If one can swing a few more dollars I would look for a Remington Model 7 or a Winchester Model 70 compact or a Browning Micro Midas or a Tikka T3 compact or ...... or .......
That way they would have something besides a Mossberg, which in 50 years will be the equivalent of a Sears Ted Williams gun from the 50s today - something no one really wants.
I picked up a new Browning A-bolt Micro Medallion soon after our first daughter was born, but it was our last daughter who finally laid claim to it. It's a beautiful gun no doubt, but perhaps too beautiful a gun for a kid with it's high gloss finish to the stock and barrel. Not sure if Browning will offer it again, which adds to it's personal value no doubt.
I wish I still had that old Ted Williiams .22 my dad gave me when I was a kid. I'm sure it was all he could afford at the time, which would make it even more valuable to me today. He probably bought it on credit from Sears. I loaned it to a co-worker to teach his own son how to shoot and he never returned it. It was and will be the last gun I will ever let someone borrow.