A few days ago, I talked with a family friend who recently learned that his huge manufacturing company was closing his plant. He is actually more fortunat than most of his co-workers. He very recently reached the magic age at which he qualifies for early retirement, so he will continue to have a steady (although much smaller) income. Those who did not reach that milestone of the specified number of years with the company will get a small severance package and be left to search for a job in that difficult market. That caused me to think about giving gifts for special occasions to those people who are experiencing difficult economic situations. I came up with a few ideas that make more sense than a piece of home decor or a new tie. Here are some of them:

A gourmet fruit basket is healthy, beautiful, delicious and always enjoyed. If you live near your gift recipient, you can find a lovely basket or other attractive container and fill it with fruit that is in season in your region of the country, obtained at a farmers market, and fill it out with a few exotic fruits picked up at your local super market. If your loved one is farther away, you can arrange for any of a large range of beautiful fruit gift baskets to be delivered to the recipient’s home. It will help them to reduce their grocery bill on their next trip to the super market.

A special meal is another way to remember a birthday or holiday. One possibility might be to take the friend or family member to a popular local restaurant. If price is no object to you, be sure to recommend a couple of the more expensive entrees on the menu, so that your guests know that they should not worry about ordering what they want. For example, you might say something like, “The crab legs are wonderful here, but, if you don’t like seafood, try the tender and tasty filet mignon.” If they live too far away for that, you can actually find delicious, gourmet, chef-prepared meals online that arrive frozen and can be heated in almost no time. (I actually keep my freezer stocked with these.)

A final recommendation is a scrumptious dessert. Now, lets face it, nobody should indluge in too many desserts, but on a birthday, anniversary or holiday, everyone deserves a chance to feel a little pampered. Bake cookies, if that is a skill of yours, and hand deliver or have them delivered. For something a little more special consider giving them a delicious pie or a New York cheesecake. Whether you make it yourself or have others do the work for you doesn’t matter. It will be appreciated and definitely enjoyed either way.

You’ll notice a common feature in these suggestions. They all involve food. Someone who is going through a difficult time may not want to accept charity, but nobody can reject a genuinely special gift. If it reduces the grocery bill by a bit, so much the better.

In recent years, why you needed to give a gift to a loved one or friend, you first thought of sending a bunch of flowers. Flowers are beautiful but they are not very functional. They are very nice to look at for a few days but will eventually begin to wither away and end up in the trash bin. There is another choice that more and more people are turning to these days, the fruit basket.

Unlike the flower bouquet, a gift basket of fruit can be used and shared by many people. Fruit baskets can be designed specifically for the person that you are purchasing it for. If you know for certain that they really like to eat grapefruit or kiwi, why not order the fruit basket with these two fruits in it.

Not only will putting their favorite fruits in the basket make it person, you could also add splashes of their favorite colors. This can be accomplished easily with ribbons or strips of fabric in their favorite colors. Or even adding a bow that says congratulations or happy birthday can make it that much more personal.

The recipients of a fruit gift basket are usually very thrilled and excited about their gift. They are eager to show it off to friends and coworkers. Unlike a flower bouquet, a fruit basket can be shared by the whole office or household. Each person in the office could take and eat an orange or apple from the fruit basket.

We have all been assigned at one time or another to get a gift for someone that we are not that familiar with. We are not sure what they like or what the collect. A fruit basket can be the answer that you are looking for.

When you get assigned as the person to pick out the gift, the
others are relying on you to get something that the person will enjoy. If you make a mistake and purchase wine or clothing that is not in the taste of the person that you are purchasing for, the others could be upset with you.

A fruit basket is the perfect gift for anyone that you are wanting to surprise. They are usually less expensive when compared to the soaring prices of a flower pot and they can just as easily be made into a basket filled with things that the person loves. Try it today. The person that you are gifting to will surely be surprised and happy.