My Holiday Fair provides in-school holiday shops for elementary students across the country.  Their secret Santa shops give kids the chance to purchase gifts for their friends, family, and themselves completely independently of their parents.

Often children use the time to buy their parents gifts for mothers day, fathers day, or Christmas.  Teachers and parents comment on how it always gives kids great joy to be able to participate in GIVING, when they are more accustomed to receiving.  This is such an important education experience!  Not only do students practice thinking of others, but they get to use math and problem solving skills that they learn in school.

The thing the makes My Holiday Fair a HUGE success for school is the ease of set-up.  It is the absolute easiest in-school store to use because volunteers simply pop-the-top-and-shop.  Boxes full of pre-sorted merchandise arrive in the mail, volunteers are in charge of setting them in tables and opening the lids.  The kits include gifts that appeal to elementary-aged students and are priced anywhere from 10 cents to $20, so ANY child can participate.

Another big benefit is that there is no cost to schools.  Reserving the holiday shop is completely free.  Then schools simply return the un-purchased items and pay only for what students bought.  Many public and private schools choose to use this as a fundraiser option.  They simply decide how much to mark up the gifts using an easy chart, then keep the additional profits for the PTA, PTO, or other funding needs at their school.