Friday, May 1, 2015

A Clever Graduation Gift That's Always Appreciated!

We received a graduation announcement in the mail this week. It is that time of year. Final exams will soon be written; caps and gowns are ordered; parties are being planned... and announcements are being addressed and mailed by graduates everywhere.


graduation card

When I was growing up, high school and college graduations were celebrated. Now, middle school (a.k.a. junior high school) and even kindergarten graduations are recognized, although usually not to the same degree as higher education.

Receiving a graduation announcement does not always require a response, however people frequently give a card and/or gift. When my daughter graduated from high school, we were overwhelmed by the
generosity of our friends and family.

Unless you know the graduate well, it can be hard to pick out an actual present. 

Money is undoubtedly a welcome gift, but I always want to do something more personal than just write a check. A few years ago, a friend of mine gave me a really good idea of how to make a money gift a bit more special. (Thanks Julie!)  She suggested writing the graduation year in “cents” on the check.  For example, when giving a gift in the year 2015, the check would be written for xx amount of dollars and 15 cents!

While, of course, the graduation year is best represented by writing a check for twenty dollars and xx amount of cents, (whatever year the recipient is graduating) this actually is still a cute gift when the check is written with whatever dollar amount you give:


$10.15    ....    $20.15    ....    $30.15    ... $50.15    ...    $100.15    ...    $1,000,000.15   ... !      

The first year I wrote graduation checks this way, I wasn't sure anyone would even notice!  I was amazed, however, by the number of thank you notes we received, commenting on my cleverness. 

graduation thank you note

What is your favorite graduation gift to give?

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16 comments :

  1. That's a great idea Susan. We've just started getting some announcements too. Can't believe it's that time of year again!

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    1. And next year our youngest kids will both be graduating ... We have got to figure out how to slow the next 12 months down Lana!

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  2. We don't really celebrate graduation here before the tertiary level. And I don't think that gifts are expected/exchanged other than for family members.
    Love your cleverness though.

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    1. It would seem that the expectation should be that every child graduates from kindergarten and middle school - so I have always considered recognition of that just to be more an observation of a milestone than an actual celebration :)

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  3. I always make a homemade card with a little rolled-up piece of paper that looks like a diploma and tied with a piece of embroidery floss the school color as well as a graduation cap with embroidery floss tassel and the year of graduation all done in school colors. Then I enclose money. It's fun making the cards. I like the "cents/year" idea. I might just have to use that one. My husband comes from a large family (mostly created by his three sisters) so we usually have 3 or 4 graduations every year.

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    1. You are so clever Lynn. Those would be fun cards to receive!

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  4. What a clever idea! I don't know anyone who is graduating this year most of my friends kids are already graduated. I've been over run with baby showers lately!

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    1. It is funny how our life goes in stages, isn't it Rena? Right now, we are in the stage of celebrating many graduations!

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  5. That's so clever! A great way to make it more meaningful and fun!

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    1. Thanks Marie - I wish I could take credit for thinking of it, but I am glad my friend shared the tip with me.

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  6. Took me a while to figure it out last year... but Haransh did right away :) A very clever idea indeed....

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    1. I have no doubt that Haransh would have spotted it and figured out the meaning right away! Is he home yet?

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  7. wow that is a great and cute idea - when my nieces graduated H.S - we gave them money - yet I also wanted to do something personal so the both received a candy poem about graduating, in a tiny basket. (i found it on Pinterest)

    I like the year as cents...

    that reminds me on my sisters wedding my cousin Dom called her and asked what is your anniversary date when you and future husband started dated she told him what it was and he wrote a check for that amount --- cute right and can designed to fit the bill with the placement of the decimal.

    Thanks again

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  8. What a cute idea, Susan! Oh my, time flies by too fast. Here I am holding on to the last single digit year for my son and in two yrs, he'll be in middle school. *sigh*

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  9. What a cute idea, Susan! Oh my, time flies by too fast. Here I am holding on to the last single digit year for my son and in two yrs, he'll be in middle school. *sigh*

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