Wanted: Ideas from college students

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I am on a little committee in our parish to prepare care packages for our college students who, far from the bosom of their family and friends, are staying up too late, eating junk food and causing lil ole ladies like me to shake our heads and go “un, un, un.”

So we’re sending them Stuff. The suggestions have been for toiletries and such, and of course some baked goods. Stretching back far into history when I was in college, I have come up with some items I would have enjoyed receiving from home – teas and coffees, picture frames, ear plugs. :smiley:

I’ve already purchased MY favorite tea and coffee (instant, regrettably, but yummy ‘gourmet’ cappuchino), a neato Starbucks giant mug and some cute stickers to brighten his/her life.

What would YOU like to receive in a package from home?

(If you act pathetic enough, I just might make up a package for you!)

2

Well, little stuffed animals work for me, but I’m a girly sorta person. Fruit is good. Cash is better. :smiley:

Microwaveable meals are good for students in the dorms.

And of course, no care package would be complete without beer.

3

ahhhhhhh… such a good idea.

Cookies… everyone likes cookies… Starbucks is a good idea. Something that smiles, even if it’s a sticker. Things that make noise are always fun too, like kazoos. I got a kazoo in the mail and I flipped. Maybe some notecards or stamps so they can write home? I know I’m always running out of stamps. Maybe a Time or a Newsweek because most students get somewhat out of touch on minor current events…

Also I hope you’re not sending them to only freshmen… because care packages seem to dwindle once you get past your first year… do people assume you don’t need cheering up? (sniff)

4

Money?

College students love zip lock bags of quarters. :slight_smile:

When my Mom sent me care packages, she always included things like small boxes of laundry detergent, sample sizes of smell good soaps and shampoos, coupons for canned goods, those “You win a free 20 oz Dr.Pepper” caps that she’d been saving up. When she stuck in hot chocolate, she’d always add minature marshmallows and a new cup to drink it out of.

5

I would enjoy:
-lots of sample sized stuff- shampoo, conditioner, smelly soaps, etc.
-A small picture for my wall
-Cookies
-A $10 hotpot for warming up hot water (for coffee, tea)
-Instant soup packs and other super quick and easy foodstuffs that only require water(Kraft EasyMac, Cup-A-Soup)
-A fluffy towel
-Some blank floppy disks
-A handmade little book of “wisdom” collected from some of the church members
-An e-mail list of people at church who want to correspond
-A hometown newspaper
-A small denomination phone card (like $5)
-A pair of nice, fluffy socks
-A pair of stretchy gloves
-A deck of cards
-The game Uno
-A toilet paper holder shaped like a rabbit that says “Somebunny loves you!”

Zette

6

In college we would get a variety of packages from companies. The comanies business model was that they’d essentially package stuff college kids needed or liked, and got the manufacturers to supply them with free sample sizes of the stuff. Win-win, the manufacturers get their product in prospective customers hands, and the company can then include whatever promotions they want for juicy 18-24 demographic, and the students get free stuff.

Granted this stuff wasn’t really from home, or from a church, but it came in handle around move-in and finals.

The ones we got around move-in were usually filled with travel size toiletries, tylenol, pepto bismol, condoms (a very big hit), gum(not to be confused with the condoms) and breath mints, coupon books, pens/pencils, poster putty, and some cookies and snacks.

The ones near finals came with more condoms, vivarin, instant coffee, power bars, and more pens/pencils.

The contents always varied, and there usually was a guy one and a girl one.

Out of those things what came in handy? Well, the condoms were well receieved, but then again you seem to be working with a church, so something like that might not be to easy to make happen. Breathmints are a hit, Altiods, Smint, something like that. Anything edible really. People loved things to decorate the boring dormrooms. The poster putty was always in short supply since its about the only thing that would stick to the cinder block walls. We had these cool plastic glow in the dark stars that everyone had on their walls and ceilings, they were popular. Dry erase boards that everyone put on their door or wall so that people could leave messages or notes to the residents or passers by. Ones for inside were good for tracking important messages and appointments. Decks of Cards would be a big hit I’m sure. Maybe chip-clips, or bottle openers.

Thats a start, nothing ground breaking but thats what i remember off the top of my head.

7

<Dr. Strangelove> It’s the little, ordinary things of life that count. Send them a kangaroo, and fill the pouch with green peppers. A freshly oiled bear trap can be such a nice surprise, especially if you have a roommate that brings in unwanted “guests” late at night. And who can get along at college without bamboo? </Dr. Strangelove>

Oh, wait - you want more mundane, normal stuff… Well, the one-load size box of laundry detergent can be handy. Other personal items like deodorant, toothpaste, etc. are good. If it’s a real liberal parish, buy a gross of condoms and add them to the mix. (If not, sneak 'em in anyway - it might increase your attendance, even if it’s only out of curiosity!) :smiley:

A phone card to call home would be nice; maybe a poster or two to decorate the place? A little potted plant might be appreciated, but that might prove hard to do for practical reasons. Maybe a little jar of instant coffee and a pack of microwave popcorn, too!

And cookies - always, lots and lots of cookies!!!

8

Goodness, me, condoms! I’ll be sure and call up Father and tell him that’s what we’re packin’ the kids off to Sin City with. LOL

Seriously, these (well most of these) are wonderful ideas. I like the laundry detergent idea. When I went on vacation this summer I bought a box of this new form of detergent – it comes in one-load little compacted cubes that are individually wrapped. I could buy a box and distribute the cubes among the various care packages.

And thanks for the reminder about the upper-classpersons, NightRabbit. I hope this has been organized for all our students, but I’ll check to be sure.

9

Ditto on the cookies. Send some microwave popcorn :slight_smile: And a personalized note. Colege kids get LOTS of email, but not too much snail mail. How about having some of the kids in your parish draw some pictures?

10

College kids, not colege kids. I’m a really good speller! I promise.

Preview is my friend…

11

Around Halloween, send some candy and a little plastic spider ring to each student! And homemade Rice Krispie treats. Mmm… krispie…

12

I would like to get:

  • Fluffy socks
  • Laundry stuff (well, I bought a full-size detergent when I moved in, but a lot of the girls I know didn’t, and they would like laundry stuff)
  • Gloves
  • Poster putty
  • Picture frames
  • A rubber duckie
  • A kazoo
  • Cookies
  • Cards or Uno, some little game of that sort
  • Toiletries
  • Mints
  • Chapstick
13

Been a long time since college, but I think I can remember…

All the above are good suggestions, and I can only think of one thing. It seems really simple, but I’d send a couple of big balloons.

When I was in the dorms, I used to go by the local party supply shop a couple times a quarter and buy some big 16-inchers. Blow one of those things up and toss it into the lounge, and much fun ensues. One of the great things about college is that you can act like a 10-year-old again (but only during study breaks).

14

Beer, drugs, and women.

15

How can you have college care package without the Ramen :smiley:

16

I think I will:

First aid kit or the following health items:

Tylenol(or Panadol or aspirin or whatever little thing that helps colds and fevers)
Bandages
Alcohol pads
Antibacterial lotions, and lotions to apply to burns

Ok, now for some food:

Microwave food
Soup(canned or packaged)
Coffee

Misc.:

Vitamins
Toilet paper
Deodorant/antiperspirant

Junk food from home:

Cookies
Cakes
Pies
Whatever special and journey resistant food you can send(i.e., my friend got some platanutres from PR)

Money is good, but since I do most of my transactions via my ID card(yes, vending machines and laundry account), and I suppose it is that way in other universities, please ask before sending tons of quarters. I would very much prefer $1 bills(or coins)

17

I’m going to try and not repeat already mentioned things, but I may have missed this in the wish-lists…

[li]Little containers, like those Gladware thingies, or Tupperware. You can use them to hold the contents of the care package, and they can be reused to hold all sorts of things. Lunch, spare change, little fiddly bits you don’t dare throw away but have nowhere to really keep them, etc. It also helps that they’re waterproof.[/li][li]Empty film cannisters for holding quarters.[/li][li]Coupons for items that we’re likely to get (ramen, pizza, etc.)[/li][li]Calling cards. (Maybe some business can donate these?)[/li][li]Recipies for meals that are quick, easy, cheap to make, and require a minimum of cooking frobs.[/li][li]Those one-pot coffee packets you get from a hotel.[/li][li]Greeting cards for various occaions: I hate remembering it’s (insert name here)'s (insert occasion here), and not having anything to send to them. E-mail is nice, but having something in hand is nicer.[/li][li]Toothbrush, hairbrush, nail clippers, etc. Don’t have to be the fancy ones (you can get a sackful from the local Dollar Store). I personally am always trying to figure out where the heck my tweezers dissapeared to.[/li]
Mix-n-match with the previous suggestions, and you’ll have a care kit that will cause fights to break out! (“That’s MY stuff!” “No way, you got the last one!”) And I definately second (third? whatever) the idea of sending them to more than just the Freshmen. (Espically Seniors: we’re too busy scrambling to get those last needed classes done to pay attention to things like getting toothbrushes, etc.)

<< Feed a cold, starve a fever? Feed a fever… aww, heck with it. PIG OUT! >>

18

Oh please send socks. Socks are good. I need more socks.

Oh, excuse me, you’re not sending them to me.

Nevertheless, being a pitiful, lonely college freshman, I’ll help you out:

COOKIES. I need cookies a lot. They are important to my survival.

POPCORN, RAMEN, CANNED SOUP. Anything that lasts awhile in shelf life and is pretty decent eating is good.

Prepaid phone cards to make calls home.

Mints/breath-freshening gum.

Things like gloves or other cold-weather accessories are good.

If I were you, I’d send a toy, too. Nothing great–it could be a box of crayons or a travel edition of a board game. I’d include a good book, too.

Garbage bags.

Soap/body spray/nice smelling things like that.

19

I’m so glad I live at home these days and commute.

Off the top of my head:

[list]
[li]School supplies - paper clips, a mini stapler, duo-tang folders, one subject notebooks, pens and pencils, post-it notes and post-it flags, highlighters, and floppy disks.[/li][li]Stationary - I loved sending and recieving snail mail, so my mom put together little homemade stationary kits. She’d put in a cheapo (but fun print) pad of paper, like with clouds or flowers or the like; those Gel pens that are fun to write with; lots and lots of stickers with cartoons and stuff; a huge box of envelopes; a book of stamps; and little greeting cards.[/li][li]Any sort of cheap, easy to make food - Easy Mac was my best friend when I dormed. Also dried soups and noodles, Tasty-Kakes of any sort, one of those mixed boxes of different mini bags of chips, and fruit that will last a few days.[/li][li]Tioletries - great idea. The worst part of dorming for me was not being able to take baths (I looooove nice long hot baths), so my mom always sent me nice-smelling bath gel and fun scrubbies (my favorite was purple with a terry-cloth pig’s head and tail on it). I also recommend little shower and bath samples that you get in the mail. A lot of magazines have ads with little samples these days - foundation, perfume, etc., and these are fun to recieve. I still have makeup samples my mom sent me from Neutrogena and Oil of Olay (they had just launched, so there were plenty of samples around), as well as little Caress shower foams and moisterizers.[/li][li]I agree with whoever suggested coupons. Coupons are great.[/li]
Hope that helps!

20

One item that no one’s mentioned yet is plastic utensils. They’re easy to wash, but are cheap enough to throw out if the student isn’t into that whole doing-the-dishes scene.

You know what else I’d love for my dorm room? One of those mini-bonzai kits that they sell at Borders for all of five dollars. Actually, what I really want is a kitten, but the RHA frowns upon that, so a plant is next best thing. :slight_smile: