Nipple tassels & a live hand grenade amongst weirdest items donated to charity
Melanie May | 16 November 2017 | News
Edible nipple tassels, a stuffed adult bison and a live hand grenade are amongst the strangest items donated to charity according to this year’s CAF survey.
Charities Aid Foundation asked charities including the RSPB, Barnardo’s, Marie Curie and the British Heart Foundation what wacky items people had donated to them in a survey conducted ahead of this month’s #givingtuesday.
Top of the list were:
- A stuffed adult bison, donated to Barnardo’s.
- A funeral urn, containing ashes, donated to a branch of Marie Curie.
- A live hand grenade, donated to a Sense charity shop in South East London (main image). The shop was evacuated and the device made safe by the emergency service.
- The Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy, along with edible nipple tassels and a whip, donated to a branch of Mind (sadly there’s no picture).
- A Christmas dinner, donated to Dog’s Trust. A supporter didn’t want their sponsored dog missing out at Christmas, so sent a full Christmas dinner, in a jiffy bag.
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- Hundreds of pairs of women’s tights, donated to an RSPB reserve. A warden requested 30 pairs to help stop a weed from invading the reserve’s ponds, but the charity was inundated after the local paper covered the story.
- A full-sized passport photo booth, donated to Sue Ryder.
- A Mercedes-Benz C180 Elegance, donated to a branch of Tenovus Cancer Care in Southampton.
- An antique purse carved in the shape of a samurai, donated to the British Heart Foundation’s eBay shop, which sold for £1154 in an online auction.
Ben Russell, Director of Communications at the Charities Aid Foundation, said:
“Charity shops are the ultimate destination for those hoping to source an unusual Christmas gift. From stuffed mammals to your next ride, there really is no limit to what you might find whilst rooting for a bargain. Last year, more than 4.5 million people across the UK took part in #givingtuesday, and we hope that 2017 will be our biggest year yet.”
Odd donations to charity in the past have included a ventriloquist’s dummy to the BHF, which sold for £670, and a sheep’s head, which was given to Sue Ryder.
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.