Blessing Bags: Teaching Children to Give – The Gifted Gabber

Disclosure: I am required by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to let you know I am a social ambassador for McDonald’s. I have been compensated for this blessing bags post. 

Lately, the idea of teaching our girls about compassion and giving has been weighing on my mind and on my heart. When is too young? When is too old? I figured the first introduction would likely come from a big toy clean-out at some point soon. I was not expecting Scooter Britches to teach me about compassion earlier this week as we stocked our last round of blessing bags for the winter season. 

Blessing Bags? What Are Those?

Five winters ago, one of the mission groups at our church introduced us to the idea of blessing bags, as they called them. I have since heard these blessings bags referred to as homeless bags, homeless care packages, homeless packs, hygiene kits for homeless, homeless survival kits, and compassion bags. Personally, I think the best terms for these bags are blessing bags or compassion bags. After all, not all of the recipients of these bags are necessarily homeless. Some who receive the blessings bags may be going through tough times but may not actually be without a home.

My friend, a member of the church mission group, handed me a bag stocked with hygiene products and snacks. She asked me to keep the bag in my car and hand it out if I saw an unsheltered person.

The Hubs and I thought it was a wonderful idea so we started making our own blessing bags for homeless or troubled residents in our area.

Homelessness Facts

Acccording to the 2018 U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Annual Homeless Assessment Report, around 6 of 10 homeless people in the U.S. are men or boys. This is not a figure that has changed much over the years, so we have always prepared bags with men in mind, although I do add some products for women to a couple bags each year.

There is fascinating information in the HUD report concerning homelessness in the United States as a whole and on a state by state basis. It is worth checking out. 

Blessing Bag Ideas

Toiletries for Homeless

We buy the large flat-bottomed Ziploc bags and fill them with seasonal items. In my opinion, the zip gallon bags with the flat bottoms are best. They seem to last longer. Residents may have a use for these bags even after they have used the contents.

For winter, we fill them with knit hats, gloves and thermal underwear. (I usually buy size mediums because many men I see are on the thinner side. Medium seems a fairly safe bet.)

We also include a package of hand or body warmers, deodorant, lip balm, small package of tissue, bandages and other toiletries. One thing we try to include in every bag – regardless of season – is socks. I have read that socks are the one of the most needed items yet the hardest item for homeless shelters to keep in stock to for visitors. 

Food Ideas for Blessing Bags

Long-lasting snacks are also included in the blessing bags for homeless residents. For the snacks, we usually buy granola bars, peanut butter crackers, Vienna sausages and other such things.

We keep the bags in our cars throughout the winter months. Once warmer weather approaches, we restock our supplies for summer items. However, it is much more difficult to keep them in the car in the summer with 100-degree temperatures in our area. If we have any hats, gloves or thermals leftover, we save them to be used in bags the following winter.

Gift Cards for Blessing Bags

In addition to the items mentioned above, we include a $5 gift card to McDonald’s in our compassion bags. We originally decided on using gift cards from McDonald’s as opposed to other fast food establishments because there is typically a McDonald’s within walking distance in most downtown areas (which is where many unsheltered people are located).

Ever so often, The Hubs or I will pick up a handful of gift cards from our local McDonald’s so that we always have some on hand to stock new bags. Since The Hubs often encounters unsheltered people around his work place, he keeps extra McDonald’s gift cards in his wallet so he can hand them out in passing if he cannot get to his car and get a bag. 

But what can you really get with a $5 gift card at McDonald’s?

I know what you are thinking. It’s hard to get away with much for $5 these days. But it really is possible to buy a three-item meal at McDonald’s with a $5 gift card.

Possible Meal Combinations

• double cheeseburger, medium fries, and a drink
• chicken McNuggets, a parfait, and a drink
• McChicken, ice cream cone, and apple slices
• sausage biscuit, hash brown, and a coffee

There is an endless number of food combinations one can make at McDonald’s with a $5 gift card.

The people who have received these bags have always been so surprised to have a random stranger hand them a “goody bag” filled with surprises. They have always seemed genuinely touched and extremely grateful. For certain, this is one project in which spending our money for the supplies brings joy.

This week, as I packed our latest bags, Scooter Britches came into the room and wanted to help. SB is quite a helper. If there is help to be given, she’s your girl. Immediately, she wanted to know what I was doing.

How to Discuss Homelessness with Young Children

I tried to choose my words carefully.

“We are giving small presents to some people who do not have a house,” I said.

“They do not have a house? Do they have a bed?” she said. “I have a bed. And when I bigger, I going to have a big girl bed.”

“No, these people do not have a bed. And they do not have much food either. They might be hungry.”

And here is where the story took an awesome turn that only a three-year-old can orchestrate.

A few days before this conversation, the girls had their Valentine’s parties at their day care. I had purchased a large box with 40 small bags of Disney-themed pretzels. The bags were actually designed to be given as individual Valentine’s treats with a place to write the children’s names on them. However, I sent them to be handed out as party favors/snacks instead. After the parties, the day care sent home the extra 20 or so bags of pretzels that weren’t used.

SB ran straight to the pantry to get that big box of pretzels. She brought it to the dining room where we were stuffing the blessing bags.

“I give them this,” she said before proceeding to climb up to the table. “I sharing my preckles.”

I watched as she quickly added one bag of pretzels to each Ziploc bag before carefully zipping the bag and reaching for the next one in line. How happy it made me to see her jumping right in to our five-year-old tradition of making these hygiene kits for homeless residents. She was so diligent and thorough with her job. Sharing her leftover bags of pretzels may seem like a small gesture, but kindness comes in all sizes.

In the few days since we filled our bags,  The Hubs has passed out several bags. He said one man thanked him repeatedly and told him he had not eaten in four days. When my husband told him there were snacks and a gift card for McDonald’s in the bag, the man grinned from ear to ear.

And that, my friends, is why we do this.

At dinner tonight, The Hubs was telling me that he had given compassion bags to three men this morning on his way to work. SB wanted to know what we were talking about. I reminded her about the bags she had helped us with earlier this week. Her eyes widened with excitement and she said, “And they eat my preckles, too?”

I realized that we parents don’t really have to make a big, grand point to teach our little ones to be compassionate.

Those toddler-sized hearts are bigger than we realize.

Be sure to check out my Do Good – Tot Style post – another post about teaching kids to be kind.

Sharing my blessings bags post at these lovely parties this week: