Rounding up for the Honor Flight and other good causes

“Rounding up” has become the latest trend in fundraising, and with good reason. It’s easy to give, giving in small increments barely impacts the giver’s budget, and lots of small donations can add up to something really big. Many people enjoy participating this way; it’s easier than writing a check and the gift or donation is always under a $1 every time they give. Who can’t spare a little change?
What is rounding up? This is when you check out at a store and, instead of paying the exact total amount due, the clerk asks if you want to round up. For instance, your total purchases with tax come to $14.03. If you round up, you’re making a donation of $.97 to whatever cause that store is collecting for. If your total purchases with tax come to $14.99 and you round up, you’re making a donation of $.01 to that cause. In both cases, you actually pay the clerk $15.00. It’s kind of the equivalent of saying “keep the change” but the cap on rounding up is to make the number the next even dollar amount. Your donation is always under $1.
In many ways, this is even convenient. It makes balancing a checkbook easier (for those who still do that) to work with more even numbers.
Locally, at the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store, when you check out, you’ll be asked if you want to round up to help area families. That’s because profits from the thrift store are used to help area families through the St. Vincent de Paul Outreach Office, so rounding up adds to those profits, increasing the funding available to do so.
Now, at Merrill Ace Hardware, clerks are also asking if you want to round up when you check out. For the month of November, all of the funds collected through their “round up” program will be donated to the Honor Flight in our area to help additional veterans make the trip to Washington DC to see all the memorials there. Veterans who have made the trip have said it’s a powerful experience.
Ace Hardware employee Diane Chambers suggested the idea. “We do a round up every year and for many years we did the food pantry; then we did the humane society,” she said. “We want to always try to do something that’s easy for the community to donate to and something they can get behind.”
“Honor Flight is such a great thing for veterans and it’s an experience that all who want to go should be able to do,” Chambers said. “It’s a way for all of us to honor them.”
The next time you’re checking out at a store and the clerk asks if you want to round up, listen carefully—or ask again if you missed it when they spoke the first time—to see what cause the business is fundraising for. If it’s a cause you can support, consider saying yes and helping local community organizations to continue their good work.