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Show Be careful witn phone solicitors More and more often citizens are being contacted by phone to support a fund raising project for some organization or another. There is a good reason for this. Most service organizations are asked to make charitable contributions each year. Most would like to be able to oblige and assist worthwhile charities. For some, the burdon of fund-raising is detrimental in that it takes more time than they can afford to give. So the organization will hire a professional fund raising company to do it for them. This is perfectly legal. However, a public which is not familiar with how these businesses work, is often mislead by the approach of the caller. Often the person called is already favorably impressed with the organization being represented and so is sympathetic to a fundraising project they might sponsor. All people have their favorites among the groups which seek financial support from the public. One of the questions which should be raised when a person is called and asked to purchase a product or service is, "What percentage of this cost will actually go to the sponsoring group?" It may be startling to find that only a small percent of the profit goes to the sponsor. The remainder goes to pay the fundraiser and for the initial cost of the product or service. It is rather similar to organizations related to health research or services which carry on annual fund drives with much of the proceeds being gobbled up by overhead costs. Yet, a portion remains for the cause it was intended to help. Several residents of Pleasant Grove have recently discussed their concerns about this type of fund gathering saying they do not feel really good about donating money, even when they get a product or service in return, if the entire amount of profit is not going to be given to the sponsoring organization. Perhaps it would be good for the public, especially the senior citizens, to be made aware of the professional fund raising groups that now exist. Many sponsoring organizations feel that even a small percentage of the profits is worth it because they are spared the terrific amount of work involved in contacting numerous people. Whatever amount they raise is better than nothing. They can still do good with the money raised. The city leaders have cautioned residents to be careful of door-to-door salesmen and be sure that they have a business license to do business in the city. There is not the same requirement, of course, for those doing business by telephone. Citizens should be encouraged to donate to funds of their choice. It might be well, however, to check out the offer and make sure that your support is going where you want it to. |