It seems like the love of collecting may have become a memory of the past. It used to be that you couldn’t go into someone’s Churchill County place and not find Hummels, Snowglobes or a Pooh Bear collection.
Churchill County baby-boomers really enjoyed collecting stuff. The inclination today is to be a minimalist.
So when you’re ready to scale back or sadly when a collector relative dies where do you go with their Precious Moments, Books or Pooh Bear items?
You could try to sell the Pooh Items online. Some of the difficulties you might face when selling online include: setting up a payment account, writing attractive 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. Grandma may have paid $70 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.
You can give it to a place like a Churchill County Goodwill. They will take it. However, some people struggle with the thought of their Mother’s treasured collectibles being separated and sold for .99 cents. The plush could become a dog toy.
You could donate any plush to a Churchill County children’s place. However, many places only want items that are new, in the original boxes and are 5 years old or newer. Plus, your Mother really took care of the plush and displayed them. Some people have a hard time with a plush collectible becoming a plush child toy.
Over the years I have been contacted by family members and asked if they can donate and if I will accept Winnie the Pooh Collectibles.
My answer is with great excitement! I am always honored and humbled to – in my words – “to take care of their collection”.
If I am talking to the Churchill County collector and owner I let them know which numbers their items will be in the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection. Their collection becomes part of history vs. being sold for a buck at a rummage sale. I let them know I will showcase their donation of collectibles along with mine. I consider their collection 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 family members. 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 Winnie the Pooh Items to the Guinness World Record Pooh Collection the collection stays entact and the memories are still there too. In fact, if the collector wants, they can even visit their items when traveling from Churchill County to Wisconsin.
If you have a collection of Winnie the Pooh items to donate, feel free to contact me and we can coordinate adding your Mother’s Pooh Collectibles to history and the Pooh Bear Museum.
Deb Hoffmann - 414-708-0633
Fallon |