Donating Your Great Aunt’s Pooh Items

It seems like the interest of collecting may have become an activity of the past.  It used to be that you couldn’t go into someone’s Sibley home and not find Precious Moments, Snowglobes or a Winnie the Pooh collection.

Sibley baby-boomers were obsessed collecting stuff.  The movement these days is to be a minimalist.

So when you’re ready to scale back or sadly when a collector family member dies what do you do with their Hummels, Trading Cards or Winnie the Pooh collectibles?

Selling Winnie the Pooh Collection

You could try to sell the Pooh Collectibles online.  Some of the hurdles you might face when selling online include: setting up a payment account, figuring out appealing listing descriptions, locating postage, packaging materials and weighing each item, answering question messages from potential buyers, handling returns on damaged items, etc. 

Also, figuring out pricing can be challenging.  Great Aunt may have paid $90 for an item but the online going rate is only $2.79.  You need to ask yourself the question “is my time worth just a few dollars”?  Online selling can take a significant amount of time.

Donate Pooh Items

You can give it to a place like a Sibley Goodwill.  They will take it.  However, some people struggle with the thought of their Grandmother’s much-loved collection being separated and sold for .99 cents.  The plush could become a dog toy.

You could donate any plush to a Sibley kids place.  However, many places only accept items that are new, in the original boxes and are 5 years old or newer.  Plus, your Great Aunt really took care of the plush and displayed them.  Some people have a hard time with a plush collectible becoming a plush child toy. 

Donate Your Mom’s Pooh Collectibles to the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection & Make It Part of History

Over the years I have been emailed by family members and asked if they can donate and if I will take Winnie the Pooh Collectibles. 

My answer is yes!  I am always honored and humbled to – in my words – “to take care of their collection”. 

If I am talking to the Sibley  collector and owner I let them know which numbers their items will be in the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection.  Their collectibles becomes part of history vs. being sold for a buck at a rummage sale.  I let them know I will showcase their donated items along with mine.  I consider their items as THEIR collection in my database.

When someone donates Pooh Items I think it makes people feel better which I am happy for.  Letting go of “things” can be hard for a collector and owners and even sometimes for relatives.  As much as we don’t want to be labeled as “materialistic” – things we buy and collect can have sentimental attachments and it’s those feelings that we are attached to probably more than the items.  People remember where they were when they received an item, who they were with or even where in their life cycle they were.  They don’t want those memories to vanish with the collectibles.  You can put a price tag on a mug or jewelry but you can’t put a value on happiness.

By donating Pooh Bear Items to the Guinness World Record Pooh Collection the collection stays entact and the memories are still there too.  In fact, if the owner wants, they can even visit their collectibles when traveling from Sibley to Wisconsin. 

If you have a collection of Pooh items to donate, feel free to reach out to me and we can coordinate adding your Grandmother’s Pooh Items to history and the Winnie the Pooh Museum.

Deb Hoffmann - 414-708-0633

Deb@MostPooh.com