A survey reports that the majority of Americans feel donations of time are more important than donations of money.
Has anybody bothered to ask the charities this question? I suspect
a different view of REAL LIFE would be put forward. At a lunchtime meeting
of the Nova Scotia SFRE last year the vice-president of the Bank of Montreal
- after her informative talk on BMO's donations and sponsorship policies -
proudly proclaimed that she didn't know why board members have to give their
money when they already give their time. Unfortunately for charities in NS,
she is in charge of the donations/sponsorship activities of BMO in Atlantic
Canada.
If fund developers do not begin to educate the public in the REALITIES of
life in the not-for-profit charitable sector then we are done for. (See your
article on Christmas donations/Volunteering.)
Yes, life does go on after the holidays. Thanks for your help when everyone
else is helping - but if you want to show true Holiday Spirit do the bulk
of your voluntering/donating in JUNE!
As fundraisers I think we are so worried about "pissing off" our donors that we don't tell them that a donation of a 486 computer in 2004 is worthless. If we do not start telling the truth we will get what we DESERVE and not what we NEED!
--Brian
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