Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Who Most Deserves a Helping Hand?

What is the proper etiquette when donating to another person's cause, be it multiple sclerosis, diabetes, or breast cancer? If you are like me, you have several organizations that you donate to each year, be they environmental, medical, or even your local humane society. You may also get involved in your own fund raising efforts like Steve and the boys and I did this summer. You will probably be approached by at least one friend, acquaintance or relative who is trying to launch a similar fund raising effort. This can add up to a lot of money by the end of the year, tax write-off or not.

How do you decide which, if any of those fund raising efforts you will support? Do you support any and all requests for help for help raising money, or just donate to the causes that have personal meaning for you? I feel really strongly about finding a cure for cancer, so should I always support requests to help fight cancer? What about requests from people who are fundraising for a cancer cure, but that chose not to donate when Steve or I asked for help with the Livestrong event? Tit for tat seems pretty shallow when it's a worthy cause, but if you choose not to donate to others, what can you reasonably expect in return? What say you?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have pretty much done the "you ask me for money - I give you $25" - regardless of the cause.

Everyone thinks that their cause is worth is and I support my friends in their desire to raise money for these causes. Given that I haven't chosen a cause to champion, I give to others.

Some years do "cost" more than others, but I usually feel good for giving a little something to someone.

I For One..... said...

Yeah, I guess for me it's less about cost. If a good friend approaches me, I'm with you, if it means a lot to them, or if I believe in their cause, then I'm giving them at least a little bit, no matter how strapped I am.

What about an associate that makes a habit of ignoring requests for donations though? What do you do when THEY ask?

Steve said...

Since I donate to charitable causes regularly I don't feel especially obligated to donate to a cause when someone asks, just for that cause's sake. Rather, I donate because I want to support that person. It's more important who is asking than what cause they are representing. If I had asked a good friend of mine to support me in my cause and they had not then I would feel less compelled to support them in theirs.