Dear Editor:

In Kathy Lynn's July 21 column, Consider Charitable Gifts Carefully, she says she was asked what she thought of a four-year-old being invited to a birthday party and being asked to bring money in lieu of a gift and that it would be donated to a local charity. Lynn suggests that a four-year-old can't relate to this and won't see the connection.

Lynn makes some good suggestions, but I do think that asking kids to bring money to donate instead of a present can be a great idea. We have friends with two young children. For their last birthdays they both requested that guests, instead of a present, bring just $10; $5 of that would go to a local charity and $5 would be used by the birthday child to buy a present of their choice. Why did people think this was a good idea? 1) It meant the child didn't receive a room full of new toys which they didn't need. 2) Parents of guests didn't have to spend time shopping, plus they probably saved money as kids' presents these days typically cost more than $10. 3) It meant the birthday child could use the money to buy something big, of their choosing, which taught them a bit about the value of money. 4) It taught them that birthdays (and Christmas and other celebrations) aren't just all about consumerism and getting presents and seeing who can give the coolest toy. And 5) It taught them about the importance of charity.

Both of the birthday children donated their money to the Harvest Project here on the North Shore which helps families in need. Most children age five or older are able to understand that some kids can't afford to have toys, and some families struggle to buy food, and that it's important to share if you can afford to do so. After her last birthday party, our friend's five-year-old daughter went to the Harvest Project and delivered her little pile of money and said she wanted to give it for families to help them buy food and toys for their kids. The staff and volunteers there made her feel very special, showed her around the facilities, told her how her money would help, and then mailed her a thank-you note with an ice-cream coupon from a local retailer to show their appreciation.

Lynn might be right, some four-year-olds probably are too young to understand. But you should have seen the smile on the five-year-old girl after she donated half her birthday money to a worthwhile cause. Since these two kids started the 50-50 birthday donation idea, I understand that about half the birthdays they've been invited to since have done a similar thing. What a great trend -- less consumerism, less wrapping paper, less stress for everyone -- plus one nice big present of their choosing for the birthday child and a lesson on the importance of helping those less fortunate.

I like lots of the ideas and advice in Lynn's column, just not this particular one.

Peter Roundhill

North Vancouver