magnificent_baby]

 

Yup. A lot of people see things like this as an opportunity to dump their junk on somebody else.

 

Another thought is where will they dump all the junky books? It might prevent them having to pay to throw them away, if they are limited on how much can go in their garbage.

[Alessandra]

Just recently I donated several boxes of books to a charity that gives them out to kids in need who may not have any books of their own. The director of this particular charity explained to me that it was possible that this would be the first book some of these kids had ever been given and that they wanted it to be something special that the child would remember - that is why they preferred new or like-new condition.

 

I explained that in the hundreds of books I had given, many were in like-new condition, but there were also plenty that were not. She said not to worry that they would find homes for any of the books that did not meet their criteria to give out.

 

 

That sounds nice. When you say it's might be someone's first book, it makes more sense.

 

Personally I would rather gather in all the books that people want to donate, then pay some people to sift through them and discard anything that is really un-useable.

 

When I was a kid, the only books I got (outside of Xmas) were purchased from second-hand sources. My favorite book ever - Little House in the Big Woods - came from the Salvation Army. We got some from "rummage sales" and the like. We were blessed to have books in our home and never cared whether they were "like new" when we got them. (In those days, there was no school library, and we were only allowed to borrow 2 books at a time from the public library, for 2 weeks. Inevitably we were late returning the books and then procrastinated some more as we worked out how to come up with the fine money. So a book at home was a true luxury.)

 

I understand that nobody wants to recycle garbage, and some people truly have no sense in that regard. I used to own a used-book store, and it is amazing what some people actually expect to be paid for. The cat urine, worms, water damage, etc. Honestly, it is disgusting. But most people just don't want to see their used, useable books go to waste. It is a shame to prevent the re-use of decent books just because they are not nearly perfect.

 

 

Ditto -- when I was a kid, I don't think I realized that new Nancy Drew books existed.

 

I already had books sorted out ready to go -- nothing torn or stained or marked up -- all in what Abebooks would call good or very good condition, but not all of them new looking. But I am thinking I will have to go through everything again. For example, the complete set of Series of Unfortunate Events -- paperback, so spines are creased. Other books that we got second hand ex-library, so cover has a faint mark from where I had carefully removed tags. The way I was told -- make sure they are all new or like new -- was off putting.

I might have responded better to a website that had a what we will take YES and NO columns. IMO, It would be great if each kid could get 10 books or 20 books or more, even if not all were new.

[Alessandra]

 

I donate books I bought second hand, are more than a little 'gently' used etc to our local library sale. Mine will take it as long as it isn't dirty, etc. They can actually sell it. At least if it is being sold then people can make a decision if they want it or not.

 

 

Yes, our local library sales are like that too. I donate -- and buy -- lots of stuff at those. First I look at the good things, but I always hit the '5 for $1' boxes too.

 

I accidentally deleted the first part of your post. But I do get it about donating real junk. I have volunteered for many years at our local church fair. Some boxes are full of rusty screwdrivers and so on, but often the same person who shows up with the rusty tools brings in another box that is full of Antique Roadshow tyoe discoveries. I always say thank you and keep a garbage bin nearby. Not quite a comparison with what you did, as fair is only once a year.

[LucyStoner]

People donate cr@p often time. When I worked for a charity that collected used donations, well, let's just not go there. Books missing pages, ripped, scribbled in etc to say nothing of unwashed intimate apparel and all sorts of things smelling of cat urine.

 

Unless it is for a gift program, I doubt they will turn away used books that are in solid, readable condition. They are just trying to discourage the clueless people who donate stuff that really is trash.

[Alessandra]

If someone is already an avid reader, they will understand that even well-loved-but-used books are fine. In this particular situation, they are trying to entice kids from non-reading households to read. I'm not sure that goal is best served by handing them what looks like someone else's cast-off trash. If you're building a collection, by all means get anything serviceable you can get your hands on, but if this is the ONLY book in the house, it makes sense that it's a nice one.

 

Thank you -- I truly appreciate your take on this. I guess I hadn't got my head around there only being one book in house. The policy makes a LOT more sense then. It would be nice to find a way to articulate this when people ask for donations -- sort of similar to holiday toy donations, when people ask for new toys to make sure all the pieces are included. That makes sense. (We buy old toys too, but they have never been dcs' ONLY toys.)

 

Sorry if I didn't respond to every post individually. Everyone was SO helpful, and I appreciate getting a broader perspective. I will sort through my books (again) and take some to far-off library and some to Goodwill. (Anything junky is long gone.)

 

But if I responded to every poster, my dc would not have any dinner, lol.... so THANK YOU!

[LucyStoner]

Personally I would rather gather in all the books that people want to donate, then pay some people to sift through them and discard anything that is really un-useable.

 

 

Libraries and charities don't have money and time to burn. The cost of sorting and disposing of unusable donations is a surprisingly large amount for any organization collecting donations on a mass scale. Guidelines are set for efficiency. No one should be donating a cost to an organization. People should not be getting a tax deductible donation when donating unusable stuff (trust me, it is the junk donators who seem to always want a tax slip!) I think it is perfectly fine to turn away bad donations and to set guidelines to better ensure usable donations.

[FaithManor]

I can just imagine the stuff people attempt to donate though. I've done can drives and people donate rusted cans, cans expired for years, etc. With books, people would probably donate musty mildewy books, etc.

 

Oh, this.right.here! My mom and I organized a drive to bring in supplies to make up care packages for an orphanage. We were focusing on personal care items that the children often do not have so one of the things we advertised for was soap - bars of soap. One woman brought in a gallon baggie of slivers of bars - the dregs that are left over that get so small they are hard to use. She told us pointedly that she expected us to take this used soap home, melt it down on the stove, pour it into cake pans, and then cut it into bars. "This is perfectly good soap and poor kids shouldn't expect better." I was close to telling her what I thought, but my dear, long suffering, patient mother said, "Thank you." As soon as the woman left, it was tossed into the garbage.

 

One of the worst ones though was when pastor said we were doing a care package for a Doctor in "Doctor's without Borders" and one thing the dear doc and his wife really wanted was tea bags - mint tea. A woman brought in a bag of USED tea bags!!! She said she had used each one to make two cups of tea and was certain they each had a third cup left in them. Straight to the garbage they went as soon as she was gone.

 

I think what has happened for a lot of libraries is that people clean out their basements or attics and bring the stuff that they could never sell at a garage sale because it's gross or hopelessly damaged and then pat themselves on the back or take a donation on their taxes if they itemize. So, they've had to tighten up the rules which is sad because it probably reduces donations and especially in this economy in which people would gladly clear out books their children have outgrown if it's okay for it to have been well loved, just not torn up, beat to death, or nasty in anyway. Many families can't afford to buy new and donate these days.

 

Faith

[Flowing Brook]

I think it is because otherwise people will bring in all their junk that is not fit to use but can't bring themselves to throw away.

[unsinkable]

Well, as someone who worked for an agency that collected very much needed items for people who were in absolute need (a domestic violence agency) I have to say that you cannot BELIEVE what people donate. Clothing with holes and rips, household items that are broken...what is the point? When we would tell them that we couldn't accept items that were broken or not in usable condition we were met with such horrid attitudes. What did we mean? I thought these people had nothing? People who have nothing should be happy to have anything no matter if it is rubbish.

 

And we didn't have the staff to sift through 15 garbage bags of stuff when only 1 bagful would be useable. it takes staff, it takes money, it takes time to sort, clean, bring garbage to the dump etc.

 

They don't assume that you only have new things. It isn't about you. It is about the people they serve and what the agency can provide.

 

I donate books I bought second hand, are more than a little 'gently' used etc to our local library sale. Mine will take it as long as it isn't dirty, etc. They can actually sell it. At least if it is being sold then people can make a decision if they want it or not.

 

My pastor ( a real pastor, not some made up one who tells you not to go see Black Swan, ROFL! LOL!) has to give a talk each Christmas with points similar to your post. Our giving tree would get unusable donations for gifts.

[AimeeM]

I agree with the policy actually...

It's difficult to put into words, but I do agree with it.

After my parents divorced, I lived with my mother for a short time before eventually moving in with my father. While with my mother, we were very, very low income. Hand-me-downs were always appreciated, but they were common. New? Rarely happened.

A brand new book would have made my year. Something about a shiny cover with crisp pages that smelled *new* when I turned the pages... yes, that would have meant the world to me at that stage in my life.

 

As an adult, I feel so blessed that I have the ability to buy new toys and books to donate. For $40 I can buy 8-10 brand new books to donate! That's almost a dozen kids I could give *that* feeling (of opening a brand new book) to.

[Impish]

I totally understand and agree about ppl using it to donate garbage.

 

At the same time, books are flipping *expensive* new, at least around here. (Seriously, check out the US/Canada prices on your books!) If we bought one new book for each of my kids to donate, we're looking at easily $40. And that's only 5 books! Whereas I can go to the 2nd hand book store and get at least 2x as many books for the same price. Books here get read, over and over again, so they def aren't in 'nearly new' condition. Spines are creased, chances are there's a fold in a cover or page, etc.

[Impish]

dbl post

[Word Nerd]

I can just imagine the stuff people attempt to donate though. I've done can drives and people donate rusted cans, cans expired for years, etc. With books, people would probably donate musty mildewy books, etc.

 

I was flabbergasted by the disgusting condition of some of the items that people donated for a clothing and coat drive I organized a while back. Probably 1/4 or 1/3 of the items were unusable except perhaps in a rag bag. Sadly, some people donate items as a means of free trash disposal; they are more concerned with getting it out of their house than whether anyone else may actually be able to use it. I know that our local Salvation Army thrift store and other similar shops are financially burdened when thoughtless people dump their trashy furniture at their door after hours—which the SA then has to pay to take to the dump where it belongs. I can definitely understand why a group with similar experiences would require that all donations be gently used or new.