Frequently Asked Questions
Don’t see your question here? Feel free to submit your question to info@echoage.com and we’ll quickly get back to you.
- How does ECHOage work?
Guests are invited to an ECHOage birthday party online. Instead of bringing a wrapped and packaged present, guests simply RSVP and give a secure online gift of money. Payments are pooled for the purchase of ONE special gift and to support ONE meaningful cause.
ECHOage arranges everything for you:
The host parent receives funds from ECHOage in the mail for the purpose of purchasing the ONE meaningful gift for the birthday child. ECHOage mails funds to the charity chosen by the child, and the host parent receives an official tax receipt.
ECHOage deducts 15% from the total of each party for the administration of the ECHOage website.
- How does my child benefit from having an ECHOage party?There are many benefits that your child will experience from having an ECHOage birthday party. The greatest benefit is that your child will be able to make meaningful choices and have a positive impact on others, and on society, at the time of his/her birthday. This, in turn, will empower and reward your child. ECHOage is a practical, hands-on way for your child to make a difference in the world and become involved in environmentalism and social justice at a young age.
- How do my guests find out that my child is having an ECHOage party?The invitation to an ECHOage party lets your guests know that your child has decided to do something special. Invitations tell your guests the date, place and time of your party as well as any additional information you input after you have chosen your invitation style. All ECHOage invitations kindly request that your guests make an online payment to the party instead of bringing a gift. All ECHOage invitations tell your guests about the charity your child has decided to support at the time of his/her birthday.
- How does my child get the ONE meaningful gift and how does the charity get the donation?The parent of the birthday boy/girl purchases ONE meaningful gift with the money sent to you from ECHOage. The gift is yours to choose. The ECHOage system pools all the money that comes into your party for you. Once all of your guests have responded and paid, ECHOage deducts a 15% administration fee. Then, the money is split in half. One half is sent to you, the parent of the birthday child, to buy ONE meaningful gift. The other half is sent to the charity you have chosen by ECHOage, and you receive an official tax receipt in the mail.
- How do I convince my child that it is 'better' to receive ONE meaningful gift rather than many small ones?
ECHOage is a tool to help parents teach children about the ways in which they can have a positive impact in the world. When you engage your child in a discussion about the fact that gifts normally come wrapped and packaged which wastes paper and plastic, and ultimately harms trees and the environment, you will most likely find that your child is receptive to what you have to say.
Begin a conversation with your child about how the health of the planet affects us. Ask your child to tell you the things that he/she enjoys in nature and why it might be important to protect natural environments. Explain to your child that he/she can do something to protect trees, mountains, rivers, lakes and oceans just by having an ECHOage party. When less toys are purchased, this means less toys are packaged and wrapped and less toys end up in landfills.
Explain to your child that he/she can set a good example for his/her friends just by having an ECHOage party. When your child decides to host an ECHOage party, he/she is also putting into action some of the important lessons he/she is learning at school. This information will empower your child and make him/her feel proud.
Tell your child that choosing one gift means having something useful and memorable.
Ask your child to think about the one gift that he/she would like to have from all his/her friends. Children might want a musical instrument or a special item that will help enhance a hobby, like new hockey skates or sporting equipment.
Whatever the age of your child, ECHOage is your opportunity to ask your child to do something significant to improve the world. ECHOage is easy to do and makes kids feel great about their potential in the world.
- How do I choose an invitation and email it out to my guests?
The black button on the left hand side of the ECHOage website says: ECHOage YOUR PARTY. Clicking that button will take you to a sign up page. After easily completing the information for sign up, you can choose an invitation style. Then, you choose the charity you would like to support. Then, you enter in the details of your party, the names of your guests, the email addresses of their parents and press Send Invitations - that's it!
- What does it say on the ECHOage birthday invitation?
Each ECHOage birthday invitation says:
You are invited to help change the world today. It’s easier than you think.
Instead of bringing a wrapped and packaged present, please RSVP and give a secure online gift. Your payment will go toward the purchase of ONE special gift and help support ONE meaningful cause.
Together we will be helping Evergreen - a charity that plants gardens and trees in school playgrounds so that kids can enjoy healthy, green spaces. (for example)ECHOage will arrange everything for you.
No need to drive, shop, wrap or even pick up the phone to make a donation.
Can’t wait to see you at my ECHOage party! - When my guests RSVP, what does it say on the payment page?When your guests RSVP to your ECHOage party, they will be able to send you personalized and relevant information about their child. They also send your child a birthday wish. And finally, they can pay for the gift portion. Your guests click a "Give A Gift" button so there is no obligation to pay online, rather it is their choice to do so. The payment page offers a choice of 5 amounts: $10.00, $15.00, $20.00, $25.00, $30.00 and guests choose an amount and enter their credit card information using the secure ECHOage payment system. It is simple and quick.
- What do I do if my guest tells me they did not receive the invitation?Please ask your guest to check their "junk" mail folder. It is possible that some mail programs will flag the invitations as Spam incorrectly, but this is not the norm. You can easily resend and invitation to any guest on your list by going to your ECHOage Tracker and clicking the "send" icon beside their name.
- How does the money portion of ECHOage work?Guests are kindly asked to make an online payment for the purpose of buying the birthday child ONE meaningful gift and giving to ONE cause. ECHOage pools the money that is contributed to the party. Then, ECHOage divides the money from the party in half after deducting a 15% administration fee. ECHOage sends the host parent the funds for half the money that was contributed at the party. ECHOage sends the charity of the child's choice the other half of the money that was contributed at the party. The charity sends the host parent an official tax receipt.