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| Re: Donations are not for People
Posted by Ad Hoc Writer  on 6/28/2008, 9:10 pm, in reply to "Donations are not for People"
After reading all of these posts, it occurred to me that, with little additional training you have the writing skills to help yourself immediately. There are so many people who are out of work right now and need resumes written, that you could probably be working full time in a matter of weeks. Learning to write resumes well doesn't take long, there are places to run ads free (Craigslist for one, posters and handing out business cards work well, too. Especially leave them with employment agencies and the EDD office.)
Resumes pay very well, and you only have to do a few each week to pay the bills.
I just "ghost" wrote an ebook on freelance grantwriting for Robert Bly (http://www.mygrantwritingprofits.com/) and he's selling it for $39 and giving away one of his copywriting books as a bonus. The book I wrote for
him is geared specifically to learning how to become a freelance grant writer, so it starts from the beginning. It's equally useful for someone who is looking for a employee job as a grant writer.
Learn to teach CPR classes. I did and earned $22/hour teaching classes for a local EMT program. It took 8 hours to learn to be an instructor after an initial 4 hours getting my CPR card. I've taught many classes that I set up and made (netted) several hundred dollars for just a few hours work for each class. I can't think of too many things that are better to do than to teach people how to save a life. Getting paid well for it is just that much better.
Most people donate to organizations that help people because these organizations know how to disburse the assistance in the most productive ways. If you really need immediate financial help, go to a local church ... most community churches work together to assist people who need immediate assistance. If you need that much help that badly, there should be assistance from social services, or nonprofits set up to assist people who are destitute. Try the Salvation Army, or Goodwill Industries, for example. Any hospital can direct you to organizations that help with medical expenses, and most pharmaceutical companies have programs whereby they give you free medications. Each sector has a component that offers help to the people in need. They can do this because by pooling the donations they can make the best use of the money, buy in bulk, centralize services, etc. Go to them as they do provide what you need ... the hand-out as well as the hand-up. Then, as soon as possible, get youself into a position to pay it forward.
I just read a post on another list about how one couple was scammed by helping someone who claimed to be in the same position you claim. The woman took the check they gave her and not only cashed it, but used the routing number and account number to pay several of her bills and then attempted to pay an $1800 credit card bill when she was caught.
WHAT THIS WOMAN DID IS A COMMON SCAM PRACTICE, AND THIS IS WHY PEOPLE DO NOT DONATE DIRECTLY TO EVERYONE WHO CLAIMS TO HAVE A NEED FOR HELP, especially if they don't know them personally. Is there some reason the people you know personally are not giving you this help?
If you are trying to appeal to people to help you, you have to have a clear understanding of why they would want to help you, specifically, and why they wouldn't want to help you, specifically. Each of your posts sound, not like a proposal requesting help, but very much like the scam, phishing, and other fraudulent e-mail pleas that we are so often warned about. Your responses have been argumentative and sarcastic toward the people who have tried to enlighten you about how your approach is actually coming across, vs how you insist on believing it is coming across.
Mark, Linda, Julie and Rick have been very kind and patient with you, but you refuse to read between the lines and see how this is NOT what philanthropy is all about. It isn't about people asking for handouts, or organizations asking for money to keep themselves afloat� Those that do don't last long.
Philanthropy about legally incorporated organizations asking for money to aid their beneficiaries. These are organizations prepared to file IRS 990 returns annually and are accountable for all of their revenues and expenditures via audited records and valid documentation. I'm guessing that you are not a 501(c)(3) or other recognized nonprofit organization, nor are you prepared to report the income you receive, as is the law.
For immediate assistance, try Catholic Charities ... they are the largest provider of services for people in need, and they are everywhere.
Michele
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