Discovering the SCRIP Program in Town

Are you using SCRIP, the gift certificate and pre-pay program that raises thousands of dollars for the each year?

We have just recently been introduced to the program, which seems like a wonderful way to raise money to help benefit all students in town and in some cases, a specific school or child of your choosing.

I’m told it’s shamefully underutilized, which is surprising because it’s so simple – you can buy gift cards as presents for someone else or you can pre-pay your daily expenses (at face value) then a portion of the card value will be credited back to the school system. 

There are nearly 150 vendors who participate in the program – including groceries, gasoline, clothing, restaurants, gifts, weight centers, drug stores, movie theatres, big box stores, and online shops – a little something for everyone.

Companies include:

Local shops – , , , , D’Angelos, , , Friendly’s, , T, , , , Pottery Place, , , ,

Big Box stores – Best Buy, Home Depot, Kmart, Lowe’s, Walmart

Clothing – Aeropostale, Athleta, American Eagle, Banana Republic, Bloomingdales, Burlington Coat Factory, Casual Male, Children’s Place, Dress Barn, Eddie Bauer, Express, Finishline, Gap, H&M, J. Crew, J. Jill, JC Penney, Journeys, Kohl’s, Land’s End, LL Bean, Limited, Lord & Taylor, Macy’s, Men’s Wearhouse, Neiman Marcus, Nike, Old Navy, Payless, Piperlime, Talbots, Wet Seal

Entertainment, misc – AMC Theatres, Carnival Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Chuck E. Cheese, Hyatt, Marriot, The Kingsbury Club, Regal Cinema, Ritz-Carlton, Showcase Cinema, Six Flags

Gas – Exxon/Mobil, Gulf, Phillips 66/Conoco76 Gas, Shell Gas, Sunoco, Texaco/Chevron

Gifts and Crafts – Barnes & Noble, Bass Pro Shops, Bath & Body Works, Build-A-Bear, Claire’s, Container Store, Crate & Barrel, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Disney, GameStop/EBGames, Hallmark, HomeGoods, iTunes, Jo-Ann Fabrics, Kay Jewelers, Marshalls, Michael’s Crafts, Orvis, Park Street Books, Pier 1, Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma, Pottery Place, Radio Shack, REI, Sears, Sephora, Sports Authority, Sunglass Hut, TJ Maxx, Toys R Us, Walmart

Groceries – Albertsons, Fresh Catch, Roche Bros, Shaw’s, Star Market, Stop & Shop, Whole Foods

Home Improvement – ACE Hardware, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Restoration Hardware, Sears

On-line – Amazon.com, Buckle.com, Omaha Steaks, Overstock.com, Shutterfly, Zappos.com

Restaurants and Food – 99 Restaurant, Applebees, Bertucci’s, Bruegger’s Bagels, Burger King, California Pizza Kitchen, Cheesecake Factory, Chili’s, Chuck E. Cheese, Coldstone Creamery, Cracker Barrel, D’Angelos, Dave & Busters, Dominos, Dunkin Donuts, Friendly’s, Go Fresh, Hard Rock Café, Honey Baked Ham, IHOP, KFC, Legal Seafood, Longhorn Steakhouse, Noon Hill Grill, Old Country Buffet, Olive Garden, Outback Steakhouse, PF Chang’s, Panera Bread, Papa Gino’s, Pizza Hut, Qdoba Mexican Grill, Rainforest Café, Red Lobster, Red Robin, Rock Bottom Brew, Royal Pizza, Ruby Tuesday, Starbucks, Subway, TGI Friday’s, Wendy’s

Services – Closet & Storage Concepts, Jiffy Lube, Nutrisystem, Regis Salons, ServiceMaster, Shutterfly, Supercuts

Others – Advanced Auto Parts, AVIS, Budget, CVS, GNC, Guitar Center, Office Depot, Office Max, Petsmart, Rite Aid, Staples, Walgreens

WOW – what a list!  I know I see quite a few stores that I use on a daily basis – Roche Bros, Shaw’s, CVS, Land’s End, Old Navy, Home Depot, Lowe’s, movies and gas stations (I’ll use lots of cards there), just to name a few  -- so, by purchasing SCRIP ahead of time, the school system will benefit. 

To purchase SCRIP, there are a few options. You can contact your SCRIP representative through your student’s school – to locate your re.p, visit http://medfieldcsa.org/scrip/scrip.shtml. Reps can often turn around your order in a very short time. 

In addition, SCRIP can be purchased at Lord’s Department Store, which has a good deal of gift cards on hand at all times, or you can download the order form the PDF form here, fill in quantities and dollar amounts, make the check payable to MSSP and drop off at Lord’s Department Store or mail to 14 Milliston Rd., PMB #104, Millis 02054. Orders can be picked up at Lord’s after 9:30 a.m. on Fridays, or can be mailed to you in a self-addressed stamped envelope.

On your order form, you will see a space to indicate which school you’d like to benefit from your order, or you can choose the general MSSP fund.  At certain times while preparing for large field trips (i.e. Nature’s Classroom or Washington, DC, well in advance of the trip), students will have an opportunity to have family and friends purchase SCRIP that will then offset costs for their trip. 

One mother tells the story of how her daughter received a credit of nearly $700 so her DC field trip cost less than $70 because friends and family planned and pre-paid for large purchases (including a home theatre system). 

For more information, visit http://medfieldcsa.org or contact the main office at your child’s school or e-mail crip@medfieldcsa.org.