The Money Mustache Community
Around the Internet => Antimustachian Wall of Shame and Comedy => Topic started by: pdxbator on November 13, 2015, 10:44:10 AM
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Michelle Singletary, the financial columnist for the Washington Post has an interesting read on Debbie Thomas, the Olympic skater.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/get-there/wp/2015/11/12/olympic-medalist-debi-thomas-is-broke-and-begging/ (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/get-there/wp/2015/11/12/olympic-medalist-debi-thomas-is-broke-and-begging/)
Short of it all is she is broke and has asked via GoFundMe essentially just hand over some money to her. The article is interesting because it sounds like Ms. Thomas, a doctor no less, has made some poor decisions and obviously has some issues.
I'm wondering if other people have heard of some GoFundMe campaigns like this. It is kind of wacky to just put it all out there and ask for cash to help fund ones lifestyle.
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SOme Gofundmes are legit bad luck, and while that would be the last place I would go for help, I don't begrudge people trying it if they are truly in need. A lot are just a result of poor decisions and planning.
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I thought I was weird as I had never seen any gofundme request on my FB. But that changed recently when I got two at once. One was a classmate from high school that purchased a house that needed extensive repairs. She had posted about buying the place this summer and talked about the repairs. Ok, a rehab project. I respect that, I have done several of them. Then, after the first cold night she posts a gofundme asking for $25k as they need a new boiler and they had ripped out walls but didn't have any money to put up insulation or drywall so the house not only didn't have heat, it was drafty as well. Damn. She is in a small town where you can buy a house for less than $25k so I'm not sure why she needs so much. Only clicked on it once and she had $0 of $25k funded.
The other one was just a week after the above. Again, someone from high school needed money to divorce her husband and she wrote a long story about how she was abused and that she came home to find he changed the locks and wouldn't let her get any of her things so she needed $2500 to get a new place, start over and pay for a lawyer. Really sad story. What is sadder to me is that she is still in the area of the small town we grew up in. She has 3 siblings and her parents and she has to beg for what seems like not that much money in a situation where most would gladly come up with money to help out a child/sibling. When I clicked, I think she was up to $70.
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Since I started this here's a personal GoFundMe plea. Someone I work with had a child about 2 years ago. All is good with child and parents. Well, mom actually has some sort of medical problem (non life threatening) that won't allow her to have more children.
I get a facebook plea for GoFundMe. They are looking for $25k - to hire a surrogate - to have a second child. Srrrrrsly? One child and you aren't satisfied? You have to request money from facebook friends to fund the birth of a second child?
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I saw a gofundme request on Facebook earlier this year to hike the John Muir Trail.
I have sympathy if people encounter unexpected major expenses (major home repair, serious illness, unexpected death in the family, etc..) but I find requests simply because somebody wants something and doesn't have the money for it to be distasteful. I'd never have thought it a good idea to ask my friends to fund my vacation.
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My only anywhere-near-personal experience with GoFundMe was when a friend of my girlfriend had her dog hospitalized in an ICU for over a month. (http://www.examiner.com/article/lessons-from-bristolstrong-herding-can-be-hazardous-to-your-dog-s-health) Her vet bills were mid-five-figures, and everything ended up covered by the money raised, in addition to raising awareness of the MDR1 gene mutation, which causes certain medication to be nearly lethal.
It's truly the only GoFundMe campaign I've seen that didn't make me want to vomit.
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I don't support requests to fund what I consider luxuries, nor do I ever give money to subsidize people with a higher standard of living and/or more earning power than myself. If they can't manage what they've got despite having more than enough to get by, giving them more will not improve the situation.
An orthopedic surgeon who can supposedly make a week's pay in just one speaking engagement has the wherewithal to get a new job and money very easily. But she's not willing to work as a surgeon, and she's not willing to hit the lecture circuit. Instead, she wants to do nothing while waiting for her big break on reality TV? Really?
That kind of bad decision making has to be due to some sort of illness or injury. Either that or she's just trying to drum up buzz for the reality TV show. Reality TV stars aren't supposed to demonstrate character, good judgment, or good taste.
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My wife did a RAGNAR (200 mile running relay) through the Florida Keys last February. They had two vans and the second van (not hers) was broken into. There was about $1000 worth of stuff stolen, between 6 women in the van. They set up a gofundme page to ask others to help them pay for what they lost. These are, by and large, professional, working women, or the spouses of professional, working men. They paid roughly $4-500 each (yes not mustachian at all) to do this event, and they are crying poor about losing <$200/woman worth of stuff. It caused a huge rift when they implied that was about the whole team on the gofundme page, when the majority of the women in my wife's van would have just sucked it up.
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A friend is an underpaid single mom who's been having more financial issues than usual lately due to some issues with her son meaning she is not able to work very frequently. She posted a GFM because she's behind on her bills. Okay, I feel bad for her. But when she does get extra money she's always posting all over Facebook about getting new furniture, new clothes, going out to eat, etc. Her emergency fund is nonexistent. She gets money, she spends it. I'm sure she will actually spend this money to pay her electric bill like she says, but I don't get the impression she's learned anything from this whole fiasco.
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Michelle Singletary, the financial columnist for the Washington Post has an interesting read on Debbie Thomas, the Olympic skater.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/get-there/wp/2015/11/12/olympic-medalist-debi-thomas-is-broke-and-begging/ (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/get-there/wp/2015/11/12/olympic-medalist-debi-thomas-is-broke-and-begging/)
Short of it all is she is broke and has asked via GoFundMe essentially just hand over some money to her. The article is interesting because it sounds like Ms. Thomas, a doctor no less, has made some poor decisions and obviously has some issues.
I'm wondering if other people have heard of some GoFundMe campaigns like this. It is kind of wacky to just put it all out there and ask for cash to help fund ones lifestyle.
Olympians typically don't make any money from the Olympics. A precious few (Like Thomas) can and do make money from advertisers and/or lectures.
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I was hounded by a gofundme page for someone that wanted to start their business. If you need to beg for money to get the business started, it probably isn't viable. I had to subtly and bluntly suggest that they take traditional action, borrowing or selling equity, to raise capital, just like a real business does. I was finally removed from their list after I told them to step away from the kids table =)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
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A family friend's wife was diagnosed with a pretty serious and rare medical condition that has forced her to quit her job (she has seizures and loss of limb control). She started her own GFM page to help with medical bills.
Thing is, I know the husband had just gotten a huge windfall in the last year, and had enough left over after paying off all of their (really stupid credit card) debts to create a great emergency fund and still cover some fun stuff besides. They blew it all on clothes, eating out and fancy vacations and then ran up all their cards back in serious debt again. They are absolutely stupid with money and don't see any issues with begging for more after blowing well over $20K and bragging about it on Facebook. They saved absolutely nothing for emergencies.
And there was in the middle of the GFM updates some photos showing off one of the daughter's prom pics and how they spent BIG $$$ on her dress, shoes, purse, hair and makeup and all that stuff... likely $500 at least. All while mom is suffering with this condition and knowing she won't be able to work probably ever. They just blew all that money on a school dance after asking for help paying for utilities and car repairs. Not that the poor kid shouldn't have gone to prom, but a dress and other necessities for a high school dance could be had for less than $100 and the kid should have a job by now to help pay for stuff otherwise (just my opinion obviously).
And the wife's GFM is now asking for $6K to fund a lavish family vacation that happens to include a 1 day stop at a conference regarding her medical condition.
Sigh.
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They make me crazy. I have never donated to one.
Best example of horrible one: local farm is non-viable for some reason (needs barn? tax issue? like I said, I don't read them) and is asking for ~10K so they can continue to be a farm adn not go under. YOU ARE A BUSINESS. NOOOOOO.
I do find medical expense and/or dead parents ones tolerable. Not tolerable enough to donate, but I can handle them being posted on FB.
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A family friend's wife was diagnosed with a pretty serious and rare medical condition that has forced her to quit her job (she has seizures and loss of limb control). She started her own GFM page to help with medical bills.
Thing is, I know the husband had just gotten a huge windfall in the last year, and had enough left over after paying off all of their (really stupid credit card) debts to create a great emergency fund and still cover some fun stuff besides. They blew it all on clothes, eating out and fancy vacations and then ran up all their cards back in serious debt again. They are absolutely stupid with money and don't see any issues with begging for more after blowing well over $20K and bragging about it on Facebook. They saved absolutely nothing for emergencies.
And there was in the middle of the GFM updates some photos showing off one of the daughter's prom pics and how they spent $$$ on her dress, shoes, purse, hair and makeup and all that stuff... while mom is suffering with this condition and knowing she won't be able to work probably ever. They just blew all that money after asking for help paying for utilities and car repairs. Not that the poor kid shouldn't have gone to prom, but a dress and other necessities for a high school dance could be had for less than $100 and the kid should have a job by now to help pay for stuff otherwise (just my opinion obviously).
And the wife's GFM is now asking for $6K to fund a lavish family vacation that happens to include a 1 day stop at a conference regarding her medical condition.
Sigh.
They sound like they know exactly what they are doing! milking everyone for whatever they can get.
Most GFM pages are ridiculous. I.Can't.Even.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
Might we have just one please, in the Shame and Comedy section? Solely for educational purposes of course.
- There's a chance the poster might learn something (as in, you don't solve a cash flow problem by making it bigger)
- The rest of us could practice and refine our facepunching technique (kind of like how baby velociraptors do when Mommy or Daddy bring living prey back to the nest), and
- The thread could live on forever as a reminder of why it's a bad idea to solicit Mustachians.
The entertainment value, of course, would not be a factor in our decision making.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
Might we have just one please, in the Shame and Comedy section? Solely for educational purposes of course.
- There's a chance the poster might learn something (as in, you don't solve a cash flow problem by making it bigger)
- The rest of us could practice and refine our facepunching technique (kind of like how baby velociraptors do when Mommy or Daddy bring living prey back to the nest), and
- The thread could live on forever as a reminder of why it's a bad idea to solicit Mustachians.
The entertainment value, of course, would not be a factor in our decision making.
Grim, you're my hero today.
Come on, mods, please?
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Then there's the classic Go Fund Me pyramid scheme from Get Rich Slowly. In essence the spiel was: Help me pay off my mortgage and then I'll pay it forward! It's appalling that they published it, but not surprisingly he got raked over the coals in the comments.
http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2014/08/03/crowd-funding-pay-off-mortgage/
GRS had removed the link to his Go Fund Me page, so I wasn't able to find out how much he ended up raising.
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I did find a couple I was willing to donate to. A woman came home to find her animals harmed by a human (the damage and the fact that the duck cages required thumbs to open were a clue). She is selling things to try to raise the money to pay for x-rays etc. This was in the UK and because of one of the things she is selling is decorative eggs, she can't sell overseas (aka here). When this was mentioned someone held up gofundme as an option. I'd rather just send paypal money myself but some people preferred gofundme. Honestly this was one of the few times it did not bother me.
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GRS had removed the link to his Go Fund Me page, so I wasn't able to find out how much he ended up raising.
GRS didn't remove any link, I found it right in the middle of the article: https://www.gofundme.com/onedollaratatime
You give them too much credit. :)
It looks like GoFundMe did remove it though.
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GRS had removed the link to his Go Fund Me page, so I wasn't able to find out how much he ended up raising.
GRS didn't remove any link, I found it right in the middle of the article: https://www.gofundme.com/onedollaratatime
You give them too much credit. :)
It looks like GoFundMe did remove it though.
Haha. Thanks. My scanning abilities are apparently not up to par. I thought I remembered that they removed it, but I guess I was thinking about the long disclaimer at the top that essentially came to, "We know this is offensive, but we're going to publish it anyway."
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I've never looked at GFM before today, but couldn't help thinking that many were probably outright fraud. Not quite sure how they would do it, but do they have any method of verification?
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I've never looked at GFM before today, but couldn't help thinking that many were probably outright fraud. Not quite sure how they would do it, but do they have any method of verification?
Nope.
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I've never looked at GFM before today, but couldn't help thinking that many were probably outright fraud. Not quite sure how they would do it, but do they have any method of verification?
Nope.
There have been numerous cases where GFM were setup to help someone but they never received the money. Oftentimes person A will get hurt, person B will set up the GFM and then just pocket the money.
http://gizmodo.com/gofundme-is-a-great-way-to-scam-people-1681401839?utm_expid=66866090-67.e9PWeE2DSnKObFD7vNEoqg.0&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F
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I think I've seen two decent ones...
One was absolutely heart-wrenching; no one I knew but I think a friend of a friend of a friend or similar. The lady's husband emptied their bank accounts and vanished...right after the birth of their third child, leaving her with: no money, hospital bills, mortgage/rent, childcare to arrange/pay for, and of course food and other living expenses. By all accounts, she was a stay at home mom, too, so getting back to work was a long-term/tricky proposition...
The other was that, allegedly, an acquaintance's brother was falsely accused of a crime and they were fundraising for legal help and support for the wife and (3?) kids. I'm not really sure of the details but they were fairly young (late 20s-early 30s) and this is definitely an expensive and stressful situation you don't really foresee. I believe he was lower-ranking military so not a great salary (not comparable to MMM having $100k's or being retired by the same age...)
These two make me grudgingly justify the existence of the site to myself.
Then I see someone trying to raise $5k for their dog's surgery, and as much as I sympathize with the poor dog, if I can procure $5k in an emergency situation, any of my single, college-graduate, professionally-employed friends should be able to do the same...
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I've made one donation to a coworker whom I have great respect for. He and his wife are struggling to have their first child, and IVF treatments have sucked their savings. They needed a loan for the subsequent round. They have no children yet and badly want a family. Outside of a long work commute, both are frugal people and terrific human beings.
Other than that one, all gofundme's have made me want to gag:)
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
We regularly get GFMs for local businesses. The most recent one was a local coffee drive thru that a family had bought. Apparently the equipment was ancient, so a year after they bought it they wanted to raise 15K or something to buy new equipment. Um didn't you factor that in when you bought the business? And they, of course, appealed to the "we're a locally family owned business" thing. But that just irks me. Not surprisingly, most of the time these campaigns don't bring more than a couple hundred dollars.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
We regularly get GFMs for local businesses. The most recent one was a local coffee drive thru that a family had bought. Apparently the equipment was ancient, so a year after they bought it they wanted to raise 15K or something to buy new equipment. Um didn't you factor that in when you bought the business? And they, of course, appealed to the "we're a locally family owned business" thing. But that just irks me. Not surprisingly, most of the time these campaigns don't bring more than a couple hundred dollars.
That sounds like severe lack of operating funds, which indicates poor planning.
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A FB "friend" (really, she's someone I don't even remember from high school who friended me) apparently lost her job a while back, has run out of unemployment benefits, and spent her savings. She is reportedly facing eviction. Her rent is $700/month. She's trying to raise $1400 to cover her rent for two months. I feel a bit sorry for her, but it just seems weird to me for a 51-year old woman to basically come begging to a bunch of people she doesn't know that well, if at all. I just have to wonder whether or why her circle of friends and family is so small or non-existent as to not be available to help her out here. I mean, seriously, if any friend or family member of mine really needed $1400, I'd simply give it to them. That being said, I'm still contemplating giving her a small donation. She's reportedly raised about $700 so far.
A FB friend of my wife's posted a GFM request to pay for her son's private schooling!!! Here's the kicker though - about a month later, she announced she was having a second kid. WTF???!! You can't afford the one you have and you're having another one? Yeah, wish in one hand and shit in the other and see which one fills up first.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
That's one I don't get. Someone recently posted a very sad GFM story of an animal shelter burning down and needing money for vet bills, etc. for the surviving animals. But then they mention the loss of the building as well. Surely it was insured, and wouldn't insurance provide temporary housing during rebuilding?
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These GFM stories are similar to the reasons I quit Freecycle. At first it was about needs and then it became about wants.
Started seeing people asking for what I consider luxury items like performance tires for their ultra-wide, aluminum wheels on their car. (Literally saw that one). Or toys for their kids - like go carts.
I figure if a person is poor then they can be thirfty like my family - and we are a long way from poor. Wear the off brand clothes and shoes. Take care of what you have. Keep the itty-bitty skinny wheels/tires on your grocery getter car so replacement tires are cheap.
The older I get the more clear it is why some people are poor. Its all about long term choices.
Whatever happened to developing friendships and sharing chores instead of asking for money? Hey let's work together on my project and I'll help you with your project. Hey you've had a tough episode and I'll help you, and you'd do the same for me.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
That's one I don't get. Someone recently posted a very sad GFM story of an animal shelter burning down and needing money for vet bills, etc. for the surviving animals. But then they mention the loss of the building as well. Surely it was insured, and wouldn't insurance provide temporary housing during rebuilding?
Not if they rented. Loss of use coverage also isn't automatic.
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I feel like I have finally found the right place for my rant. Why is it that every time someone dies there's a GFM campaign? At least tell me if there was life insurance. I have $400,000 of Life insurance for $21/month. It seems like it s the go-to now and I don't get it.
Also to my cousin with a GFM for his treecutting business, I'm glad you are clean and sober and haven't been in nail for 2+ years, but you're not getting any of my money.
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Since I started this here's a personal GoFundMe plea. Someone I work with had a child about 2 years ago. All is good with child and parents. Well, mom actually has some sort of medical problem (non life threatening) that won't allow her to have more children.
I get a facebook plea for GoFundMe. They are looking for $25k - to hire a surrogate - to have a second child. Srrrrrsly? One child and you aren't satisfied? You have to request money from facebook friends to fund the birth of a second child?
If you need $25K to fund a second child you cannot afford the child even if the child was free.
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I don't see to many of them anymore. I've seen a few people on FB put them up for auto repairs, job loss, medical expenses, and only one trying to fund a vacation.
The only one I have personally given to was a friend who just had a baby, a few weeks later had an appendectomy, and shortly after he had a hernia. All said and done, 2 surgeries, a newborn, and a bunch of unpaid time off. Hard not to feel for a person in such a situation. Once he recovered and was back at it he hosted a nice party for his friends. Was a good reason to celebrate.
You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
I never considered people posting such things here. Makes sense that they would try. Glad we have good mods around here. Thanks ARS.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
I never considered people posting such things here. Makes sense that they would try. Glad we have good mods around here. Thanks ARS.
Of course!
Now I hope you'll consider contributing to my GoFundMe campaign to benefit the moderators of the MMM forum (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ)!
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
I never considered people posting such things here. Makes sense that they would try. Glad we have good mods around here. Thanks ARS.
Of course!
Now I hope you'll consider contributing to my GoFundMe campaign to benefit the moderators of the MMM forum (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ)!
Ahhh Just got rick rolled! Made my day haha.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
That's one I don't get. Someone recently posted a very sad GFM story of an animal shelter burning down and needing money for vet bills, etc. for the surviving animals. But then they mention the loss of the building as well. Surely it was insured, and wouldn't insurance provide temporary housing during rebuilding?
Not if they rented. Loss of use coverage also isn't automatic.
True - I can see needing some funds for temporary situations for the remaining animals if they can't find foster homes. However, if they were renting, they should be off the hook for any future rent and can use those funds for another location. I just wish these types of things provided more info, rather than just insinuating that they need all the money to buy/build a new building.
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I feel like I have finally found the right place for my rant. Why is it that every time someone dies there's a GFM campaign? At least tell me if there was life insurance. I have $400,000 of Life insurance for $21/month. It seems like it s the go-to now and I don't get it.
Yeah, the funeral requests make me sad more than anything, although they are likely the least offensive GFM requests out there other than health catastrophes. My thought is, do you live so close to edge that you can't afford a simple funeral? What about your family? Can't they just rally around you without GFM? It doesn't have to cost 15K or whatever the going rate is now.
For the family of the little girl who was murdered in Kentucky a little over a week ago, the small community mobilized and managed to raise almost 50K on GFM in only a few days. I thought that was pretty impressive and didn't really have a problem with it. These parents are so traumatized that they likely won't be able to work for quite a while. And for everyone who just feel so helplessly sad for them (as would anyone), this is just a concrete way to express your grief. The usual casseroles and deli meat trays can only really be done by a select few who know them. That's usually how people support a grieving family - through food and flowers.
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A close friend passed away about a month ago. I had dinner with his parents recently and they said 3 weeks after the funeral the mortuary sent a coupon for 20% off "their next funeral". Needless to say they were pissed and are almost expecting a black Friday deal to arrive in the mail as well.
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A close friend passed away about a month ago. I had dinner with his parents recently and they said 3 weeks after the funeral the mortuary sent a coupon for 20% off "their next funeral". Needless to say they were pissed and are almost expecting a black Friday deal to arrive in the mail as well.
So sorry for your loss. How tone deaf of the mortuary. You'd think the people who specialize in death would be more sensitive. I'm annoyed by how they upsell caskets. Talk about preying on the vulnerable. Cremation and a later memorial at a church is my preference, at least financially it would be.
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I feel like I have finally found the right place for my rant. Why is it that every time someone dies there's a GFM campaign? At least tell me if there was life insurance. I have $400,000 of Life insurance for $21/month. It seems like it s the go-to now and I don't get it.
Also to my cousin with a GFM for his treecutting business, I'm glad you are clean and sober and haven't been in nail for 2+ years, but you're not getting any of my money.
The saddest GFMs are for murder victims who died at an early age such as the 4-year-old shot on the freeway by a repeat road-rage offender, or for police officers injured or killed in the line of duty. Although there are literally billions of dollars socked away in federal crime victim aid money, there's no way for the victims to get access to any of it. Most of it simply isn't spent, although a small amount goes to charities that purport to distribute the money to victims but tend to spend more on their own staff and administrators. Actual victims very seldom get a cent, while federal politicians feel free to raid the "unused" and "unneeded" victim aid money at will. Victim aid money was a cute idea that looked good on paper, but it's not helping actual crime victims.
Police officers in my city don't get their full pay for the time they spend in the hospital or rehabilitating, and when the spouse has to quit work in order to care for the injured person (because there's no money available for home aid), there's simply no money coming in for the family. One officer, who was shot repeatedly by his superior during a botched undercover operation almost a year ago, has needed multiple surgeries and still might not make it. He receives only partial pay, and his wife had to quit her job to care for him, but the man who shot him is on full pay during his "administrative leave". That's why funding has to come from the community.
Most families don't plan for a funeral of a very young person. Of course, in some communities and traditions it's verboten to plan for a funeral at all.
In an extreme enabler culture, people are raised to be either moochers or enablers. The enablers work very hard, but they never accumulate much because they, or the family members around them, live in a constant state of emergency. It's not considered socially acceptable to spend money on anything that isn't immediately useful. People believe they are morally obligated to get the maximum possible value for their money "now", or else to give it to a family member who "needs it more" due to being sick, out of work, addicted, or whatever. In fact, children are taught that it's morally wrong to have savings or investments of any kind if a family member is in need. Need always expands to consume and then exceed all available resources, so families like this invariably produce people who are nursing an addiction, or out of work, or just released from prison, or depressed/ill to the point where he or she "can't" work but is "too proud" to go on disability. It's deemed "selfish" if an able-bodied family member decides to pursue advanced education instead of dropping out of school to care for a sick, addicted, or injured elder member of the family, so there aren't many legal paths to a professional-class income.
When a person grows up in an extreme enabler culture, instead of accumulating money it's considered better to have things: clothing, electronics, furniture, or other stuff that could be exchanged for cash. So, it's hard for a person raised in such a tradition to understand the benefit of buying a prepaid cremation plan. They also don't like to buy insurance of any sort, since they consider it an unnecessary expense.
An elderly friend of mine passed away a year and a half ago. She and her family were part of an enabler culture. Despite the fact she'd been very sick for three full years, none of her six children had set aside so much as a cent to bury her. But the requirements of their religion were such that cremation wasn't acceptable, and even the cheapest coffin and service set them back about $5,000. I did chip in, but only because this old lady had been a friend of mine.
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My favorite restaurant -- now closed -- started a GoFund me last year when they were having trouble making their bills. The whole story got trotted out, but I was like, "No, this is a business, I'm not giving them money for bills." I wrote to the chef telling him I would encourage all my friends who loved the restaurant to frequent it more regularly and I did as well. He raised several thousand bucks, but as predicted, the restaurant still went under. It was a wonderful place -- the food and the atmosphere were way above average and the prices weren't bad. But the owner clearly made some mis-steps in managing the business and location was always a problem (too far out of the way).
In a similar vein, some locals (who come from monied families) started a GoFundMe campaign to start a music club/bar. It's a for profit enterprise? Isn't that what banks and rich uncles are for?
I'm often critical of governments for privatizing gains and subsidizing losses, but this smacks of the same. If you're in business, you're in business and bear the risks that go with that. I'll vote with my feet, or not.
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They make me crazy. I have never donated to one.
Best example of horrible one: local farm is non-viable for some reason (needs barn? tax issue? like I said, I don't read them) and is asking for ~10K so they can continue to be a farm adn not go under. YOU ARE A BUSINESS. NOOOOOO.
I do find medical expense and/or dead parents ones tolerable. Not tolerable enough to donate, but I can handle them being posted on FB.
The local "indie" coffee place had a GFM to expand.
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/espresso-77-jackson-heights-store-expansion#/
It failed.
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They make me crazy. I have never donated to one.
Best example of horrible one: local farm is non-viable for some reason (needs barn? tax issue? like I said, I don't read them) and is asking for ~10K so they can continue to be a farm adn not go under. YOU ARE A BUSINESS. NOOOOOO.
I do find medical expense and/or dead parents ones tolerable. Not tolerable enough to donate, but I can handle them being posted on FB.
The local "indie" coffee place had a GFM to expand.
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/espresso-77-jackson-heights-store-expansion#/
It failed.
Yup. There's bad luck (sick parents; random acts of violence; bad stuff that happens and is totally out of your control) and then there's bad business planning. The latter is rampant and GoFundMe campaigns only enable some businesses that shouldn't be in business.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
We regularly get GFMs for local businesses. The most recent one was a local coffee drive thru that a family had bought. Apparently the equipment was ancient, so a year after they bought it they wanted to raise 15K or something to buy new equipment. Um didn't you factor that in when you bought the business? And they, of course, appealed to the "we're a locally family owned business" thing. But that just irks me. Not surprisingly, most of the time these campaigns don't bring more than a couple hundred dollars.
That sounds like severe lack of operating funds, which indicates poor planning.
Or someone is not reinvesting enough into their business. I used to work for a real cheapskate. Everything was falling apart b/c she put too much into her own pocket. Eventually it impacted the business and she closed. Lots of other contributing factors too.
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You guys often don't see the requests here the mods delete. They come every few months. Deleted two from the same person yesterday.
Somehow they think by saying "Help me get on the Mustachian path!" Mustachians will give them a bunch of money so they can get out of their debt.
No clue that they're begging from the wrong crowd, huh?
The silliest one I've heard of lately: A local business -- a restaurant -- burned. Very sad. Now they're asking the community to give them money to rebuild. That's why you have insurance! After all, you were cooking burgers over an open flame. Did no one stop to think fire was a possibility?
Yes, there was an article in our local paper, a local and beloved bar/nightclub owed 80K in back taxes, because I guess they forgot to pay taxes the first 6 years they were open? It gets worse. They recently had a kickstarter to raise 15K not for the taxes, but for a new sound system. But said that the new sound system actually cost 40K so they are still paying off the rest of that loan. Third, the original group of investors still owes 400K for the original loan. They only gave this information to explain why they could not get a traditional loan to pay off back taxes. I'm sure their hearts are in the right places, but they sound like terrible businesspeople, because it was a popular and busy venue.
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Glad I noticed this thread. I've got one that is driving me crazy and I'm glad to have a place to vent about it. It's a funeral GoFundMe, sort of.
Back story is that there were 40 some messages on Next Door, our city's online forum for neighborhood chat, about a woman who was searching for the body of her dead dog. This small dog had jumped out of her car window and escaped. Later someone saw the little dog be hit by a car. The dog's owner didn't see the event and learned of the dog's death when trying to find the dog.
So far, so good. But my annoyance comes in when the owner starts complaining about the dog's missing body. She complains about where it might be. Is it in a dumpster? That is horrifying! How could anyone be so cruel!!! Then multiple other voices chime in about the cruelty of disposing of a pet into a dumpster. Other than one practical voice pointing out that's illegal, all other posts quack on about how anyone touching this dead dog is evil.
The voices go on to urge the owner to check one more time with a nearby church where the dead dog was said to be. She talked to,church personnel and discovered that they had placed dead dog body into a dumpster. Oh, the Humanity! How could,they even consider themselves Christian!?? The messages went on and on.
This dog owner did retrieve the dead body of her dog from a dumpster.
Someone on the list wrote in to say that they had made arrangements for a pet crematory service to take the dog's body as a way to ease the pain of the owner.
I thought "well, that's nice, good for you!" Unti ,the poster went on to say that he/she was setting up a Go Fund Me effort for this.
And that's when I stepped out of reading subsequent posts.
Some of you might wonder why this rubbed me so much the wrong way. I have to wonder too. I guess it's because this hits all of my buttons
* Exaggerated, hysterical reaction out of proportion to the event
* The dog is already DEAD, we are not talking about cruelty to a live animal
* blaming others for a role in a saga that started with the owner, she made the initial mistake of not containing her dog
*pile on of many people promoting the hysteria and blame laying
* Go Fund Me account for something that is easily affordable --why crowd source this do-gooder effort if the initial do-gooder thinks it should be done? Cremations remains of a little dog is $100. Or maybe they are going to do the whole burial thing with a plot, etc. then, see my first point
Tl; dr. Some people thrive on being upset and in using GoFundMe as their platform to show the world how emo they are, where emo=good in their tiny minds
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I have contributed to Go fund me accounts before when there has been a real need in someone's life, such as the person died young and the family was having a hard time paying for a funeral, or medical expenses. But, lately in my extended family I have been seeing ridiculous accounts being set up.
One cousin's son-in-law set up an account so he could fund a kayak for a birthday present for his wife. Of course, I did not contribute to this. Now another cousin has died and right away, a family member posted a go fund me account to pay for the funeral AND living expenses for the surviving spouse. This couple made way more than my husband and I in their working years, and the spouse is retired with a big union pension from an auto company. My cousin was still working at 63 because they couldn't make ends meet on her husband's pension and SS.
I ended up giving them a card with $50.00 in it, but this stuff just makes me mad! When their children thanked everyone who gave to the go fund me, they then added that they still needed money to pay for everyday expenses and would appreciate people donating more. Really, my cousin is probably rolling in her grave because I know she would never have wanted this.
Do people not have any shame anymore about having to ask people for money for things that they should be paying for themselves? I am thinking mostly about the kayak!
Miss Prim
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We live in the age of entitlement.
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Do people not have any shame anymore about having to ask people for money for things that they should be paying for themselves? I am thinking mostly about the kayak!
This! Not sure people were ever really "right".
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I confess to have read, off and on, GoFundMe campaigns.And rolling me eyes.
And now I will confess that I Actually sent some money, I think it was $50, to a random stranger here in my city. I Have never done this but I'll tell ya, the story was compelling.
Young couple answered ad for free dog. They took the dog, a photogenic Great Dane. 9 months later, original owner wanted dog back, couple said hell no he is OUR dog.
One day back fence of young couple was broken and dog disappeared.
Cops taking no action. court action ensues.
Oy vey, I may be indifferent to the illnesses of tiny children and the funeral needs of poor dead people, but by god I can relate to someone stealing my dog. They need to hang.
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We know a family who is terrible with money and is all about keeping up with the Jones'. The wife has frequently looked down on my frugal ways and used to bug me all the time to have more kids. They have a go fund me for $80K. They do have a lot of medical expenses b/c they have a son that is disabled, but they also just declared bankruptcy a couple years ago and still spend money on crap. Of course the page is all about the son's disability, but the truth is stuff like the $5K swingset and $5K deck may have something to do with it.
We refuse to donate, but so many people feel sorry for them that they have raised $14K.
My son goes to the same school as one of their kids and he told me tonight that their son has Chipotle for lunch 3x per week. Even if it is from his allowance, shouldn't allowances be cut if they are in severe financial distress?
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One of my Facebook friends launched a GoFundMe to fund a European cruise later this year. It seemed tacky to me. I've never felt comfortable asking my buddies for money, even if it's just digitally.
We are taking this trip to reset our passion for teaching. This will not only help us, it will benefit our students. What we learn and experience can be brought back to our classrooms through stories and photographs. This trip will aid in our teaching of science, social studies, math, language arts, and humanities.
Our plan is to visit Barcelona, Provence, Pisa, Florence, Naples, Rome, Pompeii, Crete, Rhodes, Turkey, and Athens. Many of our students may never get the opportunity to travel outside of this state and will be able experience these places in the classroom through our eyes.
We know our students and both of us will be forever grateful.
This journey will renew our love for educating and broadening the minds of our students. Thank you!
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One of my Facebook friends launched a GoFundMe to fund a European cruise later this year. It seemed tacky to me. I've never felt comfortable asking my buddies for money, even if it's just digitally.
We are taking this trip to reset our passion for teaching. This will not only help us, it will benefit our students. What we learn and experience can be brought back to our classrooms through stories and photographs. This trip will aid in our teaching of science, social studies, math, language arts, and humanities.
Our plan is to visit Barcelona, Provence, Pisa, Florence, Naples, Rome, Pompeii, Crete, Rhodes, Turkey, and Athens. Many of our students may never get the opportunity to travel outside of this state and will be able experience these places in the classroom through our eyes.
We know our students and both of us will be forever grateful.
This journey will renew our love for educating and broadening the minds of our students. Thank you!
I would be more inclined to donate if it was money for a school trip so the students could experience it themselves. No students are going to want to listen to their teachers holiday stories.
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I'll throw in the one I posted on Overheard on Facebook. Old high school friend, cheated on husband, they split, she moves in with boy toy, ex has custody of the kids, she hasn't worked in..well...ever and is only working part time as a receptionist at a vet office now so she is 100% broke and has been begging for money and food for about a year now on FB. Right before Christmas she posts a go fund me to buy presents for the kids (she was one of those that had a small mountain of presents, so much so that you couldn't see the tree, every year prior to this), and to fix her broken car so she could get to her part time job (though this only garnered half of one line on the go fund me).
Fast foward to the next day and she says thanks for all the requests for what to buy the kids, here is an Amazon wish list (instead of donating cash). I click on the list and the first three pages are crap for her and her boy toy, $100 Keratin hair treatments, multiple North face jackets at 200 a pop, games etc. The next 5 pages were all name brand toys and clothes for the kids, and the last page was full of stuff...for her pets.
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Just like people are more likely to say inappropriate or confrontational things on the internet because of the anonymity, they are also more likely to beg for things to strangers that they normally would not ask a friend or family for.
I tend to be more empathetic towards those GFM who are started by family. friends or neighbors who are trying to help someone they care about, but most of the time if someone starts it themselves, it isn't worth reading.
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One of my Facebook friends launched a GoFundMe to fund a European cruise later this year. It seemed tacky to me. I've never felt comfortable asking my buddies for money, even if it's just digitally.
We are taking this trip to reset our passion for teaching. This will not only help us, it will benefit our students. What we learn and experience can be brought back to our classrooms through stories and photographs. This trip will aid in our teaching of science, social studies, math, language arts, and humanities.
Our plan is to visit Barcelona, Provence, Pisa, Florence, Naples, Rome, Pompeii, Crete, Rhodes, Turkey, and Athens. Many of our students may never get the opportunity to travel outside of this state and will be able experience these places in the classroom through our eyes.
We know our students and both of us will be forever grateful.
This journey will renew our love for educating and broadening the minds of our students. Thank you!
UGH - insanely tacky.
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One of my Facebook friends launched a GoFundMe to fund a European cruise later this year. It seemed tacky to me. I've never felt comfortable asking my buddies for money, even if it's just digitally.
We are taking this trip to reset our passion for teaching. This will not only help us, it will benefit our students. What we learn and experience can be brought back to our classrooms through stories and photographs. This trip will aid in our teaching of science, social studies, math, language arts, and humanities.
Our plan is to visit Barcelona, Provence, Pisa, Florence, Naples, Rome, Pompeii, Crete, Rhodes, Turkey, and Athens. Many of our students may never get the opportunity to travel outside of this state and will be able experience these places in the classroom through our eyes.
We know our students and both of us will be forever grateful.
This journey will renew our love for educating and broadening the minds of our students. Thank you!
I would be more inclined to donate if it was money for a school trip so the students could experience it themselves. No students are going to want to listen to their teachers holiday stories.
That exactly!!! I remember we had a teacher like that in high school - whenever her travel stories came out, we zoned, and then we'd be behind on the things we were actually supposed to be learning.
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I set up a GFM campaign for my DH. Only married a couple of months he became extremely ill and we couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. One month later he's in the ER almost dying and ended up having to to stay at the hospital for 16 days and having several surgeries with only a 50% success rate. One year later (today) he's still on chemo and has to go every 6 weeks. We have great insurance but due to his age a TON of our bill isn't covered. So yes, we resorted to asking for an extra hand and yes I took a second job.
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I just saw one today for some dumbass who spent $800 on powerball tickets because they were sure they were going to win. and now they didn't, so they are broke. oh yeah, and the page is set up for them to get more money to spend on more tickets. anyone that contributes to that doesn't deserve to have any money of their own.
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I set up a GFM campaign for my DH. Only married a couple of months he became extremely ill and we couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. One month later he's in the ER almost dying and ended up having to to stay at the hospital for 16 days and having several surgeries with only a 50% success rate. One year later (today) he's still on chemo and has to go every 6 weeks. We have great insurance but due to his age a TON of our bill isn't covered. So yes, we resorted to asking for an extra hand and yes I took a second job.
That's the type of situation I am happy to contribute to.
The only thing is that I find it often invites a lot of nosy people prying into how you spend your money. I was part of a group once some years ago that did a ton of fundraising, brought over dinners, etc for one mom who's baby daughter had serious health issues. I even took her two older girls in for 2 weeks so they could be at the hospital (2 hours away) with their baby. It all became a giant mess several months later when people started questioning why she had fresh manicures, etc etc. Eventually, everyone stopped speaking to her. For myself, I felt that I chose to give with an open heart and from then on, I really didn't want to start getting nitpicky. Still, it was a sad conclusion to the whole thing.
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How about the lovely Cinnamon Nicole who spent every dollar she had on the powerball...
https://www.yahoo.com/music/powerball-reimbursement-fund-page-created-235504618.html
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I recently gave a long time friend $20.00 on a GFM. Her goats were being attacked by Mountain Lions and Coyotes. She needed an electric fence and repairs to the stalls. Why not?
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I saw one set up by an acquaintance who recently lost a lot of weight and now needed a tummy tuck to get rid of excess skin! She asked for $10k and I think received quite a lot. Then I saw pictures on Facebook of her in Thailand where she was having the operation showing off her new dresses for after the op, a new tattoo, and then she also decided to have a face lift while she was in there as well, because, YOLO.
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From one I just saw: "My rent has been increased, my cable bill has gone up, and years of low salary has resulted in high credit card debt. ...
In the last month, in a last ditch effort to stay afloat, I've had to put my electric bill on a smaller payment plan just to pay off one month's bill and was able to shuffle a student loan bill until after my next paycheck."
Apparently the "last ditch effort to stay afloat" doesn't include cancelling cable. If anyone here wants to donate to his cable bill, he's hoping for $2,500 in donations.
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These are awesome!
I was struck a few days ago by a campaign in which a woman (friend of a friend) was hoping for $10K to go to some place (Croatia, I think) for some last-ditch effort to get pregnant. In her pic, I think she's at LEAST in her 40s, and somewhat overweight(so, double-whammy for conception and smooth pregnancy). I had so many problems with this, I did not even know where to begin. Mostly I thought of two things, though. 1) LOTS of children need a parent in the US. LOTS and LOTS of children around the world would give limbs, eyes, etc to get a shot at growing up in the United States. Adopt. Foster, then adopt. Whatever. If your goal in life is to "be a MOM" as her begging story describes, you do not need to pull all the stops for a pregnancy in your 40s. Especially since the plan was for an entire donor embryo so it wouldn't even be her genetics, anyway. 2) Just what do you think daycare and a normal birth costs? Around $900/mo and $15K last I heard, which may be a few years old. If you can't come up with $10K of savings, how are you going to pay at least that for daycare each year, or potentially more for a birth (dep on health insurance)? Sounded like she was doing this solo, so yeah, there's gonna be daycare. Never mind all the other expenses that come up with bearing and raising a child, even for Mustachians. No, just because you've always WANTED to be pregnant doesn't mean other people should pay for that.
I actually did have sympathy for a local business one of these, however. This was an indie movie theater that had started by purchasing (I think) used equipment. Then after a few years, the film industry announced they were going all-digital and the theater did not have the sudden capital to install the digital players. I understand that a business needs to grow some capital for material improvements, and I think they actually had been planning to upgrade eventually, but the sudden imposed deadline would not have been possible. Then they would have been stuck in a catch-22: with no films available to play on their equipment, they would not be generating any revenue. I believe they ran it like a true fundraiser: donors received a set of free movie tickets and other branded stuff (beer glass, Tshirt etc) depending on their level of gift.
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Yeah, they run the gamut.
What bothers me about GoFundMe is that even legitimate needs are not set up as charities. I like giving money to those in need, but I love giving money when I can get a charitable deduction.
I have a donor advised fund, but I can't use it for the types of causes typically seen there.
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I have contributed to one; for volunteer firefighters that died in Washington state fighting the fires near lake Chelan last year. I doubt whatever life insurance or compensation could possibly be enough for those young men's families. I had $50 to spare and didn't think twice about it.
My step-daughter started one a few years ago. She wanted to go to... Jamaica? Costa Rica? On one of those 'volunteer' spring break things... except she needed a couple thousand dollars for the plane tickets and travel money. When we didn't give her the cash, she put up the GFM. Needless to say, she did not end up going.
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My daughter is turning two this year. I am attempting to forgo the typical horde of large presents and instead ask people to donate to her college fund. We are looking to avoid gofundme, but I think we will get more responses if it is as easy as using a credit card.
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My daughter is turning two this year. I am attempting to forgo the typical horde of large presents and instead ask people to donate to her college fund. We are looking to avoid gofundme, but I think we will get more responses if it is as easy as using a credit card.
I wouldn't recommend this. Do it on an individual basis with people who ask, otherwise it just looks like you're asking for money.
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My daughter is turning two this year. I am attempting to forgo the typical horde of large presents and instead ask people to donate to her college fund. We are looking to avoid gofundme, but I think we will get more responses if it is as easy as using a credit card.
I wouldn't recommend this. Do it on an individual basis with people who ask, otherwise it just looks like you're asking for money.
Plus then gfm takes a cut.
And it's all taxable.
Set up a 529, and let them know how to contribute.
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My daughter is turning two this year. I am attempting to forgo the typical horde of large presents and instead ask people to donate to her college fund. We are looking to avoid gofundme, but I think we will get more responses if it is as easy as using a credit card.
I wouldn't recommend this. Do it on an individual basis with people who ask, otherwise it just looks like you're asking for money.
Plus then gfm takes a cut.
And it's all taxable.
Set up a 529, and let them know how to contribute.
Thanks guys. Will do.
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I only have contributed to a few and they were all for people with huge medical bills. When my friend's daughter got a serious liver disease and needed a transplant at 18 I saw how medical expenses even with decent insurance etc, having to travel out of town for medical care really add up. I held 4 fund raisers during 1 year to help out. I don't think GFM existed or I didn't know about it since it was 4 years ago. People asking for $ for vacations, etc-are you kidding me?
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I only have contributed to a few and they were all for people with huge medical bills. When my friend's daughter got a serious liver disease and needed a transplant at 18 I saw how medical expenses even with decent insurance etc, having to travel out of town for medical care really add up. I held 4 fund raisers during 1 year to help out. I don't think GFM existed or I didn't know about it since it was 4 years ago. People asking for $ for vacations, etc-are you kidding me?
Exactly. They are asking you to enable their entitlement.
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I used to get really annoyed by being constantly bombarded with these requests on Facebook, all for personal wants/lifestyle choices. One person was so shameless as to then send out an email, bcc'ing me and presumably lots of other people. "Hey, old friends! I feel like we haven't talked in forever! BTW, I noticed none of you have donated to my campaign yet! Let me tell you more about it!" This person had not contacted me for YEARS before this.
So I came up with a solution. Whenever I get a FB request to donate to a campaign that is for a clear WANT, not a NEED, I don't respond in any way, but I then make a charitable donation for people who actually need it. Just last night, someone posted on FB about needing money to record a CD. This morning I wrote a $25 check to a cancer charity.
This channels my negative feelings about the shameless requests into something positive.
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We donated to a GFM and charitable basketball game to help raise money for my uncle-in-law's family as he was diagnosed with a very severe form of cancer. He had to travel across the country, with his wife to care for him, for a month for the surgery and recovery. He's still on chemo almost a year later. He can't work, and they have the worst luck in the world b/c his wife can't work due to complications from a botched surgery only two years ago. They got some sort of settlement in court because the surgeon messed up so badly. Anyway, they have 3 kids still at home, and no income, so the community rallied around them. We were happy to donate.
Every other week, so the non-chemo week, he spends about an hour or two per day redoing their basement. He's the type that can't sit around, but isn't actually well enough to work, so this is his "project". The basement is gorgeous: new floor, new wall color, new bar, newly built table. I think I know where all of the GFM and fundraiser money went. We will not be donating in the future. I understand needing something to focus on during many months at home, but this is ridiculous.
Also: I don't like donating to Other People's Causes. Yes, that kids cancer camp is nice, but you see I support x, y, and z charities already and would rather write a few $100 checks than many $20 checks. Am I just a grump? I was always uncomfortable in school asking other people to donate to whatever cause my organization supported, b/c I'd rather just donate my own money since it's my cause. Except school fundraisers, I'll always give $20 to those.
P.S. GFMs for people who want to study abroad, take a trip, volunteer somewhere...the only place I've seen it be acceptable to ask for money is for church mission trips, b/c the community of the church is supporting you. Otherwise, work another job. Unfortunately in the future I'm guessing I'll be giving a bunch of kids $20 each for trips just to be socially acceptable.
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A friend with a decent job asked others to donate to his son's GFM page to send him from Florida to California to do some bike races. Son is of legal age (19). He may have potential, but I'm not footing the bill. They're looking for $2000.
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We donated to a GFM and charitable basketball game to help raise money for my uncle-in-law's family as he was diagnosed with a very severe form of cancer. He had to travel across the country, with his wife to care for him, for a month for the surgery and recovery. He's still on chemo almost a year later. He can't work, and they have the worst luck in the world b/c his wife can't work due to complications from a botched surgery only two years ago. They got some sort of settlement in court because the surgeon messed up so badly. Anyway, they have 3 kids still at home, and no income, so the community rallied around them. We were happy to donate.
Every other week, so the non-chemo week, he spends about an hour or two per day redoing their basement. He's the type that can't sit around, but isn't actually well enough to work, so this is his "project". The basement is gorgeous: new floor, new wall color, new bar, newly built table. I think I know where all of the GFM and fundraiser money went. We will not be donating in the future. I understand needing something to focus on during many months at home, but this is ridiculous.
Also: I don't like donating to Other People's Causes. Yes, that kids cancer camp is nice, but you see I support x, y, and z charities already and would rather write a few $100 checks than many $20 checks. Am I just a grump? I was always uncomfortable in school asking other people to donate to whatever cause my organization supported, b/c I'd rather just donate my own money since it's my cause. Except school fundraisers, I'll always give $20 to those.
P.S. GFMs for people who want to study abroad, take a trip, volunteer somewhere...the only place I've seen it be acceptable to ask for money is for church mission trips, b/c the community of the church is supporting you. Otherwise, work another job. Unfortunately in the future I'm guessing I'll be giving a bunch of kids $20 each for trips just to be socially acceptable.
The guy needs a series of projects he can take on at his own pace that he can later sell. Restore antique furniture or make furniture that is inspired by antique styles or something. Fixing up cars or boats. Motivated = good. He's SO close to being the type that generates cashflows b/c he can't sit still.
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The guy needs a series of projects he can take on at his own pace that he can later sell. Restore antique furniture or make furniture that is inspired by antique styles or something. Fixing up cars or boats. Motivated = good. He's SO close to being the type that generates cashflows b/c he can't sit still.
I knoooow! It's so frustrating. Unfortunately it always leads to money flowing out the door, not in it.
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Well these have been entertaining. I don't understand people. The only gofundme was someone in the community who was going to run a dogsled race (maybe the iditarod or something similar) and her significant other created a fundraising page and also sent out follow up emails about. Obviously not as bad as the ones on this thread, but I still didn't give money. I am for people following their dreams, but don't feel obligated to pay for said dreams.
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Sometimes, Gofundme needs to be more socially responsible and remove pages such as the one below
https://www.gofundme.com/my-children-was-drown-by-my-ex
This page has been widely reported in the Australian press but still it is up. When does a page REALLY violates community expectations?
This incident is so tragic on so many levels and Gofundme is enabling this exploitation to continue.
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Sometimes, Gofundme needs to be more socially responsible and remove pages such as the one below
https://www.gofundme.com/my-children-was-drown-by-my-ex
This page has been widely reported in the Australian press but still it is up. When does a page REALLY violates community expectations?
This incident is so tragic on so many levels and Gofundme is enabling this exploitation to continue.
i dont think gofundme ever takes them down though do they?
though I have seen some questionable ones and I really think they should
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I scrolled through GoFundMe, but found more sadness than amusement...plane crash killed dad and two kids, leaving pregnant mom alone....truck accident killed dad, leaving mom of one who then finds out she's pregnant with triplets, holy cow...
Also, this girl is adorable and amazing:
https://www.gofundme.com/HaileysHarvest (https://www.gofundme.com/HaileysHarvest)
Wandered over to the Weddings section, figuring I'd find some ridiculousness there. Found multiple pages posted by or for couples whose wedding venue went bankrupt, so they lost $15-20k that had been paid. I would be so freakin mad...still don't think I could ask for money though.
There was one couple who both lost their jobs and couldn't afford the wedding costs they'd already committed to...it was asking for $8k or something like that...how do you sign those contracts knowing you don't have that money? The possibility of unemployment is always there, and not being able to cover your predictable expenses for at least a year...oi. But most of those pages are not posted by the actual recipients.
Re: the kayak, it doesn't seem that different than pooling money for a gift -- my family has done that previously, mostly the kids pitching in to get something for Mom or Dad. I assume it's meant to be convenient for people contributing. But there are better ways, the fees aren't worth the convenience.
FWIW when I was in school I did fundraising for mission trips, but only asked family -- now that I work FT I would just pay myself if I wanted to go. I prefer to give to registered charities because of the tax deduction, and my employer matches donations. Would likely give to a GFM for someone I know for medical, etc.
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Sometimes, Gofundme needs to be more socially responsible and remove pages such as the one below
https://www.gofundme.com/my-children-was-drown-by-my-ex
This page has been widely reported in the Australian press but still it is up. When does a page REALLY violates community expectations?
This incident is so tragic on so many levels and Gofundme is enabling this exploitation to continue.
i dont think gofundme ever takes them down though do they?
though I have seen some questionable ones and I really think they should
It has been taken down! Wow, there must have been many complaints against it (or he was happy with the $1200 and decided to take it).
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I'm in a travel facebook group and lots of people post gofundme campaigns to go on vacation. First of all, save up, second of all, all of us are saving up to travel and don't feel like handing over our hard-earned money and third of all, it's just so tacky. Travel isn't a necessity, if it matters to you then find a way to do it without asking for charity. Especially when they are going on a "volunteering" trip that costs many thousands of dollars so they can "do good" and "save the children/elephants/planet". Uh, no.
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Not a gofundme but a close family member (uncle and his wife) who have a paid for house, who both work "under the table" and so grossly under-report their income and who take lavish international vacations several times a year bombard the family with email pleas to fund their daughter's "dream" to go to California or Florida to "compete" in a beauty or talent contest (think "Toddlers and Tiaras"). I've never responded but the hubris is hard to take sometimes.
Sheesh!
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I saw one set up by an acquaintance who recently lost a lot of weight and now needed a tummy tuck to get rid of excess skin! She asked for $10k and I think received quite a lot. Then I saw pictures on Facebook of her in Thailand where she was having the operation showing off her new dresses for after the op, a new tattoo, and then she also decided to have a face lift while she was in there as well, because, YOLO.
I have an acquaintance who requested funds for the same procedure years ago, although to this day I don't know if she ever raised enough to have the surgery. Based on a visit to her home, it seemed clear she wasn't blowing money on anything extravagant. She was simply "working poor." Therefore, I didn't feel bad if what little I gave ended up going toward her rent instead.
After reading about the horrible floods in Louisiana last year, I donated a little to a school and to an animal shelter. GFM takes a cut of the funds, I know, but at least they're not badgering me constantly for more donations like the Red Cross does.
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I'm a teacher and I was recently approached by an organization that does summer programs for students. Online and all over their marketing materials, it states that they offer tons of scholarship money for students, no student who attends pays the cost of the program themselves-- all sounds great, right?
Yeah, after a little digging, their "scholarship program" is actually a pre-written GoFundMe page that students set up and advertise to their friends and family.
WTF?!
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One of my Facebook friends launched a GoFundMe to fund a European cruise later this year. It seemed tacky to me. I've never felt comfortable asking my buddies for money, even if it's just digitally.
We are taking this trip to reset our passion for teaching. This will not only help us, it will benefit our students. What we learn and experience can be brought back to our classrooms through stories and photographs. This trip will aid in our teaching of science, social studies, math, language arts, and humanities.
Our plan is to visit Barcelona, Provence, Pisa, Florence, Naples, Rome, Pompeii, Crete, Rhodes, Turkey, and Athens. Many of our students may never get the opportunity to travel outside of this state and will be able experience these places in the classroom through our eyes.
We know our students and both of us will be forever grateful.
This journey will renew our love for educating and broadening the minds of our students. Thank you!
I would be more inclined to donate if it was money for a school trip so the students could experience it themselves. No students are going to want to listen to their teachers holiday stories.
That exactly!!! I remember we had a teacher like that in high school - whenever her travel stories came out, we zoned, and then we'd be behind on the things we were actually supposed to be learning.
I highly doubt the students "will be forever grateful"
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I contributed once to a Go Fund Me campaign. An acquaintance of mine lives and works in Brussels in human rights (although not a lawyer). Her neighbour is a single mother, from India, who has lived in Belgium for years and whose son was born there. After several years of legal red-tape, the neighbour in question, who previously seeked asylum in the country, was still about to be deported.... without her 5 year old son.... who has no other family in Belgium, but who is not an Indian citizen. He would have gone into the system. I donated 20$ to help get a new lawyer to help her case. I'm not sure this neighbour had any idea that my friend had reached out to the general public to help her. The woman was doing the best she could with the resources she had, and simply asked my friend for suggestions for better human rights lawyers. My friend went one step further and I was more than happy to help as much as I could.
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I've made one donation to a coworker whom I have great respect for. He and his wife are struggling to have their first child, and IVF treatments have sucked their savings. They needed a loan for the subsequent round. They have no children yet and badly want a family. Outside of a long work commute, both are frugal people and terrific human beings.
Other than that one, all gofundme's have made me want to gag:)
I don't get this. If they can't afford the IVF, how can they afford a child?
I guess I just see 99% of the requests as personal choices. And if you can't afford your choices, putting a sad veneer on your story in order to guilt your friends (and strangers) into donating money is ridiculous. Often this is even the case with a death. Sure, the death may be tragic, but so often the GFMs mention funeral costs. You can get remains taken care of for a few hundred bucks. You don't need a hall and a fancy casket and a zillion flowers. And not having those things doesn't in any way honor the dearly departed any less.
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I've made one donation to a coworker whom I have great respect for. He and his wife are struggling to have their first child, and IVF treatments have sucked their savings. They needed a loan for the subsequent round. They have no children yet and badly want a family. Outside of a long work commute, both are frugal people and terrific human beings.
Other than that one, all gofundme's have made me want to gag:)
I don't get this. If they can't afford the IVF, how can they afford a child?
I guess I just see 99% of the requests as personal choices. And if you can't afford your choices, putting a sad veneer on your story in order to guilt your friends (and strangers) into donating money is ridiculous. Often this is even the case with a death. Sure, the death may be tragic, but so often the GFMs mention funeral costs. You can get remains taken care of for a few hundred bucks. You don't need a hall and a fancy casket and a zillion flowers. And not having those things doesn't in any way honor the dearly departed any less.
You would not believe how many people are on GFM asking for money for their adoption/s....
I've given once on GFM. The people did not live in our local community, but they had lost their home to a fire. It was announced on the news about the GFM page, and their church was trying to help them the best they could. They were looking for money to help them with hotel/motel costs for a few weeks.
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Someone sent me a link to one; a firefighter is trying raise money to climb mountains this summer. The usual "I want to follow my dream with your money" stuff. But with added guilt because he's a firefighter. No thanks.
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I highly doubt the students "will be forever grateful"
I highly doubt the teachers will actually be grateful either.
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I've made one donation to a coworker whom I have great respect for. He and his wife are struggling to have their first child, and IVF treatments have sucked their savings. They needed a loan for the subsequent round. They have no children yet and badly want a family. Outside of a long work commute, both are frugal people and terrific human beings.
Other than that one, all gofundme's have made me want to gag:)
I don't get this. If they can't afford the IVF, how can they afford a child?
I guess I just see 99% of the requests as personal choices. And if you can't afford your choices, putting a sad veneer on your story in order to guilt your friends (and strangers) into donating money is ridiculous. Often this is even the case with a death. Sure, the death may be tragic, but so often the GFMs mention funeral costs. You can get remains taken care of for a few hundred bucks. You don't need a hall and a fancy casket and a zillion flowers. And not having those things doesn't in any way honor the dearly departed any less.
You would not believe how many people are on GFM asking for money for their adoption/s....
I've given once on GFM. The people did not live in our local community, but they had lost their home to a fire. It was announced on the news about the GFM page, and their church was trying to help them the best they could. They were looking for money to help them with hotel/motel costs for a few weeks.
I understand it is a big up front cost but raising money for adoptions and IVF just leads to deeply uncomfortable comments like "I helped your parents pay for you!" because people are awful. I know this through some personal experience with adoptee friends unfortunately and I'm in my 30s so this was well before platforms that invited people even deeper into the details of someone's personal lives. I really worry about the impacts on people's privacy, especially children.
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I contributed once for a friend whose husband was diagnosed with cancer pre-ACA days.
The worst one I saw was one in my neighborhood where they were seeking money to buy iPads to keep the 5th graders in our neighborhood learning during the summer. Interesting that the fundraisers would get to keep the iPads. Last I looked, no one had donated. Seemed like a scam to me.
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The worst one I saw was one in my neighborhood where they were seeking money to buy iPads to keep the 5th graders in our neighborhood learning during the summer. Interesting that the fundraisers would get to keep the iPads. Last I looked, no one had donated. Seemed like a scam to me.
I'm confused how this was even supposed to work? Was the person raising the funds going to host a summer school of some sort?
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So, a local family had an unexpected death of their young adult son. Apparently had a fight on the phone with his GF, wandered off into the night, and was found dead a few days later. Horrible situation all around. He had graduated high school and was living at home, so it's not like he was a breadwinner and the family is going to financially suffer other than paying for the funeral expenses. Well-intentioned friend sets up a GFM with a $20K goal so the family can take time off to grieve and pay for the funeral, and of course it is blasted out on the local FB group pages. Someone else sets up a collection through a well-respected local charity for those who don't want to donate via GFM for whatever reason, and that info is added to the FB posts. A reasonable use for GFM, no issues so far. Just checked it, and they are over $6500 in GFM.
Fast forward a few weeks, grieving mom starts posting weird FB messages asking about who donated to local charity because she's trying to figure out if the money was going to the charity instead of their family. Odd. A couple of more posts like that over the next few days, some with the explanation that she wanted to send thank you notes, others just said she was trying to figure out where the money was and couldn't believe that nobody donated. Tacky. Latest FB post from her claims the charity stole all of the money. A reply from someone involved said that they charity returned it to the donors after she refused to meet the charity rep at the police station to receive the cash. Now she's demanding to see deposit slips and other records from the charity so she can investigate their alleged wrongdoing. While doing this, the family has also planned a few fundraisers around town to celebrate son's memory, get more money to pay for the funeral, and "raise awareness" for the rare disease that affects some of their kids, including the deceased, that they had never publicly mentioned before.
I know it's a bit judgey on my part, but now it looks like the mom is just trying to exploit her adult son's death and turn it into a money grab.
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The worst one I saw was one in my neighborhood where they were seeking money to buy iPads to keep the 5th graders in our neighborhood learning during the summer. Interesting that the fundraisers would get to keep the iPads. Last I looked, no one had donated. Seemed like a scam to me.
I'm confused how this was even supposed to work? Was the person raising the funds going to host a summer school of some sort?
Theoretically they were going to use the iPads for lesson plans and education apps for the summer for a group of students. it was all very vague.
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If anyone here is going to donate to a GoFundMe, please consider donating directly to the cause instead. GoFundMe makes takes 8%. If it's a family member, even better reason to send $ directly with a card.
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If anyone here is going to donate to a GoFundMe, please consider donating directly to the cause instead. GoFundMe makes takes 8%. If it's a family member, even better reason to send $ directly with a card.
Thanks for posting this. I did wonder what GFM made.
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I've made one donation to a coworker whom I have great respect for. He and his wife are struggling to have their first child, and IVF treatments have sucked their savings. They needed a loan for the subsequent round. They have no children yet and badly want a family. Outside of a long work commute, both are frugal people and terrific human beings.
Other than that one, all gofundme's have made me want to gag:)
I don't get this. If they can't afford the IVF, how can they afford a child?
I guess I just see 99% of the requests as personal choices. And if you can't afford your choices, putting a sad veneer on your story in order to guilt your friends (and strangers) into donating money is ridiculous.
IVF is an incredibly expensive endeavour, especially when the health insurance coverage runs out and if you need to go through multiple cycles to achieve a successful pregnancy.
Raising the kid is comparatively cheap exercise afterwards.
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I shouldn't be surprised, but this is revolting.
Boyfriend tries to crowd fund $20,000 for engagement ring
http://www.news.com.au/finance/money/costs/boyfriend-tries-to-crowd-fund-20000-for-engagement-ring/news-story/0089a3301681a7706b4a42b70f313fc9
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I shouldn't be surprised, but this is revolting.
Boyfriend tries to crowd fund $20,000 for engagement ring
http://www.news.com.au/finance/money/costs/boyfriend-tries-to-crowd-fund-20000-for-engagement-ring/news-story/0089a3301681a7706b4a42b70f313fc9
never mind the outrageous cost of the ring, or asking strangers to pay for it; how romantic is it for her to know in advance how much it cost or let on that you've bought the ring? Oh, wait:
"She had a really innovative way to show her appreciation by purchasing 30 gifts for my 30th birthday..."
I forgot, THINGS=LOVE.
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Something is wrong with people's sense of shame. That's worthy of crawling under a rock and hiding for a very long time.
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What an idiot. The more you defend your stupid page, the deeper hole you dig. Is he going to gofundme his wedding, marriage and divorce too?
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This thread needs its own theme song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-BYzaDwNoE
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I gave $ to a student's GFM so she can experience a truly once-in-a-lifetime summer program that she was accepted into but her family can't afford. I didn't think about fees, though; I should have just given her the money. If she doesn't raise enough to go, then my money is to be put aside to help pay for her first semester of college.
That's one of two GFMs I have donated to. Both were for educational experiences that were/will potentially be life-changing. Both were for people I knew well and trusted and whose financial situation was dire for reasons beyond their control (first: healthcare costs for family; second: teenage child of hard-working, but underpaid, immigrants).
I honestly can't imagine giving to a stranger when there is zero vetting for the site. I do microloans on Kiva when I feel like helping struggling people get ahead instead.
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A bar / coffee house that I like a lot (I used to work on their tables with my notebook when I was a freelancer) is having a GoFundMe to pay for rent, claiming they will be out of the building in the end of the year if they don't pay. I like the place and the owner, but I feel weird giving money to a for-profit organization, that faces a problem that obviously won't be solve with this short-term solution? What would you do?
("funny" story, on another night I found the owner of the bar at night on the neighborhood, he was looking for a place open for dinner, somewhere cheap but obviously not cheaper than cooking home, than he tell me that he haven't own a refrigerator for a year! so he eats everything out in cheap places, claiming he don't have money to purchase one. Then he admits he would have save money on food if he had bought the refrigerator a year ago. He is not someone so poor that don't have access to credit to buy something, and we live in an area packed with college students in tiny apartments constantly buying or selling house stuff when they finish college... sigh)
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A bar / coffee house that I like a lot (I used to work on their tables with my notebook when I was a freelancer) is having a GoFundMe to pay for rent, claiming they will be out of the building in the end of the year if they don't pay. I like the place and the owner, but I feel weird giving money to a for-profit organization, that faces a problem that obviously won't be solve with this short-term solution? What would you do?
("funny" story, on another night I found the owner of the bar at night on the neighborhood, he was looking for a place open for dinner, somewhere cheap but obviously not cheaper than cooking home, than he tell me that he haven't own a refrigerator for a year! so he eats everything out in cheap places, claiming he don't have money to purchase one. Then he admits he would have save money on food if he had bought the refrigerator a year ago. He is not someone so poor that don't have access to credit to buy something, and we live in an area packed with college students in tiny apartments constantly buying or selling house stuff when they finish college... sigh)
If the owner of a place that serves food doesn't have a refrigerator at home I would not eat or drink there. Even a mini fridge would be better than nothing.
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Woman I know started a GoFundMe account to raise money to take the GRE to apply for her PhD in English.
Why did she have to start this GoFundMe? Because she's currently $200,000 in debt from her bachelor's and master's degrees in English, and can't afford the exam without donations.
I am ALL ABOUT the humanities. I think they're incredibly important to society and that we need people to study them. But dear lord, not. like. this. Plus, when she does get into a program, she'll defer her loans and at 6.5% standard federal interest rate, rack up another $13,500 in interest each year.
Makes me sick, but we don't have the type of relationship (just an acquaintance) where I can say anything.
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Woman I know started a GoFundMe account to raise money to take the GRE to apply for her PhD in English.
Why did she have to start this GoFundMe? Because she's currently $200,000 in debt from her bachelor's and master's degrees in English, and can't afford the exam without donations.
I am ALL ABOUT the humanities. I think they're incredibly important to society and that we need people to study them. But dear lord, not. like. this. Plus, when she does get into a program, she'll defer her loans and at 6.5% standard federal interest rate, rack up another $13,500 in interest each year.
Makes me sick, but we don't have the type of relationship (just an acquaintance) where I can say anything.
It sounds like she needs to get to work writing freelance. A BA and MA should not cost that much even if she took six years to get through school and borrowed to cover living expenses instead of raising a finger to do work during the summers, evenings, and weekends.
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A bar / coffee house that I like a lot (I used to work on their tables with my notebook when I was a freelancer) is having a GoFundMe to pay for rent, claiming they will be out of the building in the end of the year if they don't pay. I like the place and the owner, but I feel weird giving money to a for-profit organization, that faces a problem that obviously won't be solve with this short-term solution? What would you do?
("funny" story, on another night I found the owner of the bar at night on the neighborhood, he was looking for a place open for dinner, somewhere cheap but obviously not cheaper than cooking home, than he tell me that he haven't own a refrigerator for a year! so he eats everything out in cheap places, claiming he don't have money to purchase one. Then he admits he would have save money on food if he had bought the refrigerator a year ago. He is not someone so poor that don't have access to credit to buy something, and we live in an area packed with college students in tiny apartments constantly buying or selling house stuff when they finish college... sigh)
I've seen similar for cafes and bookstores in my city. Prolonging the inevitable.
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Woman I know started a GoFundMe account to raise money to take the GRE to apply for her PhD in English.
Why did she have to start this GoFundMe? Because she's currently $200,000 in debt from her bachelor's and master's degrees in English, and can't afford the exam without donations.
I am ALL ABOUT the humanities. I think they're incredibly important to society and that we need people to study them. But dear lord, not. like. this. Plus, when she does get into a program, she'll defer her loans and at 6.5% standard federal interest rate, rack up another $13,500 in interest each year.
There are plenty of people who get STEM degrees and then find it difficult to get a job, too. There is a lot of outsourcing now as well as STEM workers coming in on H1-B visas. So there's no guarantee of stable employment, regardless of what one majors in these days.
I wonder if the 200K debt was due to the fact she attended a private university and decided not to do any community college.
I had a friend who sent an email around, asking everyone she knows to fund her getting a book published, through one of those vanity publishers. She needed $2,800. Although she didn't do a Go Fund Me, it was the same thing pretty much. I thought it was tacky. She eventually got it published, not sure how because she was dead broke. Her book was a book about beauty tips, like "drink lots of water" and "use sunscreen" I read like the first 3 pages and said, this is b.s.
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Woman I know started a GoFundMe account to raise money to take the GRE to apply for her PhD in English.
Why did she have to start this GoFundMe? Because she's currently $200,000 in debt from her bachelor's and master's degrees in English, and can't afford the exam without donations.
I am ALL ABOUT the humanities. I think they're incredibly important to society and that we need people to study them. But dear lord, not. like. this. Plus, when she does get into a program, she'll defer her loans and at 6.5% standard federal interest rate, rack up another $13,500 in interest each year.
There are plenty of people who get STEM degrees and then find it difficult to get a job, too. There is a lot of outsourcing now as well as STEM workers coming in on H1-B visas. So there's no guarantee of stable employment, regardless of what one majors in these days.
I wonder if the 200K debt was due to the fact she attended a private university and decided not to do any community college.
To be clear: I wouldn't support doing this for ANY educational degree unless it was practically guaranteed to come with a high-salary job afterward (i.e. medical school).
There is definitely risk in job hunting no matter your degree. But you can offset that risk by only going to programs that give you scholarships, by working on the side, by going to public universities (she chose private, as you noted), etc.
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Woman I know started a GoFundMe account to raise money to take the GRE to apply for her PhD in English.
Why did she have to start this GoFundMe? Because she's currently $200,000 in debt from her bachelor's and master's degrees in English, and can't afford the exam without donations.
I am ALL ABOUT the humanities. I think they're incredibly important to society and that we need people to study them. But dear lord, not. like. this. Plus, when she does get into a program, she'll defer her loans and at 6.5% standard federal interest rate, rack up another $13,500 in interest each year.
There are plenty of people who get STEM degrees and then find it difficult to get a job, too. There is a lot of outsourcing now as well as STEM workers coming in on H1-B visas. So there's no guarantee of stable employment, regardless of what one majors in these days.
I wonder if the 200K debt was due to the fact she attended a private university and decided not to do any community college.
To be clear: I wouldn't support doing this for ANY educational degree unless it was practically guaranteed to come with a high-salary job afterward (i.e. medical school).
There is definitely risk in job hunting no matter your degree. But you can offset that risk by only going to programs that give you scholarships, by working on the side, by going to public universities (she chose private, as you noted), etc.
I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree. I can easily see how someone could end up with all that debt particularly since at my university going to grad school was advertised by the university as a way to delay debt payments if you couldn't find a job... Not a good plan, but advocated by a trusted source means plenty of people took the bait.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree. I can easily see how someone could end up with all that debt particularly since at my university going to grad school was advertised by the university as a way to delay debt payments if you couldn't find a job... Not a good plan, but advocated by a trusted source means plenty of people took the bait.
Forgive my ignorance, but how is that even possible? $30K in debt per year at a state university after a scholarship and summer work is scary. I can't imagine what my two young kids are going to have to pay a decade from now.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree. I can easily see how someone could end up with all that debt particularly since at my university going to grad school was advertised by the university as a way to delay debt payments if you couldn't find a job... Not a good plan, but advocated by a trusted source means plenty of people took the bait.
Forgive my ignorance, but how is that even possible? $30K in debt per year at a state university after a scholarship and summer work is scary. I can't imagine what my two young kids are going to have to pay a decade from now.
Big thing here is that it depends on the state. I'm also including rent for living in the dorms. Since it all rolled into my student loan I no longer remember how much was tuition vs how much was room and board. Also included were summer school classes which cost extra and lab fees for my specific degree. For example, since my classes often needed extra equipment to teach about computers and hardware I had to pay extra for the class. This varies depending on the program. I'm guessing an English degree would have less or none of that.
You're gonna blow your top at this though. I spent a semester studying abroad in Rome, Italy. I got degree-required credit for every class I took while there and including room and board, tuition, fees, and plane tickets it was cheaper than going to my regular university by $4000.
Recommendation: Local junior college first (MAKE SURE CREDITS TRANSFER!!!!) that will save money on housing and on tuition. Kids won't like it though. It's a little harder to integrate at that point and it can cause scheduling problems for degrees that have very structured programs. (Must take Class B after Class A but A is only offered in the Spring, etc). If you don't plan for a junior college properly you end up with 5 years of schooling.
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To be clear: I wouldn't support doing this for ANY educational degree unless it was practically guaranteed to come with a high-salary job afterward (i.e. medical school).
There is no guarantee. Not only that, but someone can graduate from college, get into a car accident, and be so severely injured that they can never work again. And their degree is rendered useless.
So no guarantees.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree.
You worked for free for two years? Just curious.
Where I live, it's pointless to get an IT degree unless you are coming in on an H1-B visa. Lots of unemployed IT folks around here. The people we know who were hit with long term unemployment, were all in IT.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree.
You worked for free for two years? Just curious.
Where I live, it's pointless to get an IT degree unless you are coming in on an H1-B visa. Lots of unemployed IT folks around here. The people we know who were hit with long term unemployment, were all in IT.
More or less. I worked part time for my last two years of school as an intern doing practical IT work for local charities. Since I only worked for money during summers perviously it didn't seem like a hardship to work for charities for free during the school year. The experience was pretty much the only thing that got me a job so it was well worth it in my book. But I also realize that this just isn't an option for most people so I was really blessed to have both the opportunity and the ability to take it.
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I've been tempted here and there by sad stories. Generally when the inclination to donate comes up, I just find a suitable charity to donate to instead - the local woman's shelter, animal shelter, etc.
Even with the sob stories that really pull at the heart strings, there always seems to be something iffy and exploitative about GoFundMe. And I can never be totally sure there's not some kind of scam.
The only GoFundMe we've donated to was a fundraiser for the debate team of a local school to go to a big competition, where the debate coach was running the GFM. GFM might get a cut, but there's a lot to be said for a fundraiser that can be easily shared and conveniently donated to. If I'd had to write a check and mail it, I doubt I would have contributed.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree.
You worked for free for two years? Just curious.
Where I live, it's pointless to get an IT degree unless you are coming in on an H1-B visa. Lots of unemployed IT folks around here. The people we know who were hit with long term unemployment, were all in IT.
I'm guessing you live in a HCOL area. There are many parts of US where qualified competent IT personnel can't be found. IT people don't want to move to these LCOL areas, meanwhile they'll moan, collect unemployment, and do some Uber/Lyft/small-gigs.
And then you have those who do move to LCOL areas, short commutes, and they are much happier.
I've met both sides, I live in a Medium COL area that's slowly becoming HCOL.
There's plenty of companies locally who hire US Citizens as they know they H1-B slots are filled. And there's many companies who use the other H and L visas. You see the remnants of the work they do, which means the local IT folks have to clean up the mess, fix it up, and then move on. Slowly employers are realizing you get what you pay for, and that outsourcing/offshoring doesn't really have benefits when management takes the hits. This is SwordGuy's Pain Theory of Management. https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/epic-fu-money-stories/msg1110522/#msg1110522
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I've been tempted here and there by sad stories. Generally when the inclination to donate comes up, I just find a suitable charity to donate to instead - the local woman's shelter, animal shelter, etc.
Even with the sob stories that really pull at the heart strings, there always seems to be something iffy and exploitative about GoFundMe. And I can never be totally sure there's not some kind of scam.
The only GoFundMe we've donated to was a fundraiser for the debate team of a local school to go to a big competition, where the debate coach was running the GFM. GFM might get a cut, but there's a lot to be said for a fundraiser that can be easily shared and conveniently donated to. If I'd had to write a check and mail it, I doubt I would have contributed.
I'll donate to a GoFundMe if I know the person, and know their situation. That way I know it's not a scam.
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To be clear: I wouldn't support doing this for ANY educational degree unless it was practically guaranteed to come with a high-salary job afterward (i.e. medical school).
There is no guarantee. Not only that, but someone can graduate from college, get into a car accident, and be so severely injured that they can never work again. And their degree is rendered useless.
So no guarantees.
Sure, no guarantees. But I should clarify: it's not about how much you will or won't earn with what degree. It's that, with this GoFundMe, you have a situation where someone is $200K in debt, and, instead of doing anything about that - trying to find a job, trying to reduce the debt - they're now soliciting money from other people in order to rack up more debt. They are asking for other people's money to enable them deferring paying their debt for 4-5 more years, during which it will rack up another $50K or so in interest.
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I've been tempted here and there by sad stories. Generally when the inclination to donate comes up, I just find a suitable charity to donate to instead - the local woman's shelter, animal shelter, etc.
Even with the sob stories that really pull at the heart strings, there always seems to be something iffy and exploitative about GoFundMe. And I can never be totally sure there's not some kind of scam.
The only GoFundMe we've donated to was a fundraiser for the debate team of a local school to go to a big competition, where the debate coach was running the GFM. GFM might get a cut, but there's a lot to be said for a fundraiser that can be easily shared and conveniently donated to. If I'd had to write a check and mail it, I doubt I would have contributed.
I'll donate to a GoFundMe if I know the person, and know their situation. That way I know it's not a scam.
Best to send the money directly to them: GFM gets ~5%.
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I get emails from NextDoor (neighborhood postings, mostly lost/found pets or people offering/seeking services) and somebody posted their GFM for surgery for their dog.
https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery (https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery)
It's pretty sad...dog needs surgery to remove tumors, or will need to be put down. On one hand it seems irresponsible to own a pet if you can't handle (and/or haven't planned for) all the possible attendant costs. But the GFM does mention job loss. I'm not planning to donate, but feel sorry for the dog - the pup has no control over their family's financial situation.
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I get emails from NextDoor (neighborhood postings, mostly lost/found pets or people offering/seeking services) and somebody posted their GFM for surgery for their dog.
https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery (https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery)
It's pretty sad...dog needs surgery to remove tumors, or will need to be put down. On one hand it seems irresponsible to own a pet if you can't handle (and/or haven't planned for) all the possible attendant costs. But the GFM does mention job loss. I'm not planning to donate, but feel sorry for the dog - the pup has no control over their family's financial situation.
I think it's more an issue with vet costs getting out of control. Even people who are gainfully employed may not be able to afford this for their pets.
On a personal note, I'd never put my dog or cat through chemotherapy or painful, difficult treatments unless there was a very good chance of survival. That's not because of money. I just wouldn't want to put my pet through all that.
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This just appeared posted in some of the groups I'm a member of on Facebook.
https://www.gofundme.com/save-my-dream-in-mexico
I don't know if this is the saddest or the most hilarious thing I read today.
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This just appeared posted in some of the groups I'm a member of on Facebook.
https://www.gofundme.com/save-my-dream-in-mexico
I don't know if this is the saddest or the most hilarious thing I read today.
Wow. So many bad choices.
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This just appeared posted in some of the groups I'm a member of on Facebook.
https://www.gofundme.com/save-my-dream-in-mexico
I don't know if this is the saddest or the most hilarious thing I read today.
Wow. So many bad choices.
Maybe she made bad choices. Maybe it's a scam to get your money. This one feels a bit scammy to me.
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This just appeared posted in some of the groups I'm a member of on Facebook.
https://www.gofundme.com/save-my-dream-in-mexico
I don't know if this is the saddest or the most hilarious thing I read today.
Wow. So many bad choices.
Maybe she made bad choices. Maybe it's a scam to get your money. This one feels a bit scammy to me.
Since there aren't any donations in the first two days, she even sucks at that.
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I get emails from NextDoor (neighborhood postings, mostly lost/found pets or people offering/seeking services) and somebody posted their GFM for surgery for their dog.
https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery (https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery)
It's pretty sad...dog needs surgery to remove tumors, or will need to be put down. On one hand it seems irresponsible to own a pet if you can't handle (and/or haven't planned for) all the possible attendant costs. But the GFM does mention job loss. I'm not planning to donate, but feel sorry for the dog - the pup has no control over their family's financial situation.
Currently there is a woman asking for help with surgery for her dog through our national breed rescue.
The dog has a bloackage in stomach or intestines. Someone sugessted she set up a GoFundMe account for the dog and also solicit funds from organizations that contribute to pet surgery.
The woman works for a veterinarian. Someone pointed out that the woman asked foe money last year for her geandaughter’s surgery.
Since I see problems with some of this, I withheld donation.
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This just appeared posted in some of the groups I'm a member of on Facebook.
https://www.gofundme.com/save-my-dream-in-mexico
I don't know if this is the saddest or the most hilarious thing I read today.
Wow. So many bad choices.
Maybe she made bad choices. Maybe it's a scam to get your money. This one feels a bit scammy to me.
I felt bad sharing her Facebook account (that this was posted from) but from the look of it, it seems legit. She appears to be suffering from some kind of a personality disorder. She did in fact launch some kind of a business and has pictures of her "team" of 8 people. All of her posts look like a lot of that MLM shit , bossbabe, living my dream, etc. but it's obvious there is no real substance to that "business" whatsoever, it's her putting videos online.
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We've supported a number of GFM situations but only when the recipients were known by people we know personally. (IOW, no total strangers and the crisis was verified to be true). We have been very fortunate financially and sometimes $100 is a lot more important to the recipient than it is to us. Things like home burned to the ground, medical bills, legal costs when the person in the right is up against a bully.
But I am surprised by how many people ask for money simply because they want money to do something they can't afford. Nope on that.
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A facebook "friend " has a gofundme for a jam band concert in another state...It is his favorite band apparently ... At least people are calling him out in the comments section of the post i guess.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree. I can easily see how someone could end up with all that debt particularly since at my university going to grad school was advertised by the university as a way to delay debt payments if you couldn't find a job... Not a good plan, but advocated by a trusted source means plenty of people took the bait.
Forgive my ignorance, but how is that even possible? $30K in debt per year at a state university after a scholarship and summer work is scary. I can't imagine what my two young kids are going to have to pay a decade from now.
Big thing here is that it depends on the state. I'm also including rent for living in the dorms. Since it all rolled into my student loan I no longer remember how much was tuition vs how much was room and board. Also included were summer school classes which cost extra and lab fees for my specific degree. For example, since my classes often needed extra equipment to teach about computers and hardware I had to pay extra for the class. This varies depending on the program. I'm guessing an English degree would have less or none of that.
You're gonna blow your top at this though. I spent a semester studying abroad in Rome, Italy. I got degree-required credit for every class I took while there and including room and board, tuition, fees, and plane tickets it was cheaper than going to my regular university by $4000.
Recommendation: Local junior college first (MAKE SURE CREDITS TRANSFER!!!!) that will save money on housing and on tuition. Kids won't like it though. It's a little harder to integrate at that point and it can cause scheduling problems for degrees that have very structured programs. (Must take Class B after Class A but A is only offered in the Spring, etc). If you don't plan for a junior college properly you end up with 5 years of schooling.
I think room and board is the big one that people often overlook. It's expensive.
Just to pick a few:
UCSB with 14 meals/ week: $16,837
Cornell: $14,330
CMU: $13,784
Clarion University: $12,020
Cal Poly: $12,507
Penn State: $12,860
SUNY Binghamton: $14,577
Seriously living at home is the way to go if you can swing it.
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I get emails from NextDoor (neighborhood postings, mostly lost/found pets or people offering/seeking services) and somebody posted their GFM for surgery for their dog.
https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery (https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery)
It's pretty sad...dog needs surgery to remove tumors, or will need to be put down. On one hand it seems irresponsible to own a pet if you can't handle (and/or haven't planned for) all the possible attendant costs. But the GFM does mention job loss. I'm not planning to donate, but feel sorry for the dog - the pup has no control over their family's financial situation.
I think it's more an issue with vet costs getting out of control. Even people who are gainfully employed may not be able to afford this for their pets.
On a personal note, I'd never put my dog or cat through chemotherapy or painful, difficult treatments unless there was a very good chance of survival. That's not because of money. I just wouldn't want to put my pet through all that.
Is it that vet costs are out of control or that people expect a lot now?
Surgery to remove tumors, X-rays, invasive surgery...I don't think these were "things" a couple of decades ago? I don't own pets but my friends do. From what I know, a lot of vets go into deep debt for school and most of them don't make much money.
I can easily see that treating a sick dog and performing surgery can cost $10k. I mean, look what it costs to treat people. And a lot of people consider their dogs to be family.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree. I can easily see how someone could end up with all that debt particularly since at my university going to grad school was advertised by the university as a way to delay debt payments if you couldn't find a job... Not a good plan, but advocated by a trusted source means plenty of people took the bait.
Forgive my ignorance, but how is that even possible? $30K in debt per year at a state university after a scholarship and summer work is scary. I can't imagine what my two young kids are going to have to pay a decade from now.
Big thing here is that it depends on the state. I'm also including rent for living in the dorms. Since it all rolled into my student loan I no longer remember how much was tuition vs how much was room and board. Also included were summer school classes which cost extra and lab fees for my specific degree. For example, since my classes often needed extra equipment to teach about computers and hardware I had to pay extra for the class. This varies depending on the program. I'm guessing an English degree would have less or none of that.
You're gonna blow your top at this though. I spent a semester studying abroad in Rome, Italy. I got degree-required credit for every class I took while there and including room and board, tuition, fees, and plane tickets it was cheaper than going to my regular university by $4000.
Recommendation: Local junior college first (MAKE SURE CREDITS TRANSFER!!!!) that will save money on housing and on tuition. Kids won't like it though. It's a little harder to integrate at that point and it can cause scheduling problems for degrees that have very structured programs. (Must take Class B after Class A but A is only offered in the Spring, etc). If you don't plan for a junior college properly you end up with 5 years of schooling.
I think room and board is the big one that people often overlook. It's expensive.
Just to pick a few:
UCSB with 14 meals/ week: $16,837
Cornell: $14,330
CMU: $13,784
Clarion University: $12,020
Cal Poly: $12,507
Penn State: $12,860
SUNY Binghamton: $14,577
Seriously living at home is the way to go if you can swing it.
Agreed. Just be careful with that. I know too many people who ended up as fifth year seniors because they couldn't get credits to transfer or scheduling worked out.
Engineering and lab sciences are the worst offenders there. Schools tend not to let those transfer very well and they tend to have very structured course progression.
Even worse is when you get all your general education at a junior college and kill yourself trying to take too many degree heavy-hitters later. It can be done, but not everyone can and not every major. Make good choices!
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I've been tempted here and there by sad stories. Generally when the inclination to donate comes up, I just find a suitable charity to donate to instead - the local woman's shelter, animal shelter, etc.
Even with the sob stories that really pull at the heart strings, there always seems to be something iffy and exploitative about GoFundMe. And I can never be totally sure there's not some kind of scam.
The only GoFundMe we've donated to was a fundraiser for the debate team of a local school to go to a big competition, where the debate coach was running the GFM. GFM might get a cut, but there's a lot to be said for a fundraiser that can be easily shared and conveniently donated to. If I'd had to write a check and mail it, I doubt I would have contributed.
I'll donate to a GoFundMe if I know the person, and know their situation. That way I know it's not a scam.
Best to send the money directly to them: GFM gets ~5%.
And WePay takes an additional 2.9% + $.30. Seriously, if you already have a personal connection with the recipient and think they deserve it, give funds directly and your contribution will stretch eight percent farther. I will admit that the one big advantage that a GFM gives the recipient is an increased opportunity for the campaign to go viral on the Internet.
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I'm just going to make a counterpoint here. I graduated as a woman with a BS STEM degree (computer science). I had the best merit-based scholarship the state university offered, worked full time during the summers, and still ended up with $120k worth of debt. I was very lucky to get a job right out of college and I attribute that to the fact that I was fortunate enough to take an unpaid internship for the last two years of my degree. I can easily see how someone could end up with all that debt particularly since at my university going to grad school was advertised by the university as a way to delay debt payments if you couldn't find a job... Not a good plan, but advocated by a trusted source means plenty of people took the bait.
Forgive my ignorance, but how is that even possible? $30K in debt per year at a state university after a scholarship and summer work is scary. I can't imagine what my two young kids are going to have to pay a decade from now.
Big thing here is that it depends on the state. I'm also including rent for living in the dorms. Since it all rolled into my student loan I no longer remember how much was tuition vs how much was room and board. Also included were summer school classes which cost extra and lab fees for my specific degree. For example, since my classes often needed extra equipment to teach about computers and hardware I had to pay extra for the class. This varies depending on the program. I'm guessing an English degree would have less or none of that.
You're gonna blow your top at this though. I spent a semester studying abroad in Rome, Italy. I got degree-required credit for every class I took while there and including room and board, tuition, fees, and plane tickets it was cheaper than going to my regular university by $4000.
Recommendation: Local junior college first (MAKE SURE CREDITS TRANSFER!!!!) that will save money on housing and on tuition. Kids won't like it though. It's a little harder to integrate at that point and it can cause scheduling problems for degrees that have very structured programs. (Must take Class B after Class A but A is only offered in the Spring, etc). If you don't plan for a junior college properly you end up with 5 years of schooling.
I think room and board is the big one that people often overlook. It's expensive.
Just to pick a few:
UCSB with 14 meals/ week: $16,837
Cornell: $14,330
CMU: $13,784
Clarion University: $12,020
Cal Poly: $12,507
Penn State: $12,860
SUNY Binghamton: $14,577
Seriously living at home is the way to go if you can swing it.
Agreed. Just be careful with that. I know too many people who ended up as fifth year seniors because they couldn't get credits to transfer or scheduling worked out.
Engineering and lab sciences are the worst offenders there. Schools tend not to let those transfer very well and they tend to have very structured course progression.
Even worse is when you get all your general education at a junior college and kill yourself trying to take too many degree heavy-hitters later. It can be done, but not everyone can and not every major. Make good choices!
These days there are a lot of options for transferring from a junior college to a state school. There were back in my day too (late 80s/ early 90s).
My home town college had a "3-2" engineering program with CMU. That could have saved money in the long run, but means 5 years to get a degree instead of 4. (I could have lived at home for 3 years.)
Where I live now, it is very common to both graduate with college credit taken at the community college AND then continue at the CC before transferring to a UC school. The classes needed are very well mapped out for engineering. The 2 years at CC are free now if you are local. However, I believe that most CC to UC programs are still 5 years. (Though from what I hear, it is very common for students at UC to take 5 years, because classes fill up fast and they aren't available each semester or trimester. That seems so weird to me. My undergrad was well mapped out. You took this class during this year, and it was only offered either fall or spring.)
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So, a neighbor posted on our neighborhood facebook group that she, her husband, and kindergartener had "heard the calling from God" to do a mission trip to Mexico in December. She wants $5500 for travel expenses and started a campaign on a crowdfunding site. She explains that it will be husband's 13th mission trip to Mexico, but her and son's first. Allegedly it is with a group from their church, so I will give her the benefit of the doubt and assume there will be some legitimate volunteering going on.
I'm all for doing good deeds and whatnot, but if you need to beg for money for travel expenses to go on a mission trip, perhaps you shouldn't be going. If you are able to raise $5500 for the poor villagers, wouldn't they rather just have the cash for actual needs as opposed to having the three people in question visit for a week? How much legitimate help does that kindergartener provide? If anything, the presence of a small child will make the parents less effective in their efforts.
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I get emails from NextDoor (neighborhood postings, mostly lost/found pets or people offering/seeking services) and somebody posted their GFM for surgery for their dog.
https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery (https://www.gofundme.com/cocos-cancer-removal-surgery)
It's pretty sad...dog needs surgery to remove tumors, or will need to be put down. On one hand it seems irresponsible to own a pet if you can't handle (and/or haven't planned for) all the possible attendant costs. But the GFM does mention job loss. I'm not planning to donate, but feel sorry for the dog - the pup has no control over their family's financial situation.
I think it's more an issue with vet costs getting out of control. Even people who are gainfully employed may not be able to afford this for their pets.
On a personal note, I'd never put my dog or cat through chemotherapy or painful, difficult treatments unless there was a very good chance of survival. That's not because of money. I just wouldn't want to put my pet through all that.
Is it that vet costs are out of control or that people expect a lot now?
Surgery to remove tumors, X-rays, invasive surgery...I don't think these were "things" a couple of decades ago? I don't own pets but my friends do. From what I know, a lot of vets go into deep debt for school and most of them don't make much money.
I can easily see that treating a sick dog and performing surgery can cost $10k. I mean, look what it costs to treat people. And a lot of people consider their dogs to be family.
I think there is an element of people expecting more. As people have shifted to considering pets to be part of the family and a "fur baby", that changes the emotional landscape significantly. Personally, I don't agree with how it's playing out in the vet's office. Animals are not human, they don't think the same way, they don't have the same sense of time and the future/past. Yeah, maybe you can treat injuries and illnesses better, but is it worth the quality of life problems? In many cases, I don't think so.
We're seeing this with humans as well. Keeping people alive with machines - ok, for what? Are they going to recover and have a good quality of life? If the answer is no, is this ethically right? Are we torturing someone to assuage our guilt or fear of death?
As a society, we do not have these answers yet, and I think we're barely beginning to ask the questions. Practically speaking, we haven't had the medical technology for very long, and a societal shift of that magnitude is going to take a long time. I think first we'll have to have a generation or 4 see, close up and personal, how horribly some of these people are suffering before we finally allow them to die. Then the conversation is going to start.
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So, a neighbor posted on our neighborhood facebook group that she, her husband, and kindergartener had "heard the calling from God" to do a mission trip to Mexico in December. She wants $5500 for travel expenses and started a campaign on a crowdfunding site. She explains that it will be husband's 13th mission trip to Mexico, but her and son's first. Allegedly it is with a group from their church, so I will give her the benefit of the doubt and assume there will be some legitimate volunteering going on.
I'm all for doing good deeds and whatnot, but if you need to beg for money for travel expenses to go on a mission trip, perhaps you shouldn't be going. If you are able to raise $5500 for the poor villagers, wouldn't they rather just have the cash for actual needs as opposed to having the three people in question visit for a week? How much legitimate help does that kindergartener provide? If anything, the presence of a small child will make the parents less effective in their efforts.
This kind of thing is such a pet peeve of mine. The emphasis often seems to be put more on the experience of the people going rather than focusing on the true needs of the population they're going to help. Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great. But a 6 year old? Kids shouldn't go until they're old enough to truly help, probably not until they are teenagers. When I was in high school my parents got tons of requests from people to help send their kid on a mission trip to "help the poor" and "bring God's good works to others". Which is great, and there are many low income families in our area that my parents would have been happy to help fund sending their kid on one mission trip, for the experience that can bring. But it seems that overall the people asking for funding are at least middle class and doing little on their own to prioritize paying for this trip. And the mission trips usually involved painting an orphanage and offering a check for around $1,000. Again, those are both good things. But the flights alone for each person on the trip were at least $700; couldn't a greater portion of funds have gone to the community affected? And painting is great, but not a critical infrastructure project.
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So, a neighbor posted on our neighborhood facebook group that she, her husband, and kindergartener had "heard the calling from God" to do a mission trip to Mexico in December. She wants $5500 for travel expenses and started a campaign on a crowdfunding site. She explains that it will be husband's 13th mission trip to Mexico, but her and son's first. Allegedly it is with a group from their church, so I will give her the benefit of the doubt and assume there will be some legitimate volunteering going on.
I'm all for doing good deeds and whatnot, but if you need to beg for money for travel expenses to go on a mission trip, perhaps you shouldn't be going. If you are able to raise $5500 for the poor villagers, wouldn't they rather just have the cash for actual needs as opposed to having the three people in question visit for a week? How much legitimate help does that kindergartener provide? If anything, the presence of a small child will make the parents less effective in their efforts.
Correction, she heard god calling for a glorified holiday. Between 2 adults and 1 kindergartener, you have exactly 1 available working adult who can actually do some work.
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A Facebook
friend acquaintance who lives in NYC recently accepted a job in SoCal and has set up a GFM to pay for his move. It actually says under the cause description "maxing my credit cards and working overtime won't be enough to cover my moving expenses". How ridiculous to accept a job on the other side of the country when you don't have the money to get there. Although i question how much money it really takes a single early 20s guy to move anywhere...
He originally asked for 6k and has since dropped it to 3.5k. Still, nobody has donated.
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Heck, I'd be up for helping the guy buy a Greyhound bus ticket to get to SoCal. Here's the ticket and a basket of sandwiches and fruit... Man people are too soft these days!
That mission trip might be more useful if the travelers just sent money to the priest or other trustworthy person to hire locals to paint/repair/upgrade whatever building. Employ local people! Let them earn some money to help their own families. Nudge the local economy along a bit.
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
This just keeps getting better.
I've always had a problem with people asking for money for these trips but I would give one defense of the benefits. I think the real positive that comes from sending people to poorer parts of the world isn't the labor they provide but that it may open their eyes a bit. I suspect if everyone did this once in their lives it would bring the world a little closer together and increase compassion towards less fortunate parts of the world.
Which is exactly why I think the husband going on his 13th trip is the worst part of your story. He's had the experience, now he's just wasting money to go on feel good trips. If you spend your own money on that in lieu of vacations then that's great. Taking donations that could go directly to those in need, not so much.
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A Facebook friend acquaintance who lives in NYC recently accepted a job in SoCal and has set up a GFM to pay for his move. It actually says under the cause description "maxing my credit cards and working overtime won't be enough to cover my moving expenses". How ridiculous to accept a job on the other side of the country when you don't have the money to get there. Although i question how much money it really takes a single early 20s guy to move anywhere...
He originally asked for 6k and has since dropped it to 3.5k. Still, nobody has donated.
It's expensive to move cross country with professionals. It would most likely be cheaper to buy new furnishings when you get to the destination.
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
Oh dear. I had imagined the husband as a handy contractor/plumber/electrician/mechanic type who would be very useful on these trips and therefore the church is happy to have him go every year. This is just sad now.
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
Oh dear. I had imagined the husband as a handy contractor/plumber/electrician/mechanic type who would be very useful on these trips and therefore the church is happy to have him go every year. This is just sad now.
There's hope. Maybe he's got a Ph.D in nursing and teaches classes on basic midwifery, CPR, or first aid the way my cousin does. She works through an interpreter, and in rural areas being able to help the local service providers maintain or upgrade their skills makes a big, instant impact on quality of life. A doctor, optometrist, or dentist could work through an interpreter when needed. Or perhaps he's fluent in the local language(s) and can handle in-country logistics. If he speaks Nahuatl, for example, that's a useful and rare thing because there are folks who don't speak any Spanish and who have hardly ever heard English. Having a fluent speaker on a vaccination team can really help build trust.
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my favorite gofundme request i've seen so far was for cello lessons. the description was something like, "it's always been a dream of mine to own a cello and to be able to afford lessons! seeing all my friends dream big with gofundme has really inspired me to seriously pursue my own dream! please help fund the purchase of my cello and six months of lessons."
she was only raising about a thousand dollars, so it was either a pretty cheap cello or pretty cheap lessons, but still. "my friends didn't have to work to attain their dreams, so now my hand's out for something i didn't have to earn too! please purchase this thing i in no way need but don't feel like saving up for."
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
Oh dear. I had imagined the husband as a handy contractor/plumber/electrician/mechanic type who would be very useful on these trips and therefore the church is happy to have him go every year. This is just sad now.
There's hope. Maybe he's got a Ph.D in nursing and teaches classes on basic midwifery, CPR, or first aid the way my cousin does. She works through an interpreter, and in rural areas being able to help the local service providers maintain or upgrade their skills makes a big, instant impact on quality of life. A doctor, optometrist, or dentist could work through an interpreter when needed. Or perhaps he's fluent in the local language(s) and can handle in-country logistics. If he speaks Nahuatl, for example, that's a useful and rare thing because there are folks who don't speak any Spanish and who have hardly ever heard English. Having a fluent speaker on a vaccination team can really help build trust.
Of course! I'm going to hold on to this glimmer of hope, and I'm retroactively shocked at myself for not thinking of this - I know several nurses that do annual mission trips for vaccination and basic health appointments in third world country.
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A Facebook friend acquaintance who lives in NYC recently accepted a job in SoCal and has set up a GFM to pay for his move. It actually says under the cause description "maxing my credit cards and working overtime won't be enough to cover my moving expenses". How ridiculous to accept a job on the other side of the country when you don't have the money to get there. Although i question how much money it really takes a single early 20s guy to move anywhere...
He originally asked for 6k and has since dropped it to 3.5k. Still, nobody has donated.
It's expensive to move cross country with professionals. It would most likely be cheaper to buy new furnishings when you get to the destination.
Agreed. But if he's got so much stuff that he needs professional movers then he has a serious problem.
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A Facebook friend acquaintance who lives in NYC recently accepted a job in SoCal and has set up a GFM to pay for his move. It actually says under the cause description "maxing my credit cards and working overtime won't be enough to cover my moving expenses". How ridiculous to accept a job on the other side of the country when you don't have the money to get there. Although i question how much money it really takes a single early 20s guy to move anywhere...
He originally asked for 6k and has since dropped it to 3.5k. Still, nobody has donated.
It's expensive to move cross country with professionals. It would most likely be cheaper to buy new furnishings when you get to the destination.
Agreed. But if he's got so much stuff that he needs professional movers then he has a serious problem.
A cross-country trip with a 26 foot U-Haul can still be $3k+ on short notice and NYC in particular is a HCOL area. I still don't see how a bit of overtime and some credit cards wouldn't make it possible for a reasonably motivated person.
Sometimes an employer will pay relocation expenses.
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https://www.gofundme.com/sjnad935 https://www.gofundme.com/sjnad935 (https://www.gofundme.com/sjnad935)
If this is real it is hilarious...fund the Alabama state government?
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Saw someone I went to high school with post a GFM on Facebook last week. It said "My husband and I both work (and love our jobs!) but just find it so hard to make ends meet each month. Anyone want to chip in? Every dollar helps!"
Literally someone just asking random people on Facebook to give her and her husband their hard-earned money, not because of extenuating circumstances or because they are out of jobs or because they might lose their home... just to make their lives easier.
Mind blown.
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Saw someone I went to high school with post a GFM on Facebook last week. It said "My husband and I both work (and love our jobs!) but just find it so hard to make ends meet each month. Anyone want to chip in? Every dollar helps!"
Literally someone just asking random people on Facebook to give her and her husband their hard-earned money, not because of extenuating circumstances or because they are out of jobs or because they might lose their home... just to make their lives easier.
Mind blown.
At least they're being honest!
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A Facebook friend acquaintance who lives in NYC recently accepted a job in SoCal and has set up a GFM to pay for his move. It actually says under the cause description "maxing my credit cards and working overtime won't be enough to cover my moving expenses". How ridiculous to accept a job on the other side of the country when you don't have the money to get there. Although i question how much money it really takes a single early 20s guy to move anywhere...
He originally asked for 6k and has since dropped it to 3.5k. Still, nobody has donated.
It's expensive to move cross country with professionals. It would most likely be cheaper to buy new furnishings when you get to the destination.
Agreed. But if he's got so much stuff that he needs professional movers then he has a serious problem.
A cross-country trip with a 26 foot U-Haul can still be $3k+ on short notice and NYC in particular is a HCOL area. I still don't see how a bit of overtime and some credit cards wouldn't make it possible for a reasonably motivated person.
Sometimes an employer will pay relocation expenses.
Yeah. I call bullshit. I think the move is a convenient excuse to raise funds.
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So, a neighbor posted on our neighborhood facebook group that she, her husband, and kindergartener had "heard the calling from God" to do a mission trip to Mexico in December. She wants $5500 for travel expenses and started a campaign on a crowdfunding site. She explains that it will be husband's 13th mission trip to Mexico, but her and son's first. Allegedly it is with a group from their church, so I will give her the benefit of the doubt and assume there will be some legitimate volunteering going on.
I'm all for doing good deeds and whatnot, but if you need to beg for money for travel expenses to go on a mission trip, perhaps you shouldn't be going. If you are able to raise $5500 for the poor villagers, wouldn't they rather just have the cash for actual needs as opposed to having the three people in question visit for a week? How much legitimate help does that kindergartener provide? If anything, the presence of a small child will make the parents less effective in their efforts.
This kind of thing is such a pet peeve of mine. The emphasis often seems to be put more on the experience of the people going rather than focusing on the true needs of the population they're going to help. Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great. But a 6 year old? Kids shouldn't go until they're old enough to truly help, probably not until they are teenagers. When I was in high school my parents got tons of requests from people to help send their kid on a mission trip to "help the poor" and "bring God's good works to others". Which is great, and there are many low income families in our area that my parents would have been happy to help fund sending their kid on one mission trip, for the experience that can bring. But it seems that overall the people asking for funding are at least middle class and doing little on their own to prioritize paying for this trip. And the mission trips usually involved painting an orphanage and offering a check for around $1,000. Again, those are both good things. But the flights alone for each person on the trip were at least $700; couldn't a greater portion of funds have gone to the community affected? And painting is great, but not a critical infrastructure project.
"Raising support" for missions trips was a huge thing in the churches I grew up in. I did several missions trips as a teen and we were actively discouraged from paying for the expenses ourselves -- we were TOLD to ask others for money. It was a "faith-stretching" exercise... i.e. we needed to trust God to provide the resources (through other people) to go on these trips.
In college I got to meet the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, Bill Bright. At the time I thought I wanted to be a missionary, but knew I would be facing tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt after college. I asked Bright what I should do about that, because raising enough support to cover student loan payments would be incredibly difficult. His answer? I should find some rich benefactor willing to pay off my loans.
Today I am about as agnostic as they come; I have long since "left the fold." I'm not going to claim that that exchange with Bill Bright killed my faith, but I definitely side eyed him with that advice. It was my debt that I incurred, and the "personal responsibility" side of me thought it was horrible advice. Ugh.
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So, a neighbor posted on our neighborhood facebook group that she, her husband, and kindergartener had "heard the calling from God" to do a mission trip to Mexico in December. She wants $5500 for travel expenses and started a campaign on a crowdfunding site. She explains that it will be husband's 13th mission trip to Mexico, but her and son's first. Allegedly it is with a group from their church, so I will give her the benefit of the doubt and assume there will be some legitimate volunteering going on.
I'm all for doing good deeds and whatnot, but if you need to beg for money for travel expenses to go on a mission trip, perhaps you shouldn't be going. If you are able to raise $5500 for the poor villagers, wouldn't they rather just have the cash for actual needs as opposed to having the three people in question visit for a week? How much legitimate help does that kindergartener provide? If anything, the presence of a small child will make the parents less effective in their efforts.
This kind of thing is such a pet peeve of mine. The emphasis often seems to be put more on the experience of the people going rather than focusing on the true needs of the population they're going to help. Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great. But a 6 year old? Kids shouldn't go until they're old enough to truly help, probably not until they are teenagers. When I was in high school my parents got tons of requests from people to help send their kid on a mission trip to "help the poor" and "bring God's good works to others". Which is great, and there are many low income families in our area that my parents would have been happy to help fund sending their kid on one mission trip, for the experience that can bring. But it seems that overall the people asking for funding are at least middle class and doing little on their own to prioritize paying for this trip. And the mission trips usually involved painting an orphanage and offering a check for around $1,000. Again, those are both good things. But the flights alone for each person on the trip were at least $700; couldn't a greater portion of funds have gone to the community affected? And painting is great, but not a critical infrastructure project.
"Raising support" for missions trips was a huge thing in the churches I grew up in. I did several missions trips as a teen and we were actively discouraged from paying for the expenses ourselves -- we were TOLD to ask others for money. It was a "faith-stretching" exercise... i.e. we needed to trust God to provide the resources (through other people) to go on these trips.
In college I got to meet the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, Bill Bright. At the time I thought I wanted to be a missionary, but knew I would be facing tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt after college. I asked Bright what I should do about that, because raising enough support to cover student loan payments would be incredibly difficult. His answer? I should find some rich benefactor willing to pay off my loans.
Today I am about as agnostic as they come; I have long since "left the fold." I'm not going to claim that that exchange with Bill Bright killed my faith, but I definitely side eyed him with that advice. It was my debt that I incurred, and the "personal responsibility" side of me thought it was horrible advice. Ugh.
At my church, we are encouraged to sponsor people to go on missions instead of going ourselves unless we have an actual useful skill. They do the same don't pay to go yourself thing, but the message is subtly changed which is probably important. Basically, if they are planning a mission to a school then they want people to go who have experience in teaching, audio/visual technology, and administration. The carpenters can stay home and sponsor someone. It's an interesting way to get everyone "involved" and keeps from having a bunch of idiots (or children, honestly what were they thinking) not helping and taking up resources.
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As someone who grew up in East Africa, I find these mission trips hilarious. Here's my anecdotal experience with Americans (who were always white) coming on mission trips:
During the rural part of the mission, most of them didn't want to touch Africans. Then they would wear latex/rubber gloves. Ain't no African gonna come near you, and you think maybe it's 'cause you're white. No, we've seen white people since 1800s, we ain't surprised. It's them gloves we suspicious of.
During the city part of the mission, they go to restaurants and clubs, say mean things like Africa is so backwards. Yes biatch, we know that, it's cause white man did so much shit during colonialism across the whole continent. And then our politicians fuck us over with "bitch move, The Brits got theirs, it's my turn now." Now you know how it feels with Trump, 'Murica!
When the missionaries arrived, the Africans had the land and the missionaries had the Bible. They taught us how to pray with our eyes closed. When we opened them, they had the land and we had the Bible.
- Jomo Kenyatta, freedom fighter, first Prez of Kenya.
https://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/quotes/jomo-kenyatta-on-the-arrival-of-christianity-in-kenya
So when someone asks me for mission trip donations, I just tell them GTFO. I ain't paying for a damn invisible product designed to fleece the locals. Fuck that shit.
/rant
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. Fuck that shit.
/rant
hahahhah
exactly!!
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This blew my mind yesterday: https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us (https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us)
An ostensibly successful toy company owner is trying to raise a billion dollars through GFM to buy Toys R Us out of bankruptcy. You have to donate $50 to get any reward better than a bumper sticker.
The GFM page clarifies "Be advised that this is not a donation to a charitable cause, and there is no tax deduction available. It is a donation to a potential commercial venture." I'm trying to think of any other context where "donation to a commercial venture" makes sense - why is it he can't get actual venture capitalists investing in his plan? (It's raised $200 million so far, but the article says that's mostly from a few big investors, namely himself.)
Given that the only draw here is nostalgia for a consumerist marketing gimmick, I don't think there's any way this could be less mustachian. At least donors get their money back if they don't make their goal.
Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
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"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
finally, a CEO committed enough to test out all new products on himself /sarcasm
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This blew my mind yesterday: https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us (https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us)
An ostensibly successful toy company owner is trying to raise a billion dollars through GFM to buy Toys R Us out of bankruptcy. You have to donate $50 to get any reward better than a bumper sticker.
The GFM page clarifies "Be advised that this is not a donation to a charitable cause, and there is no tax deduction available. It is a donation to a potential commercial venture." I'm trying to think of any other context where "donation to a commercial venture" makes sense - why is it he can't get actual venture capitalists investing in his plan? (It's raised $200 million so far, but the article says that's mostly from a few big investors, namely himself.)
Given that the only draw here is nostalgia for a consumerist marketing gimmick, I don't think there's any way this could be less mustachian. At least donors get their money back if they don't make their goal.
Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
Please, please, please don't let this one be a success. It's bad enough corporations have been so effective at convincing people to hand over money for crap they don't need but now they want people to just hand over money...
I mean, I remember play-doh being pretty good but I don't see what that has to do with running a successful business.
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It's not very hard to make play-doh at home. And to make it smell better than the real stuff, and no big deal for a kid to put in their mouth.
(We made it with cinnamon when I was a kid and I definitely ate it on purpose.)
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It's not very hard to make play-doh at home. And to make it smell better than the real stuff, and no big deal for a kid to put in their mouth.
(We made it with cinnamon when I was a kid and I definitely ate it on purpose.)
Flavored play-doh is intriguing, but I think I prefer the simplicity of the original. I really want that salty, wheaty musk to come through.
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"donation to a commercial venture"
a.k.a. most kickstarter projects.
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"donation to a commercial venture"
a.k.a. most kickstarter projects.
In a well-designed kickstarter, you're paying for the product ahead of time. The producer is asking for a loan from the eventual consumer rather than from a bank.
This isn't even that. You're just supposed to donate for the sheer joy of Toys R Us continuing to exist.
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"donation to a commercial venture"
a.k.a. most kickstarter projects.
In a well-designed kickstarter, you're paying for the product ahead of time. The producer is asking for a loan from the eventual consumer rather than from a bank.
This isn't even that. You're just supposed to donate for the sheer joy of Toys R Us continuing to exist.
which in itself seems like a pretty awful idea. toys r us gave its management millions of dollars in bonuses right before laying off longtime employees with no severance. i don't want to take care of any company that takes care of its people that way.
source: https://www.bizjournals.com/newyork/news/2018/02/22/toys-r-us-closes-more-stores.html (https://www.bizjournals.com/newyork/news/2018/02/22/toys-r-us-closes-more-stores.html)
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A college buddy requested a few thousand dollars to pay for acting classes, pay his medical bills (>$1000 for a nonessential, cosmetic procedure), and $2000 for an overseas vacation for his birthday. He posted his income and bills to curtail skepticism. He lives in NYC and makes <$20,000 a year, but spends $150 a month eating out, a bunch for the latest smartphone, and has a high priced gym membership of which he is NOT a frequent user. I want to laugh, but I am sad at his income and spending. He has a degree already, but not much to work with I guess.
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This blew my mind yesterday: https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us (https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us)
An ostensibly successful toy company owner is trying to raise a billion dollars through GFM to buy Toys R Us out of bankruptcy. You have to donate $50 to get any reward better than a bumper sticker.
The GFM page clarifies "Be advised that this is not a donation to a charitable cause, and there is no tax deduction available. It is a donation to a potential commercial venture." I'm trying to think of any other context where "donation to a commercial venture" makes sense - why is it he can't get actual venture capitalists investing in his plan? (It's raised $200 million so far, but the article says that's mostly from a few big investors, namely himself.)
Given that the only draw here is nostalgia for a consumerist marketing gimmick, I don't think there's any way this could be less mustachian. At least donors get their money back if they don't make their goal.
Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
I was in a Toys R Us store a couple weekends ago looking for a small cart or wagon for the Chiuahua to push and tow. She's smarter than the average toddler so she doesn't need any fancy lights, electronics, R/C, or other bells and whistles. I was thinking that maybe a plastic wagon of some kind would do it. But as well stocked as the place was, there was NOT ONE little car, truck, or similar wheeled vehicle in the dog's size that didn't have a major franchise character on it.
The place has changed a lot since I was a kid. There used to be things that weren't from a Disney or superhero franchise: basic things like balls, hula hoops, marbles, jacks, and building toys like Tinkertoys. There were little cars, not necessary Matchbox or Fisher Price, and kids would play with them by rolling them along the floor. Most of these things were available at about half the price of things with a Sesame Street or Disney theme because you weren't paying extra for the brand. Also, you could get basic things like entry-level skateboards and sports gear that *wasn't* blinged up to within an inch of its life with built-in LED lights and everything else. Just... basic... TOYS. There aren't any of those anymore, just a bunch of cheap plastic hype-in-a-box from China. In the entire store, there wasn't a single thing I thought I might buy for the dog, myself, or anyone in my extended family or network (of which there are many kids).
They've got a lot of stuff in there, just nothing worth buying. I think that might be their problem.
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https://www.gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=category&term=IVF&country=US
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https://www.gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=category&term=engagement%20ring
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This blew my mind yesterday: https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us (https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us)
An ostensibly successful toy company owner is trying to raise a billion dollars through GFM to buy Toys R Us out of bankruptcy. You have to donate $50 to get any reward better than a bumper sticker.
The GFM page clarifies "Be advised that this is not a donation to a charitable cause, and there is no tax deduction available. It is a donation to a potential commercial venture." I'm trying to think of any other context where "donation to a commercial venture" makes sense - why is it he can't get actual venture capitalists investing in his plan? (It's raised $200 million so far, but the article says that's mostly from a few big investors, namely himself.)
Given that the only draw here is nostalgia for a consumerist marketing gimmick, I don't think there's any way this could be less mustachian. At least donors get their money back if they don't make their goal.
Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
I was in a Toys R Us store a couple weekends ago looking for a small cart or wagon for the Chiuahua to push and tow. She's smarter than the average toddler so she doesn't need any fancy lights, electronics, R/C, or other bells and whistles. I was thinking that maybe a plastic wagon of some kind would do it. But as well stocked as the place was, there was NOT ONE little car, truck, or similar wheeled vehicle in the dog's size that didn't have a major franchise character on it.
The place has changed a lot since I was a kid. There used to be things that weren't from a Disney or superhero franchise: basic things like balls, hula hoops, marbles, jacks, and building toys like Tinkertoys. There were little cars, not necessary Matchbox or Fisher Price, and kids would play with them by rolling them along the floor. Most of these things were available at about half the price of things with a Sesame Street or Disney theme because you weren't paying extra for the brand. Also, you could get basic things like entry-level skateboards and sports gear that *wasn't* blinged up to within an inch of its life with built-in LED lights and everything else. Just... basic... TOYS. There aren't any of those anymore, just a bunch of cheap plastic hype-in-a-box from China. In the entire store, there wasn't a single thing I thought I might buy for the dog, myself, or anyone in my extended family or network (of which there are many kids).
They've got a lot of stuff in there, just nothing worth buying. I think that might be their problem.
Is this so VSB can start her own side hustle?
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This blew my mind yesterday: https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us (https://www.npr.org/2018/04/10/600134700/maker-of-bratz-and-little-tikes-seeks-to-save-toys-r-us)
An ostensibly successful toy company owner is trying to raise a billion dollars through GFM to buy Toys R Us out of bankruptcy. You have to donate $50 to get any reward better than a bumper sticker.
The GFM page clarifies "Be advised that this is not a donation to a charitable cause, and there is no tax deduction available. It is a donation to a potential commercial venture." I'm trying to think of any other context where "donation to a commercial venture" makes sense - why is it he can't get actual venture capitalists investing in his plan? (It's raised $200 million so far, but the article says that's mostly from a few big investors, namely himself.)
Given that the only draw here is nostalgia for a consumerist marketing gimmick, I don't think there's any way this could be less mustachian. At least donors get their money back if they don't make their goal.
Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
I was in a Toys R Us store a couple weekends ago looking for a small cart or wagon for the Chiuahua to push and tow. She's smarter than the average toddler so she doesn't need any fancy lights, electronics, R/C, or other bells and whistles. I was thinking that maybe a plastic wagon of some kind would do it. But as well stocked as the place was, there was NOT ONE little car, truck, or similar wheeled vehicle in the dog's size that didn't have a major franchise character on it.
The place has changed a lot since I was a kid. There used to be things that weren't from a Disney or superhero franchise: basic things like balls, hula hoops, marbles, jacks, and building toys like Tinkertoys. There were little cars, not necessary Matchbox or Fisher Price, and kids would play with them by rolling them along the floor. Most of these things were available at about half the price of things with a Sesame Street or Disney theme because you weren't paying extra for the brand. Also, you could get basic things like entry-level skateboards and sports gear that *wasn't* blinged up to within an inch of its life with built-in LED lights and everything else. Just... basic... TOYS. There aren't any of those anymore, just a bunch of cheap plastic hype-in-a-box from China. In the entire store, there wasn't a single thing I thought I might buy for the dog, myself, or anyone in my extended family or network (of which there are many kids).
They've got a lot of stuff in there, just nothing worth buying. I think that might be their problem.
Is this so VSB can start her own side hustle?
Worse. VSB has developed an interest in doggy parkour and stunts. Which could turn onto a side hustle if she gets bored being my Hearing Ear dog.
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"I want to persue MY dream ...with YOUR money..."
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Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
If he eats toys I wonder if he shits toys also.
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Oh, one more thing:
"Toys R Us is not going to last. It needs a crazy person who lives, breathes and eats toys like I do."
...eats toys?
If he eats toys I wonder if he shits toys also.
That would explain what's presently on the shelves!
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
Oh dear. I had imagined the husband as a handy contractor/plumber/electrician/mechanic type who would be very useful on these trips and therefore the church is happy to have him go every year. This is just sad now.
There's hope. Maybe he's got a Ph.D in nursing and teaches classes on basic midwifery, CPR, or first aid the way my cousin does. She works through an interpreter, and in rural areas being able to help the local service providers maintain or upgrade their skills makes a big, instant impact on quality of life. A doctor, optometrist, or dentist could work through an interpreter when needed. Or perhaps he's fluent in the local language(s) and can handle in-country logistics. If he speaks Nahuatl, for example, that's a useful and rare thing because there are folks who don't speak any Spanish and who have hardly ever heard English. Having a fluent speaker on a vaccination team can really help build trust.
Nope, without getting too specific he is in sales. She allegedly goes to school for a degree that will require a master's to be marketable and sells a MLM product via Facebook. It's highly unlikely either has any special medical or language skills.
When a neighbor brought up the wife's post this weekend, I also learned that the kindergartener (from wife's previous relationship) gets free school lunches and a fee waiver. So they're mooching off the taxpayers of the community and want us to pay for them to go help some folks in Mexico.
I honestly don't know how these folks sleep at night. I know it's judgey, but if you can't afford to feed your kid, maybe you should put forth some effort to improve things on the home front before worrying about mission trips. There are plenty of local volunteer opportunities to participate in if you really want to teach the kid to give back.
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
Oh dear. I had imagined the husband as a handy contractor/plumber/electrician/mechanic type who would be very useful on these trips and therefore the church is happy to have him go every year. This is just sad now.
There's hope. Maybe he's got a Ph.D in nursing and teaches classes on basic midwifery, CPR, or first aid the way my cousin does. She works through an interpreter, and in rural areas being able to help the local service providers maintain or upgrade their skills makes a big, instant impact on quality of life. A doctor, optometrist, or dentist could work through an interpreter when needed. Or perhaps he's fluent in the local language(s) and can handle in-country logistics. If he speaks Nahuatl, for example, that's a useful and rare thing because there are folks who don't speak any Spanish and who have hardly ever heard English. Having a fluent speaker on a vaccination team can really help build trust.
Nope, without getting too specific he is in sales. She allegedly goes to school for a degree that will require a master's to be marketable and sells a MLM product via Facebook. It's highly unlikely either has any special medical or language skills.
When a neighbor brought up the wife's post this weekend, I also learned that the kindergartener (from wife's previous relationship) gets free school lunches and a fee waiver. So they're mooching off the taxpayers of the community and want us to pay for them to go help some folks in Mexico.
I honestly don't know how these folks sleep at night. I know it's judgey, but if you can't afford to feed your kid, maybe you should put forth some effort to improve things on the home front before worrying about mission trips. There are plenty of local volunteer opportunities to participate in if you really want to teach the kid to give back.
Well, we try to give people the benefit of doubt but unfortunately sometimes it's just as bad as it sounds. Or as it is in this case, sometimes it's worse than we originally thought. If you tell me they commute to work in a giant SUV I won't believe you.
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This is the worst gofundme that I've ever seen. Happy to see he hasn't raised any funds for his cause.
https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig (https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig)
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This is the worst gofundme that I've ever seen. Happy to see he hasn't raised any funds for his cause.
https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig (https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig)
how does this have 28 shares on facebook?
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Perhaps they're shared with the same attitude it was shared here?
I really can't believe that one is serious... My college-age brother set up a gofundme for a friend to buy a Nintendo Switch that was intended as a joke (don't ask me what part of it was funny, and no, it didn't get funded - it was never supposed to be). Is there sardonic humor in here somewhere? Was he drunk when he wrote it? So many questions...
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This is the worst gofundme that I've ever seen. Happy to see he hasn't raised any funds for his cause.
https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig (https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig)
I'm not sure what language it's written in. It's like something out of "A Clockwork Orange". The syntax is mostly English but the verbs mostly aren't. Is this an example of me being terminally out of touch.
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This is the worst gofundme that I've ever seen. Happy to see he hasn't raised any funds for his cause.
https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig (https://www.gofundme.com/choochin-rig)
I'm not sure what language it's written in. It's like something out of "A Clockwork Orange". The syntax is mostly English but the verbs mostly aren't. Is this an example of me being terminally out of touch.
a choocher is anything that chooches. IE, something that does something. - first google result
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Perhaps they're shared with the same attitude it was shared here?
I really can't believe that one is serious... My college-age brother set up a gofundme for a friend to buy a Nintendo Switch that was intended as a joke (don't ask me what part of it was funny, and no, it didn't get funded - it was never supposed to be). Is there sardonic humor in here somewhere? Was he drunk when he wrote it? So many questions...
I think that's their goal. Put up something stupid and if it turns out to be the right kind of stupid (potato salad, holiday hole) people throw money at it.
So the real antimustachian wall of shamers are the people that hate their money so much they give it to stupid. Luckily no one has taken the bait here.
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I never had really read any GFM pages before. I'm a bit shocked at this wasteland of electronic begging.
The links to engagement rings alone, and the original engagement ring request posted earlier seem so batshit.
'Why should a couple have to pay to be married?'
I don't know..... Why should anyone have to pay for anything...ever? Why can't every single thing in the world be free? Its just wrong!
Such amazing disconnects. Yet, multiple someones, somewhere contribute... It seems wrong. But people can piss there money on anything (or to anyone) they choose.
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'Why should a couple have to pay to be married?'
You shouldn't have to pay much at all. Marriage licenses are cheap, and an engagement ring is not a legal requirement.
(This comment is aimed hypothetically at the GFM-ers, not at you, who seem to understand the concept.)
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I don't want to too specific, but someone local to me, had a large pontoon boat that developed a leak and needed work. Rather than fix the existing boat, he started a gofund me page to get a new one, custom built.
Just so you know he drives a Hummer and after the GFM he bought a home in what we call the rich neighborhood, prices are at least three times the average. Oh, he also got the bigger boat.
Edit:
I noted a couple of pages on the marina door yesterday, the Hummer driving, expensive house owning, GFM page starter, has not paid his rent and the marina put a lien on his boat. He also has created a couple other infractions.
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Has Gofund me dried up?
I had an elderly cousin (he's 88 and she's 70's and has MS). Their house burned to the ground last week. Their go fund me that's been up for a few days has been shared on several local news stations facebook with 10,000s of followers. So far, $450 has been donated by 4 donors, all with family relations. Their church took a cash donation, so people donated there, and GFM doesn't take their share, but I guess I was surprised there weren't so many people donating using GFM.
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Has Gofund me dried up?
I had an elderly cousin (he's 88 and she's 70's and has MS). Their house burned to the ground last week. Their go fund me that's been up for a few days has been shared on several local news stations facebook with 10,000s of followers. So far, $450 has been donated by 4 donors, all with family relations. Their church took a cash donation, so people donated there, and GFM doesn't take their share, but I guess I was surprised there weren't so many people donating using GFM.
It's possible that people mentally tune out GFM requests because they are tired of being constantly solicited on social media. Somebody I know has their hand out again and isn't having much luck.
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Husband probably has useful skills now that he's on his 13th trip; that's great.
You'd think that, but wife had to post for help to put together a plastic Step 2 playhouse a couple of years ago because she and her husband are "not handy at all."
This just keeps getting better.
I've always had a problem with people asking for money for these trips but I would give one defense of the benefits. I think the real positive that comes from sending people to poorer parts of the world isn't the labor they provide but that it may open their eyes a bit. I suspect if everyone did this once in their lives it would bring the world a little closer together and increase compassion towards less fortunate parts of the world.
Which is exactly why I think the husband going on his 13th trip is the worst part of your story. He's had the experience, now he's just wasting money to go on feel good trips. If you spend your own money on that in lieu of vacations then that's great. Taking donations that could go directly to those in need, not so much.
Am I the only one picturing 13 Mexican/American kids running around that village in Mexico?
That lady is going to be really surprised when she goes down there. Kind of like "Meet The Fockers". Bet you the husband is praying to God that nobody funds the trip.
I was done posting about these folks, but guess what? A brand-new German luxury SUV is now parked in their garage. SMH.
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I just saw several GoFundMe requests on Facebook to pay for a son's mission's trip to Central America. The kicker? He was already on the trip. Wouldn't it already be paid for? At this point, this is just money back in the parent's pocket. And I really rolled my eyes when I saw the parent post another reminder request after he was already home! The nerve.
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We gave to an IVF campaign a few years ago. It was successful - twins! -- and shortly thereafter the happy couple bought a monster home and two new cars, including a Jaguar.
Lesson learned.
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We gave to an IVF campaign a few years ago. It was successful - twins! -- and shortly thereafter the happy couple bought a monster home and two new cars, including a Jaguar.
Lesson learned.
Oh hell, that donation was worth the price of the story!
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Be sure to reach out to the big house Jaguar family for EVERY single fundraiser that comes along. ;)
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For the Win - my favorite go fund me campaign was an acquitance who spent 5K on his credit card and then started a go fund me page to ask all his facebook friends to help pay off his credit card.
But tonight for the first time ever, I may have found a go fund me campaign to support: https://www.gofundme.com/timesup (https://www.gofundme.com/timesup)
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What gets me is when a supposed do-gooder starts one up for an injured person that they aren't even associated with (rock climbing forums have these for dumbasses who don't quite Darwin themselves, sometimes even for those who do). You have to have a lot of faith that:
1) The recipient actually needs/wants money (often not true).
2) The "do-gooder" will actually hand over the money (often not true).
I've become very jaded after a couple that turned into scams, and a couple that were not scams but were unwanted by the injured party.
One example was one for Ammon McNeely, the guy who broke his foot off BASE jumping. The GoFundMe was not for medical bills, but to buy him a new BASE rig so he could get back out there once his foot healed up (WTF?!). He had to chime in from the hospital to say "No thanks".
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My cousin made one for her teenage son who spent 100 bucks buying credits for a video game or some such nonsense, then found out later that he was scammed. Give me a break.
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A couple of the kids in our martial arts group were attending a lot of "world championships". These are held very often, usually in hotel ballrooms, for exorbitant prices, all over Europe and the U.S.
But you get a trophy! And you're a World Champion!
Anyway, all the international travel, private lessons and entry fees were hitting pretty hard and they set up couple of Go Fund Me pages.
Sorry, I don't even spend that much on my kids.
Toque.
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Do not trust someone to raise money for you:
Authorities have executed a search warrant at the Bordentown, New Jersey home of a couple who raised $400,000 through GoFundMe for a homeless Philadelphia man who now claims they mismanaged the cash.
They gave him some of the money (I think around $75,000) and he used it on drugs or alcohol... but they promised him most if not all of it. And of course, they also wasted the money too.
https://abc7.com/police-search-home-of-gofundme-couple-in-new-jersey/4161524/
And a trip to the Arctic:
The Arctic 2019 Expedition is certified Carbon Neutral, meaning the impact of each participant will be offset.
Laudable. I don't know if it's possible, but I hope it is.
Does eating plant-based make you weak? Well… If I receive enough support to get me to the Arctic, I will prove that veganism can be strong, healthy, prosperous… And beneficial to the environment!
Funding a vegan expedition to the Arctic. I seriously think they won't make it, due to dying.
Link: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/chiara-s-arctic-expedition-for-education?fbclid=IwAR0runJ0K_Rs1oOty9kE60_lm_wZyD2D_0EjZtROKbQ_hS3XyeAobBwqu_0#/
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A year ago, my best friend's husband was killed in a car crash. Because of the circumstances of the accident, the paperwork had to be handled by the state crime lab. She was initially told that it could take 6-12 months to get the death certificate. So while he had plenty of life insurance, she couldn't get it in time to pay for the funeral. An uncle offered to pay, but wanted $1000 a month repayments to start immediately which she couldn't swing as a suddenly single mother of two kids who just lost more than half of the household income. She considered GFM, but found that her husband's ex had already set one up to raise money for "the family" (to be fair, she was still close to his family even though BF and him had been married for 7 years at this point). All our friends had already donated to this fund, which she never saw a penny from and she didn't want to hit them up again.
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A year ago, my best friend's husband was killed in a car crash. Because of the circumstances of the accident, the paperwork had to be handled by the state crime lab. She was initially told that it could take 6-12 months to get the death certificate. So while he had plenty of life insurance, she couldn't get it in time to pay for the funeral. An uncle offered to pay, but wanted $1000 a month repayments to start immediately which she couldn't swing as a suddenly single mother of two kids who just lost more than half of the household income. She considered GFM, but found that her husband's ex had already set one up to raise money for "the family" (to be fair, she was still close to his family even though BF and him had been married for 7 years at this point). All our friends had already donated to this fund, which she never saw a penny from and she didn't want to hit them up again.
Just how much did she spend on a funeral??!?
Arrangements for the dead can be extremely inexpensive. And if you don't have money, then it seems to me you make the inexpensive choice. Your loved on is no less dead if you spend $9000 on a coffin than if you do a simple cremation. They are no less likely to go to the good afterlife of your beliefs (if that's what you believe) if they are sent of with $800 worth of flowers.
While the subject matter is more sensitive, I don't see how this is different than buying a $40,000 car when you have credit card debt and student loans. You can't afford it, so don't do it.
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A year ago, my best friend's husband was killed in a car crash. Because of the circumstances of the accident, the paperwork had to be handled by the state crime lab. She was initially told that it could take 6-12 months to get the death certificate. So while he had plenty of life insurance, she couldn't get it in time to pay for the funeral. An uncle offered to pay, but wanted $1000 a month repayments to start immediately which she couldn't swing as a suddenly single mother of two kids who just lost more than half of the household income. She considered GFM, but found that her husband's ex had already set one up to raise money for "the family" (to be fair, she was still close to his family even though BF and him had been married for 7 years at this point). All our friends had already donated to this fund, which she never saw a penny from and she didn't want to hit them up again.
Just how much did she spend on a funeral??!?
Arrangements for the dead can be extremely inexpensive. And if you don't have money, then it seems to me you make the inexpensive choice. Your loved on is no less dead if you spend $9000 on a coffin than if you do a simple cremation. They are no less likely to go to the good afterlife of your beliefs (if that's what you believe) if they are sent of with $800 worth of flowers.
While the subject matter is more sensitive, I don't see how this is different than buying a $40,000 car when you have credit card debt and student loans. You can't afford it, so don't do it.
It ended up being right at $12k, which seems awfully high to me even considering that there is literally only one choice in town for funeral homes and they own the cemetery too. I know that he was adamantly against cremation due to religious beliefs. The whole thing made me really consider pre-paying my own funeral, but as of right now I'm planning on retiring overseas, so who knows where I'll be when I die.