It started with this: Allow Lauren to Stay in College Basically it is the woman from Love Bomb who needs money to stay in school. Specifically $4,000. The link does not state the exact circumstances, assuming there is more than there appears, but it looks like she just doesn't want to work full time and go to school.
People seem to really like her and I really like what Love Bomb does. (I don't really think it is a non-profit organization, but it is great, nonetheless.) I posed a question in the forum asking why her? Why is she so special that she doesn't have to work and go to school? Why doesn't she just get loans like the rest of us? Or perhaps only go to school part time? I expected hate mail and I
There are so very many people in need and this is the first time in my life that I have been in a position to donate anything, even if it is a little.
So here is my question for you: How do you decide who or what cause to donate to?
Thats a hard question....so many people need help now days, and we cant help them all....I gues we just need to go by our gut instinct....sorry not much help I know :)
ReplyDeleteI tell you who I'm not helping and that's Lauren. I don't give two shits if she can't afford to pay for school if she doesn't work full-time. There are alternatives to that, go part-time, stop bitching, apply for a loan.
ReplyDeletePeople who need help are ones that are going hungry, can't pay their power bill, or have nowhere to sleep.
I research my causes and give money to those with the lowest overhead. I hate big groups like United Way and refuse to give to them.
ReplyDeleteIf she can get people to donate money so she doesn't have to work her way through school, more power to her. I applaud her moxie.
ReplyDeleteMy parents paid my undergrad tuition; I worked about 30 hours per week to pay my living expenses. I paid my own way and borrowed some money along the way to get through law school. But not everyone has parental support for undergrad. For some, it is a real struggle. If she can convince enough people to donate so that she works fewer hours and/or takes out fewer loans, good for her. But I won't be donating.
I tend to spend my donation money on organizations that help more than one person; that have programs that have been demonstrated to help people learn to help themselves and to be or become self-sufficient; that help disabled persons by providing education or medical equipment to help them be self-sufficient; that help find cures for diseases that have touched my life; that help animals (but not PETA- they are too extreme); that provide disaster relief... I also donate food to food banks. But I don't tend to donate money directly to individuals who just happen to have less money than I have. I just feel like it leaves me too open to being scammed. After all, unless they've provided verified financial statements, I don't really have any way to know whether they actually have less money than I do. I leave that investigation to the organizations to which I donate.
And I agree with SkyDad. I hate United Way. All they do is take the money you donate and decide what other organization to donate it to (or donate it to the other organization(s) that you designate). What is the point of THAT? Why not just skip the middleman and donate directly to your organization of choice? That way, more of your money goes to helping your cause, and less of it lines the pockets of United Way personnel.