Brother, can you spare a dime?
This week's Friday Five is about something I think of as a very American institution (but evidently I'm wrong, as one of my commenters indicates that it's a thing in Australia, as well --Ed.): fundraisers. For any of my readers from cultures where things might be done differently, let me pause to explain that fundraisers -- as distinct from the fund-raising that large institutions carry out all the time via directly soliciting donors for cash -- are organized activities (sometimes single events, sometimes ongoing campaigns lasting several weeks) put on by locally-based groups which (a) need extra money to carry out special projects (or, very often, just to keep existing!!), and (b) can reasonably rely on members of the surrounding community to feel inclined to chip in and help, as long as there's some kind of nominal transaction going on. Again, I don't know how you non-Americans do it, but here in the land where we turn to the marketplace to solve all our problems, fundraisers are a staple of non-profit life, and are held regularly by such chronically under-funded organizations as high school bands, recreation council sports leagues, county choral societies like the one I sang in for ten years, Girl- and Boy Scout troops, and church youth groups.
Yes, in my experience, young people's activities and artistic groups seem to dominate the list of usual fundraiser suspects (which might suggest something about the priorities of local governments in the allocation of public funds), but local chapters of civic groups for adults, e.g. the Elks or Lions, also hold them, usually for very specific charitable endeavors like endowing a memorial scholarship. The fundraisers I've encountered have taken such forms as car washes, bake sales, bingo nights, and -- the worst kind, IMO -- selling cookies/candy/pizza kits/greeting cards/etc. from catalogs (the child is the ostensible salesperson, but it's the parents who must force these catalogs on all their friends and colleagues). The typical youthful participant in a fundraiser is supposed to learn, in a sub-textual way, that you can't expect something for nothing in this life -- that asking for donations to fund your activity is not only less effective, but also less morally defensible than rolling up your sleeves and working for those donations (by washing cars, or by purchasing goods at wholesale cost and then peddling them door to door for a profit, etc.).
1. What's the last thing you didn't want but purchased anyway because someone's kid was raising funds for something?
Some tins of popcorn, which is what the Boy Scouts sell in the Fall to raise money (technically, it's for the parent organization, i.e. the Boy Scouts of America, but the BSA then sends program materials and maintains camps, etc. that are used by the local groups). I don't want or need tins of popcorn, but I buy because it used to be *my* little Cub Scouts trying to sell it.
2. What's something you're always happy to buy when kids sell it as a fundraiser?
Joe Corbi pizza kits. No, really; if your kid is selling Joe Corbi, I might buy without even researching the organization he or she is selling for. (Pay no attention to the undercooked pizza picture at the website -- you can make a quick, tasty pie with Joe Corbi ingredients.)
3. What was the last fundraiser you participated in?
I'm helping my kid do one right now. The High School Band Boosters are having the children sell Chick-fil-A coupon calendars to fund the Spring trip to Disney World. They're $9 a pop -- anyone want one? (Yeah, I know they're $7 ea. from the website, but then you're not contributing to the band trip!)
4. What are your feelings about the endless cycle of fundraising?
I accept that fundraisers are a fact of life. The alternative, in a culture that doesn't sufficiently fund the arts and youth organizations via public money, is that only the children of rich parents would be able to participate in community groups that did cool things.
I only really get annoyed when the public schools do it to fund ordinary field trips. C'mon, we can't even expect *those* for our tax dollars? And I only get out-and-out angry when school administrators respond to routine parental complaints ("Another catalog sale?") with a spiel about how the experience of selling is good for kids, teaching them to be self-reliant and to not expect pure hand-outs in life. Sorry, but I think I want my kid to learn something different. Oh, I'm not necessarily saying that I want him to become a person who *does* expect hand-outs, but I sincerely hope he'll grow up to be a person who doesn't think markets can solve all problems.
5. What's something people don't sell as a fundraiser but really should?
Back-rubs. Just kidding, I guess; but, you know, I would be much more tempted to randomly pull off the highway for a massage than to have my car washed. :-)
Yes, in my experience, young people's activities and artistic groups seem to dominate the list of usual fundraiser suspects (which might suggest something about the priorities of local governments in the allocation of public funds), but local chapters of civic groups for adults, e.g. the Elks or Lions, also hold them, usually for very specific charitable endeavors like endowing a memorial scholarship. The fundraisers I've encountered have taken such forms as car washes, bake sales, bingo nights, and -- the worst kind, IMO -- selling cookies/candy/pizza kits/greeting cards/etc. from catalogs (the child is the ostensible salesperson, but it's the parents who must force these catalogs on all their friends and colleagues). The typical youthful participant in a fundraiser is supposed to learn, in a sub-textual way, that you can't expect something for nothing in this life -- that asking for donations to fund your activity is not only less effective, but also less morally defensible than rolling up your sleeves and working for those donations (by washing cars, or by purchasing goods at wholesale cost and then peddling them door to door for a profit, etc.).
1. What's the last thing you didn't want but purchased anyway because someone's kid was raising funds for something?
Some tins of popcorn, which is what the Boy Scouts sell in the Fall to raise money (technically, it's for the parent organization, i.e. the Boy Scouts of America, but the BSA then sends program materials and maintains camps, etc. that are used by the local groups). I don't want or need tins of popcorn, but I buy because it used to be *my* little Cub Scouts trying to sell it.
2. What's something you're always happy to buy when kids sell it as a fundraiser?
Joe Corbi pizza kits. No, really; if your kid is selling Joe Corbi, I might buy without even researching the organization he or she is selling for. (Pay no attention to the undercooked pizza picture at the website -- you can make a quick, tasty pie with Joe Corbi ingredients.)
3. What was the last fundraiser you participated in?
I'm helping my kid do one right now. The High School Band Boosters are having the children sell Chick-fil-A coupon calendars to fund the Spring trip to Disney World. They're $9 a pop -- anyone want one? (Yeah, I know they're $7 ea. from the website, but then you're not contributing to the band trip!)
4. What are your feelings about the endless cycle of fundraising?
I accept that fundraisers are a fact of life. The alternative, in a culture that doesn't sufficiently fund the arts and youth organizations via public money, is that only the children of rich parents would be able to participate in community groups that did cool things.
I only really get annoyed when the public schools do it to fund ordinary field trips. C'mon, we can't even expect *those* for our tax dollars? And I only get out-and-out angry when school administrators respond to routine parental complaints ("Another catalog sale?") with a spiel about how the experience of selling is good for kids, teaching them to be self-reliant and to not expect pure hand-outs in life. Sorry, but I think I want my kid to learn something different. Oh, I'm not necessarily saying that I want him to become a person who *does* expect hand-outs, but I sincerely hope he'll grow up to be a person who doesn't think markets can solve all problems.
5. What's something people don't sell as a fundraiser but really should?
Back-rubs. Just kidding, I guess; but, you know, I would be much more tempted to randomly pull off the highway for a massage than to have my car washed. :-)