[Goosegirl]

Mods, please delete if needed. I'm so fed up of the continual adverts pleading for money to save this and that, especially if they say they want £10 per month or even one that wants £19 per month! To me it is wrong in the first place to state the amount they want but, more than that, it's the way they try to make you feel guilty if you don't do it. For many people, money is in short supply and I chose to donate to our local hospice and that's all.

[Kleftiwallah]

I wholeheatedly agree on all points Goosegirl.  I reach for the remote whenever...
There should be available figures of just what percentage of moneys sent actually ends up 'doing good' and how much these 'celebs' get for appearing.

Keep up the good work Goosegirl.
Cheers,  Tony.

[mrs bouquet]

As I am writing this, there have been 3 ads to give to charities, with pictures of very sad looking children.  Like Gg mine goes to the local hospice.   Mrs Bouquet

[wighty]

I was thinking of creating a post on the same subject , yes ask us for support, but we decide how much we wish to donate, not a 'set amount'.  Even if it's a charity that 'appeals' to me, demanding a set sum puts me off.

[jaydig]

I agree with everything you say, GG.  I also object to those collecting for charities who no longer allow you to contribute what you can afford via cash in a tin, but who will accept nothing less than your signing up to give a monthly donation.  Needless to say, they don't get anything in that case.  I have given up donating to charities as a good deal of the cash never seems to get where it's intended to go after those in charge have paid themselves ridiculous salaries.  Instead I do what I can directly, helping those who need it in a discrete manner as and when I can.

[Christine]

Instead I do what I can directly, helping those who need it in a discrete manner as and when I can.

Me too. I have the list and know how to do it directly online. Mercifully I don't have a telly, can dictate what I see on Facebook and am careful with commercial radio stations. Also have a list of No, Not Never callers.

[Subversive_plot]

We also have charities that ask for donations on television and online. Although many have suggested giving levels, I don't think we have any that only accept specific donation levels. I think all of ours are happy to accept any amount you care to donate.

I donate to (1) our Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB; affiliate of Public Broadcasting Service, PBS); (2) Northeast Georgia Food Bank; (3) Humane Society (animal welfare); and (4) Toys for Tots. I also occasionally donate to Habitat for Humanity (most recently, I donated a working clothes dryer that was only a couple years old). What they all have in common is that they will accept whatever monetary donation I feel is appropriate, and although they ask for donations each year, don't guilt me into donating what I can't afford (my annual income is below our national average, I still have a son in college, so I spend carefully).  Charities that use guilt as a tactic don't receive anything from me. Same story for charities that are unrelenting in their fundraising (I once made the mistake of donating to Doctors Without Borders; never again, even though they probably do good work).

The charity that has received the most for me is GPB / PBS.  The BBC could learn something from them.  85% of their funding comes from completely voluntary donations, about 15% is federally funded. Who receives their broadcasts? Everybody with a television or a radio, for free, even if you can't pay.  I have been a member since 1987, and most of those years have been as a sustaining member. Charity Navigator gives them a rating of 97% (four stars) based on the charity's financial health (including financial efficiency and trustworthiness) and its commitment to governance practices and policies.

[Hampshire Hog]

I think it is worth googling what the directors of charities are paying themselves before paying out any cash. Our main charity is the local hospice that supported our son before he died of a brain tumour. Too many charities are virtually a business.

[Lardman]

I think it is worth googling what the directors of charities are paying themselves before paying out any cash.

Absolutely.

[Growster...]

Spot on GG!

Every bit of cheridee junk mail goes straight in the bin - except for our chosen charity.

[Goosegirl]

Mine too. Our local hospice nearly had to shut down a few years ago due to lack of funding but, haven once been to their nearby respite place when I had cancer, I know where my donations are going and how well they are used and appreciated by all who need their care.

[hamstergbert]

A few years ago we were fairly regularly pestered by door to door 'chuggers' trying to sign folks up for monthly direct debits, and I did a bit of research, using Save the Children as an example.  At the time in 2018 the package of the UK head was north of £140,000 and in just the UK operation there were a score or so staff in excess of £100,000 pa.  Needed quite a lot of signed up donors just to cover the senior execs salaries.  The door to door collectors were also being paid, albeit probably not very much (I did hear that their commission is usually the value of one month of each DD they sign up).

Late brother in law and Mrs HGB supported small scale 'kitchen table' charities where the 'overhead' outgoings were very clearly visible (and often vountarily forgone) and since Dec 2012 I chose to roll Mrs HGB's long standing support donations onward.

The only large charity I support personally (standing order rather than direct debit) is the Salvation Army UK.  Although I happen to share many of their values it is perhaps also worth pointing out that unlike so many charity heads in the 70K upwards and more salaries group, the head of the SA is paid about £11,000 annually, although also gets family accomodation in council house standard subsidised housing.  Probably because the head of the SA is also an ordained minister.

Top and bottom though is that even the large charities with somewhat sour taste senior salary bills still do some good!

[Subversive_plot]

In addition to the charities I mentioned above, I added the Salvation Army to the year-end list. This has been a good year, others are less fortunate.