The correct answer is they both are. Huh?

The reason for saying both is that all cards purchased with cash or check at the Gene Grawe Fund office will pay your student’s tuition account 2% of the face value of the gift cards. Yet, all gift cards purchased online using PrestoPay at either RaiseRight.com or through the RaiseRight mobile device app, will pay the student’s tuition account 50% of each card’s rebate.

The reason behind the difference is bookkeeping ability and a need to shift some of the gift card sales workload from the local GGF office to the online world. RaiseRight.com is fully automated and can track rebates earned right down to the individual cards purchased. It was designed to be that way from the very beginning back in the 1990s. That allows us to know exactly how much rebate was earned on every purchase and so we can safely award half of those rebates to the student’s account.

However, gift card sales in the Gene Grawe Fund office is a very manual process where it’s only possible to track the total amount of all gift cards made in a single purchase. If you thought the lines were long at the Gene Grawe Fund office between Thanksgiving and Christmas now, can you imagine what they would be if we tripled the time it would take for every purchase? So locally, we just record the total amount of every cash and check purchase and award 2% of the face value to the student’s account. Experience has taught us that is a fair distribution that works well for all parties.

However, the two different award methods does present a decision for you to make-where do you buy your cards to maximize your family’s tuition earnings? The math tells us that a rebate of 4% is the dividing line on where to pay for your gift cards. Below 4%, buy at the Gene Grawe Fund office with cash or check. Above 4%, buy online with PrestoPay at either RaiseRight.com or with the RaiseRight mobile device app (which is still RaiseRight.com).

If the rebate is greater than 4%
You can maximize your earnings by ordering your higher rebate gift cards on RaiseRight.com, paying for them with PrestoPay, and then bringing the order number to the Gene Grawe Fund office to pick them up. For instance, if you use PrestoPay to buy a $100 gift card that has a 10% rebate, you’ll earn 50% of the $10.00 rebate which comes to $5.00 added to your child’s tuition account. If you pay for that same gift card with cash or check at the Gene Grawe Fund office, you’ll earn 2% of the card’s $100 face value which only adds $2.00 to your child’s tuition account. Big difference!

So, for instance, you should buy or reload your Panera Bread (8%) gift card and your Sprouts Inn (10%) gift cards online at RaiseRight.com or through the RaiseRight mobile device app to earn a greater reward! With the RaiseRight app, you can even make your purchase from your car in the parking lot at the Church of St. Peter, then walk in to the Gene Grawe Fund office, show your smartphone to the volunteer, and walk out with your gift cards. It’s truly that easy. If you can use Facebook, you can use RaiseRight. All you need is your thumbprint.

If the rebate is less than 4%
For lower rebate gift cards, it’s better to buy them using cash or check at the Gene Grawe Fund office. For instance, if you use cash or check at the Gene Grawe Fund office to buy a $100 gift card that has a 3% rebate, your child’s tuition account will earn 2% of the $100 face value which comes to $2.00. If you pay for that same card using PrestoPay it will earn 50% of the $3.00 rebate which comes to $1.50. Another big difference!

So, for instance, you should buy your Wal-Mart (2.5%) and Amazon.com (1.5%) gift cards by cash or check at the Gene Grawe Fund office to earn the greater reward!

If the rebate is exactly 4%
At exactly 4% rebate, it makes no difference where you purchase them. However, there are some restrictions with a few of our local merchants that limit where you can pay for the cards.

If you have to bring your bill into the GGF office to pay
We have a number of local merchants who don’t offer gift cards and you must bring your invoice or statement into the Gene Grawe Fund office and pay it there. And we have some Local Merchants where you must pay your bill at their business and then they send us the rebate afterwards. For all those situations, refer to our Local Merchant List which can be downloaded from our website. It now has a column with two symbols to help guide you in where to make your purchase.