Last Chance: Back to School Gift Card Challenge Closes Sunday

Now is your last chance to enter our Back to School Gift Card Challenge. Not only will you be entered to win a Tim Horton’s gift card but you can help raise some money for the church.

How it Works: All gift card orders collected in July and August will be entered into a draw to win a Tim Horton’s gift card. August’s deadline is August 11. You can place your order online, by talking to someone at our gift card table in Hospitality Hall after Sunday service or by picking up an order form from the office.

How much does this cost: You are charged face value on the cards you purchase, there is no additional cost to you. The church does receive a percentage of sales but that comes from the company, not you. For example, if you were to purchase a $100 SUPERSTORE gift card, you would be charged $100 and the church would make $3. The percentage we get is different for each store and varies from around 1 - 10%. There are also monthly specials that allow us to earn more money by purchasing certain cards. You can see the specials online or by reading the Sunday email on the deadline day (we try to include some of them).

Why Use Gift Cards: Gift cards are great for budgeting, especially during high spend months like the summer and back to school. By setting a budget for what you want to spend and then purchasing a gift card, you can stay on track. It is also a great way to ensure that you spend the money on the right categories. You may allot money for clothing and having a gift card to the Gap ensures that you actually spend the money their instead of purchasing the latest gadget instead. Gift cards are also a great way to “save” for an upcoming trip. If you purchase gift cards in July for a summer trip in September, it means you can spread out the expenses instead of having all of them in September.

What gift cards can I get? There are around 150 different retailers that have cards for sale. They include grocery, clothing, restaurants, gas stations, etc.

Summer / Back to School Shopping Recommendations: To help you get started, we have put some recommendations below. You can see the percentages that we get beside the cards. This is just a sampling of the cards, check online to see a full list.

Summer Travel: Chevon (2%), Esso (2%), Petro-Canda (2%), Shell (2%), airbnb (4%), Best Western (5%), Fairmont Hotel and Resorts (8%), West Jet (2.5%)

Road Trip Meals: A&W (4%), BP (5%), KFC (3%), McDonald’s (2.5%), Starbucks (3%), Subway (4%), Tim Hortons (2%), Wendy’s (3%)

School Supplies: Apple (3%), Staples (3%), Best Buy (1.5%), Cross Iron Mall (3.5%), Indigo (5%), South Centre Mall (3%),

Back to School/ Work Clothing: Aldo (10%), American Eagle (6%), Banana Republic (7%), Children’s Place (8%), Gap (7%), H&M (3.5%), Harry Rosen (5%), La Senza (7%), Mark’s (7%), Old Navy (7%), Penningtons (4%), Reitmans (4%), Roots (10%), RW & Co (4%),

Meal Prep: Chef’s Plate (7%), Hello Fresh (7%), IGA (3%), Instacart (3%), M&M (3%), No Frills (3%), SUPERSTORE (3%), Safeway (3%), Sobey’s (3%)

Final Thoughts: The gift card program at the church is a really easy way to support the church at not cost to yourself. Many of the cards can be purchased as e-cards and you can get them immediately. You also have the option to ship directly to you house (we do encourage you to include your cards with the church order if possible as we can get free shipping if we hit certain volumes). If everyone in the church used this program, it would make a huge difference to the bottom line. We encourage you to try it out for yourself!

To learn more about the Gift Card Program, please visit our website.

To learn more about our fundraising initiatives, please visit our Marketing and Fundraising webpage.