2012 Costume Drive

We are excited to be participating in the From the Pumpkin Patch  Costume Giveaway by sponsoring the 2012 Virtual Costume Drive in our Pumpkin Patch community.

Join us by sending costumes help give kids FREE costumes!  This is going to be FUN!

From the Pumpkin Patch is dedicated to providing Halloween costumes to children from low-income families.  For seven years, they receive collected new and used costumes, accessories and jewelry from people like you and me.

Just prior to Halloween, they and volunteers setup stations where children can pick out a free costume to wear on Halloween (and any other day they feel like it).  During the last two years, they have given away more than 2,000 costumes!

As a community of pumpkin lovers, we at Pumpkin Patch are so inspired by this generosity that we wanted to host a virtual costume drive with From the Pumpkin Patch!  We hope you will help!

So you know we're talking about:

• Pumpkin Patch is our community of pumpkin lovers.
  Our Facebook page is: www.facebook.com/pumpkinpatchtv
• From the Pumpkin Patch is a non-profit organization that gathers and distributes costumes to kids who need them.
  Their Facebook page is  http://www.facebook.com/pages/From-the-Pumpkin-Patch/132412213049

Here's how our virtual costume drive works:

1. GATHER: Gather new and/or used costumes to donate.
2. LIKE: Like From the Pumpkin Patch on Facebook so you can follow the progress and also tag them in any pictures you post. (To tag, click on the photo, click tag and type in the name of the Facebook page you want to tag, then click Enter.)
3. POST: If you want, post pictures of you collecting or buying the costumes on your Facebook page and Pumpkin Patch and From the Pumpkin Patch to encourage others to do the same. 
4. SEND: Send your costumes by OCTOBER 15 to From the Pumpkin Patch at:
   Costume Giveaway
   From the Pumpkin Patch
   61 Tenney Rd.
   Westford, MA  01886
5. QUALIFY: Go to the Pumpkin Patch Costume Drive Official Page and put in the comments that you sent some costumes to From the Pumpkin Patch.  The more people who do this, the more BONUS costumes that Pumpkin Patch will donate.  And, lucky winners will receive a prize.
   (See the incentive section below, for more information.)  Please add your comments to  http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=380612105340595&set=p.380612105340595&type=1&theater indicating that you sent a costume by OCTOBER 20.

If you want to give anonymously, please feel free to send in your costumes and not post that you sent them in.  But, consider that posting pictures and acknowledging that you participated may encourage others, too.

AND... Pumpkin Patch is adding incentives:

BONUS Costume Incentive - For the kids
If people who like Pumpkin Patch on Facebook donate costumes, Pumpkin Patch will add a BONUS costume donation as an incentive for people to participate.  (Of course, we'll be sending some anyway, but this is in addition.)

• If 10 people who like Pumpkin Patch donate costumes, 1 extra costume will be donated by Pumpkin Patch
• If 100  people who like Pumpkin Patch donate costumes, 10 extra costumes will be donated  Pumpkin Patch
• If 250 people who like Pumpkin Patch donate costumes, 25 extra costumes will be donated  Pumpkin Patch

In order to be counted toward the extra incentive award, the person who likes Pumpkin Patch on Facebook must post on the comments on the Pumpkin Patch Costume Drive page that they sent in a costume so we can properly count.  One person counts as 1 person donating, even if sending in multiple costumes (which is encouraged, too!)  If you host a costume drive, you can count each person who gave through your drive as one person toward the incentive goal.  If your company is donating costumes, post the number of people in your company up to a total of one per costume that you donated.  (For example, if you run a pumpkin patch with 5 employees and you donate 8 costumes, it counts as 5 people donating.)

Photo Tagging Incentive - For you
FIVE winner will be selected from those of you who tag Pumpkin Patch and From the Pumpkin Patch in your costume gathering photos.  That winner will receive a prize YET to be determined... (suggestions are welcomed).

Commenting Incentive - For you
FIVE winners will be selected from those of you who comment on the official page that you sent in a costume.  Those winners will receive a prize YET to be determined... (suggestions are welcomed).

Here is more information about the From the Pumpkin Patch's program:

Free Costume Giveaway:
October 27, 2012 from 11 am - 3 pm (while supplies last)
Location: UMASS Lowell Inn & Conference Center
50 Warren Street, Lowell, MA 01852
Flyer: http://www.fromthepumpkinpatch.org/files/giveaway.pdf

Costume Donation:
Yes!  Please gather and donate costumes.  You can drop them off, if in the MA/NH area, you can check their website to see if any new locations have been setup in your area: http://www.fromthepumpkinpatch.org/Collections.html

or, you can mail costumes to:
Costume Giveaway
From the Pumpkin Patch
61 Tenney Rd.
Westford, MA  01886

You can order costumes online and have them delivered directly to From the Pumpkin Patch.  If you still want to post a picture, you can take a picture of your computer screen as you're ordering it!

Organize a Collection Drive:
You may also want to organize a collection drive.  From the Pumpkin Patch has flyers, draft emails and other resources to help you collect costumes.  If you do a collection drive, let us know on our Costume Drive page how many people donated costumes... even though we only count each donor once, if many people are donating, they count one per person toward our incentive goals.

1. Review the information: http://www.fromthepumpkinpatch.org/Help.html
2. Let them know:you're doing a drive: merritt@fromthepumpkinpatch.org
3. Promote!

Contact From the Pumpkin Patch:
For questions about the program, contact:
781-697-8932
www.fromthepumpkinpatch.org
merritt@fromthepumpkinpatch.org

Here is a video in case you want to share it...

Hopefully you have one or more costumes at home that you can donate, but if not, considering buying one.  Since it's early, many local stores have costumes in-stock.  If you want to order online, there are some options below.

Thank you for your help, your costumes and spreading the word!