Your wedding day will be filled with excitement and love, not only between you and your new spouse, but amongst family and friends as well. Wedding guests often spend exorbitant amounts of money spoiling you, as the couple, with gifts and favours. However, many couples today already have well-established careers, homes and accessories. This means that a lot of the gifts, while appreciated, are somewhat unnecessary.

In response, an increasing number of couples have decided to use this occasion as an opportunity to donate to charities. While this may mean some sacrifice on your behalf, it yields an immeasurable amount of joy and satisfaction, knowing that the celebration of your love has benefited others to such a large degree. There are a few ways to contribute to charities and non-profit organisations:

• Leftover love – some organisations may be able to use food and beverages that have not been used during the course of your wedding. This is particularly true of a buffet-style meal, where food goes untouched by guests. Plated food is not ideal, unless it is being donated as food for animals, as the recipients may feel less dignified being given half-eaten chicken schnitzel, for example.
• Flower power – donating your bouquet and the flowers used in your décor to a hospital, children’s home or a home for the aged will cheer these ones up and remind them of their importance to others.
• Décor delight – if you have used certain elements in your décor that you will not use again, why not donate these to a home or playschool? Examples include props, candles, scatter cushions, candlesticks, and so on.
• Clothing comforts – while your wedding dress may be too sentimental to donate, the bridesmaids and groomsmen outfits may be just what your local second-hand shop needs. If you are willing to part with your dress, it is sure to save some future bride a lot of money as she prepares for her special day.
• Cash donations – instead of having a personal gift registry or accepting gifts from guests, consider mentioning on your invitation that, should your guests want to give you something special, they are welcome to make a cash donation to a charity in your name. Mention how much you would appreciate this gesture and that it would help you to enjoy your day even more. You may consider giving them a choice of your favourite charities, or simply allowing them to donate to a charity of their choice and simply let you know what organisation it was. You could be quite innovative, having some sort of card that they can fill in with the details and placing this on a tree or in a box for your later perusal. This will help them to see what an important initiative this is to you as a couple.
• Wedding favours – instead of spending money on giving each guest a small gift, you may opt for giving that money to a charity. Let guests know that you have done this by placing a small note at each place setting. This should say something similar to: “Thank you for being such an important part of our celebration. We wanted to share our joy by making a small donation in your name to Save-a-Pet”. If you choose to follow this course, it is imperative that you choose a charity that will not offend any of your guests.

Before selecting a charity or charities that you would like to support, it is vital that you find out more about them to ensure that you are happy with what will be done with your donation. This can be done by calling them directly or by examining their website. Always make a point of thanking your guests very genuinely and generously for their support and understanding in this regard. Give them the website address or a short précis on the work and aim of the charity so that they can feel comfortable with their part in the donation.

This article was posted by Celebration.co.za - South Africa Wedding Guide.