How to start your own Christmas Club

A Christmas Club is a way to save money for Christmas presents. This was a very popular thing for banks to do 30 years or so back and it was a way for housewives to save for Christmas presents. Some banks still offer Christmas Clubs, but you can start your own, with a fun twist. Here is how you do it.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Family or friends
• Piggy Banks

1. 
   Christmas

   Around November and even as early as October, tell your friends and family that you are starting a Christmas Club and see if they would like to join. Pick a day when everyone will come to your house to meet. For a more festive meeting, serve hors d'oeuvres.

2. 
   Christmas Present

   Decide how much money you, personally want to save for Christmas and divide that by how many weeks before Christmas. For example, if you want to save $200.00 for Christmas and there are 8 weeks before Christmas, then you will need to save $25.00 a week. Use your example to help the other members decide how much they want to save.

3. 
   Piggy bank

   Everyone will meet at your house, as you are the banker of the Christmas Club, to discuss how much they are going to save over the next few weeks. Write down everyone's commitment. Give everyone a small piggy bank, that you previously purchased. Members of the Christmas Club will use the piggy banks to save their money in. You can buy piggy banks at most any store or toy store and even at 99 Cent stores.

4. 
   Family and Friends

   Each week, you, as the banker will call each member, every week and ask them how much they are depositing into their piggy bank, and then write it down. This also helps everyone to stay on track with their savings, if they know you will be calling.

5. Another option is collect the money, by either having each member go to the bank (your house), to deposit money into their piggy bank or go to their house with the piggy banks and collect the money. The Christmas Club will vote on that option if they feel it would encourage everyone to save. Otherwise, everyone will have to be accountable for themselves, and make their own deposits into their own piggy banks.

6. 
   At the Shopping Center

   Here is the fun part. At the end of the specified time, everyone meets again at "the bank" (your house) and opens up their piggy banks and counts their money. Everyone should have at least saved the amount that they specified. Whoever is the farthest away from the amount they said they would save, becomes "The Valet". The Valet has to drive everyone to the mall and drop them off at the front of the store and go find a parking spot. They must also, go get the car after the shopping is done and pick everyone up at the front of the store and take them home.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't become the boss of everyone. This is for fun.
• If you call and they cannot put money into their bank that week, suggest that they double up the next week, if they can.
• Everyone can pool their money together and buy "The Valet" lunch.

[Alrady]

on 11/16/2009 Sound awesom and fun... what a great idea!!! you Rock!

[followthemoney]

on 11/14/2009 Sounds like great family fun. What a wonderful way to enjoy family and friends which is what it is about anyway. I had Christmas clubs when I was young.

[showpup]

on 11/14/2009 This sounds like good fun! My family loves stuff like this. Having several of us who live fairly close, I may just propose the idea.