Caring Hearts Q& A

Hi peeps! First of all, I want to thank you all for your enthusiasm and support for this cause. We’ve received quite a few questions that I want to answer. Hopefully this will help clarify a few things.

Q: How do you determine which nursing homes receive the cards?

A:  Many of the nursing homes receive donations because crafters like you volunteer to hand deliver the cards directly to those homes. Perhaps the crafter works there, has a parent or grandparent living there, or visits for another reason. Basically, people e-mail us their recommendations, and we add the suggested nursing homes to our list.

Q: How do you decide how many homes to support?

A: Each year, we never know how many cards we will receive, so we never know how many homes we can support. We keep a list of the homes that would like to receive our cards but, again, it all depends on the amount of cards that people donate. The 1st year, we only received 750 cards, the next year we received 3,500, and last year we jumped to over 17,000. This allowed us to send cards to over 80 nursing homes throughout the US, Canada, and Australia. So, as you can see, the number of homes we support varies year by year.

Of course, we'd like to support as many as we can. I cannot guarantee that this year we'll receive over 17,000, so the honest answer is that I don't know how many homes we can support this year. I’ve learned that I can never predict the amount. I never know until the card drive ends. 

Q: Do you hand deliver the cards?

A: With the help of volunteers we are able to hand deliver most of the cards. But, for those crafters who have nominated a nursing home they'd like to support, but can't hand deliver the cards, we ship the boxes directly to the nursing homes with a note explaining who the cards are from, as well as our mission.

Q: Can we help collect the cards?

A: We appreciate your willingness to help collecting; however, to help us keep things organized, please send your cards to the 5 address listed. After all, just like any non-profit organization, we have a center where the donations are sorted, packaged, etc. 

We put a lot of thought into our box preparation. Having a centralized donation center allows us to sort the cards and make sure that each nursing home receives a good mix of cards with a variety of designs from different senders, etc. This helps make things a bit more personal…and more special for the recipients.

Q: Why do I need to sign the card with my name and where I am from?

A: The purpose of this card drive is to let the people who receive our cards know that someone is thinking of them. Your holiday note is what personalizes the card. It’s a small gesture that makes them realize, “Wow, someone is taking the time to write me a note”. And, judging by the thank you note I received, guessing where his or her card comes from is also big part of the fun for each recipient.

Q: Should I include an envelope or can I just send the card without envelope?

A: The envelope not only helps protect your fabulous work on the card, but also makes the recipient feel like they're opening a present. The little things do make a difference. :)

Q: Can you send donation receipt?
A: We are not an 501c organization. We're just a few individuals that organizing this card drive. We're not claiming or filing anything that tax related. So, we really can't send a tax donation receipt. 

Q: Should I sign with my complete name, just first name or just last name?
A: Whichever you're comfortable with. 

Q: Do I need to stuff the card in the envelope or leave it out?
A: You could leave them out.

Also, I'd like to note that this endeavor is completely on a volunteer basis. None of the main people involved in organizing this get any kind of payment whatsoever. The first few years, Jennifer and I covered all the shipping costs ourselves. Only last year, we started to give people the option to send $1 or $2 to help with shipping costs. We all also work full time & have family, so please be patient & kind when you have question or needing respond from us.

We do this because we want to bring joy to others. And we appreciate all of you who support our card drive. It all happens because of your support.

I will update this post as more questions come in.