It can be a scramble to find that perfect holiday gift for a loved one. Luckily, the staff at a western Wisconsin middle school have made it easy — and affordable — for students to buy gifts for their friends and family. Author and teacher Ken Szymanski tells “Wisconsin Life” about this beloved tradition at his school.
Every December, Eau Claire DeLong Middle School’s special education department holds a holiday sale in the teacher’s lounge. This sale rivals Black Friday in hype — though not in quality.
Staff members are encouraged to donate items they no longer want or need, and they eagerly load their minivans with boxes and bags full of odds and ends.
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Teachers sort the castoff merchandise onto tables, and new items arrive daily.
The pricing is simple: everything is 25 cents. Money raised goes to the special education department, and kids can have fun picking out a cheap gift for friends and family.
Ask people to clear the clutter and crap from their houses, and they will jump at the chance — though not always with discretion. Holiday Store workers must exercise veto powers on what is or isn’t “middle school appropriate.” No to the Miller High-Life t-shirt. No to the boxer shorts. No to the flask-and-shot-glass gift set. No to the Green Bay Packers bikini top. No to the jock strap. And the nut cup is a hard no.
Even the “appropriate” merchandise is hit-and-miss. Does that puzzle have all its pieces? Will that coffee maker actually work? Does anyone really need another wicker basket? Each table becomes its own island of misfit toys, utensils and appliances.
But dig around, and you can find some gems such as the ventriloquist doll, the air horn or the Minion fart gun.
One year, a new student at the school checked out the sale to see what the ruckus was about. He stood to the side, watching the excited shoppers rummage through the merchandise.
After his classmates made their purchases, he asked the teacher, “Is everything really a quarter?”
“Yep, everything’s a quarter,” the teacher said.
“Is there a limit to how many things you can get?” the boy asked.
“No limit … you can buy as many things as you want.”
The student bought nothing, but the gears were turning.
The next day, the student showed up with a bag of quarters and a mission. The student carefully picked out items, counted coins and checked people off his list.
He eventually filled two trash bags and emptied his quarters onto the table. Then, like a plain-clothes Santa, the student hauled his oversized bags out of the Holiday Store, down the hall and eventually home.
Unfortunately, home was not exactly a Hallmark movie. His family faced struggles with unemployment and housing, and gifts were unlikely. Maybe he didn’t pull off a Christmas miracle with his garbage bags of secondhand goods, but he brightened up what may have been an empty holiday.
Some people have storage rooms, while others rent storage units. At times, the drop-off line at Goodwill stretches around the corner with those who’ve run out of room and need to cut the clutter from their lives.
But not everyone is sitting on a surplus.
Some stand with a ziplock bag of quarters, happy and grateful to give.
Editor’s note: This story was first published in Eau Claire’s Volume One in 2024.
“Wisconsin Life” is a co-production of Wisconsin Public Radio and PBS Wisconsin. The project celebrates what makes the state unique through the diverse stories of its people, places, history and culture.
