The ads are so appealing. Young boys and girls with dirty faces walking around in slum like conditions. Their plight
is extreme poverty with no government assistance. The announcer comes out and picks one individual youngster to use as an example. For a few dollars a month you can see she gets proper food, clothing, and education. Her medical needs are well tended to. Day after day on some television channel we see the same ads. Are they for real?
For the most part the answer is yes. Laws require that no more thirty per cent of monies
collected go to the fund organizer. However, there does exist unscrupulous persons taking far more than that. Some even go to lengths taking all of the cash. They play on the sympathy of donors.
Seeing those poor sad faces can get to the hardest of us.When 9/11 happened in New York City, the towers fell. Thousands of men and women died a cruel death. When a fund got set up to aid the victims and
families our wallets flew open. Millions went into the coffers. It provided a golden opportunity for persons to make false claims. And hundreds did too. Names of people no where near the buildings came in and were paid off.
Hurricane Katrina wiped out scores of homes. Families were left with but memories of what they had. It did not stop people posing as victims collecting aid from agencies like the Red Cross. Those really needing it still do in some cases. The paperwork proved a nightmare. The government was blamed for the problems. Those providing phony info collected and laughed all the way to the bank. Some of them who were real victims thought it was Christmas and used their benefits improperly. Though they did suffer a loss, using a card to purchase scratch tickets does not float.
For every victim forced to fight mounds of red tape there are five greedy minded ones scheming to beat the system. For each legitimate fund raiser three exists without morals or a conscious. How do we know the real ones?
Watchdog agencies try to keep up them. A full list can be found on the internet or by checking the Better Business Bureaus. It is admirable to donate to worthy causes. It is wonderful opening your hearts and wallets to them less fortunate. But knowing your dollars go where they should is imminent.
The Muscular Dystrophy Association holds a telethon every Labor Day. Its books are open to the public. No more than five percent of all monies collected go for administrative costs. The Children''s Hospitals have telethons held and all money go to the area where cash is donated. These two are but examples of what a good charity is. Many more do exist if we search well enough.
Remember, before giving with your heart and wallet, check with your brain first.