Graduates of 2020 are experiencing a little less pomp under the current COVID-19 circumstances. Their senior year was rudely interrupted, forcing them to finish their courses online. In addition, the activities that go along with senior year were all canceled. No spring sporting events, no prom, no talent shows, no senior skip day. Even the greatly anticipated graduation ceremony where grandmas, grandpas, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings and the beaming-with-pride parents endure speech after speech just for that one brief shining moment when they hear their loved ones’ name announced had to be modified. Graduation ceremonies this year have been drive-through ceremonies, one car per household, or even less personal virtual events where the only people in the room are the graduate’s family. How sad! As I said, this year’s grads are having very little pomp.
As a result of this upheaval, aren’t these young men and women entitled to an extra special graduation gift? We think so! And to help you out, here are our picks for top graduation gifts.
First, let’s start with some general suggestions that would please anyone going off to college:
Amazon Prime Subscription – free shipping and a bevy of discounts, as well as free streaming options are all included with this subscription. It’s the best $119 you can spend.
Amazon Echo – speaking of Amazon, how about having Alexa help keep your student on track with reminders, weather updates, music to study by, and even jokes to keep them laughing? Another option is the Google Home.
Headphones – noise-canceling headphones may be the best gift to give a teen who is not used to rowdy dorm life. According to PC Mag.com, you can’t beat Bose. Other high-performing brands include the Apple Air Pod Pros and the Jabra Elite 65e.
Games – perhaps during quarantine your family has rediscovered the joy of card/board games. Help your teen make friends in the dorm by providing them with Cards Against Humanity, Catch Phrase, or What Do You Meme?. You can also throw in a deck of regular cards and perhaps they’ll turn into a poker champ.
First Aid Kit/Tool Kit – Give them the gift of preparedness with their first tool kit to help hang shelves and assemble dorm furniture, plus a first aid kit full of Band-Aids and ibuprofen for when they injure themselves trying to use the items in said tool kit.
Since we love to promote local businesses, we reached out to our favorite gift boutiques in and around Lexington to see what they suggest for this year's special class.
Sweet Mash in Lawrenceburg: For the guys, set them up with a Man Bag dopp kit and a Yeti water bottle. For the gals, a beautiful cosmetic case and jewelry roll with matching insulated mug. They also carry pieces from the ever-popular Kendra Scott jewelry line. Fun KY socks can be a great reminder to those grads going out of state for college that, “There’s no place like home”.
Violets in Lexington: For your jewelry-loving teen, Violets has a huge selection of bright shiny baubles. The enameled stackable bracelets are having a moment and are so cheerful, we can see why! Hopefully, there will be SEC football games to attend this fall, which means your grad will need those clear see-through bags to get into the stadiums. We love these stylish bags! A young lady well on her way in the world will also need something to sleep in besides an old t-shirt and shorts. These blue-and-white gingham pajamas will have any girl feeling like Elle Woods from Legally Blonde. (Although, we don’t recommend they take a chihuahua to college.)
Miss Behaven in Georgetown: Graduates work hard for that tassel, and they will want to preserve it. Hanging it off the rearview mirror is not the best option. This beautiful frame will display the tassel and photo for years to come. (As if they will be able to forget this year! Ha!) How cute is this autograph dog? It’s just the place to capture well wishes from loved ones. Finally, this prayer bracelet isn’t your typical piece of jewelry. It has strands to represent each day of the week, “a special bead to help you focus on God, family, friends, health, safety, our world and requests.” Our teens need all the prayer they can get and this piece will remind them to take their faith with them to college.
We wish all graduates our best! Good luck to you as you start the next chapter in your lives!