I usually get home from Casino Arizona ~9pm. One day she tells me that some man keeps calling at 7pm every single day bec he says they didn't get the $10 she pledged. Can you even believe that? I hardly could but she insisted and she also insisted that she HAD sent them their $10. A couple of days later I didn't play so I was home for the call. Me and the guy have a back and forth over the $10 that he insists they haven't gotten. So I ask for the address, agree to send $10 and tell mom that from now on not to agree to send money to ANYBODY who calls.

Not too long after she tells me that he's calling again. I ask why and she confesses that she pledged another $10. Anybody here ever feel like strangling their own dear, sweet mother?

Thank goodness I'm around or she'd probably be like one of those pathetic old ladies that are suckers for the Franklin Mint collectible stuff.

Give to a canvasser. They get a cut, but they don't make much money. Plus if not for them signing up new members, they would have to bother the old members even more with calls and mail.

If you don't want to get mail, don't give them your address, or ask them not to send you any, give your e-mail instead.

between the outrageous salaries, marketing and overhead not much makes it to little Jimmy for his facial reconstructive surgery. Or to Africa or whatever. Salvation Army is good and I'm sure their are others-just do your homework. I give to the Shriner's. Also-guys with signs on the street are being pimped by Gypsies who beat them in Seattle. What a world.

My mother is same way as OPs. She has no nickels to spare yet she just keeps giving money to charities and televangelists (which is the worst!). I found out through an aunt that my mom gave $1,000 to a televangelist when they promised on tv that if you gave your life would be blessed. It's so aggrevating to see your parents get brainwashed by these piles of ****.

Why would they keep going back to Seattle in that case?

One of the charities I've donated to has a former meth head call you and tell you about their progress getting off the drugs. The phone call can be a little uncomfortable, but OTOH that's the whole point of supporting them, so the least I can do is listen. I do get mail occasionally, but certainly nothing overwhelming.

Oh, and the only way to deal with these phone calls is,

"Put me on your Do Not Call List!"

If they call again,

"I've asked to be put on your Do Not Call List previously. If I receive another call I will be contacting the attorney general."

Another useful phrase,

"I'm sorry. We don't accept phone solicitations."

Teach these phrases to your mother. Put them next to the phone if you have to.

I've told her to say 'We give to the United Way, goodbye.' That works so far.

I've been checking to see who she is actually sending money to and she's doing ok now, imo. Mostly Humane Society, SPCA and Red Cross. I've got to say, though, that the Humane Society especially is amongst the worst of the solicitors. She gives them plenty (no $10 for them) and we still get at least one letter/week.

I gave $10 to some feed the homeless thanksgiving charity like 5 years ago, and they've prolly sent me at least $10 worth of crap in the mail asking for more over the last 5 years.

I donated once to lance armstrongs charity thing, and holy crap, Ive gotten sooo much crap from them, like giant magnets and a calander and all kinds of junk, way more than what I gave.

Im honestly amazed some of these places turn enough of a profit to actually give any money to the people they are intended to help.

I don't know the full story here unfortunately. What I have seen is that the same people work the same corners about 12 hrs a day 7 days a week. A local guy has been at the same spot everyday for at least the 6 years I've had my house. At the end of their "shift" a guy/gal in a mini-van collects them. I have also seen a guy with a mini-van menacing the local reg mid day. Finger pointing and yelling at him regarding his efforts. Like a pimp slap. I have heard similar things from friends. I assume the "workers" are in some sort of economic bondage. It is a sad situation for sure. In Seattle it is fairly simple to get assistance and even permanent housing and a regular check if you are disabled or even just a drunk. I never give anything to street people due to this. It would be nice if somebody actualy investigated this stuff and published the results. Might get it stopped. Probably not since I see people handing my guy 5.00 all the time. He really looks pathetic but is on his cell phone fairly often and sports a pair of those 200.00 MJ basketball shoes. Good shoes are probably important for him however.

If there is an angle in anything someone is working it like they are curing cancer. Look at on-line poker for example. Amazing how hard people will work so they don't have to work. Nothing new in that I suppose.

This is a huge point. There are so many charities that give less than 50% of the donation to the people; it is sad.

http://charitynavigator.org/

I give my time ~1 day/week.

Guy i know is getting a phone call every single day from the Red Cross to donate blood again. He donates when he's allowed anyway and asks to not be bothered by it because he'll donate again regardless. But they keep calling. Even if he just donated the day before they keep calling him. Sometimes the calls are at 8 am. What is wrong with these people?

Does he tell them to stop?

Preface each of these phrases with "State law dictates that I must inform you I am recording this call..."

Then add "... in bed." at the end.

Comedy folks. I has it.

Note to self: never donate to meth-related charities. I get enough of these people at my door selling magazines as it is. I've found "I just lost my job" to be the quickest and easiest deflector.

I also get a lot of calls for my semi-recently graduated wife asking for money from her University. Yes, I'm sure we'd much rather give more money to the university for her degree that still hasn't been paid off yet, with her job that pays less than the cost of yearly tuition, thanks to such an awesome institution.

In high school one night we got drunk and bored, so we started calling 1-800 numbers just to mess with whoever answered. Talked to some chick at the World Wildlife Federation for like an hour then made like a $20 donation. For at least 10 years they sent me something every couple of weeks asking for more money. Address labels, little cards with animals on them, stickers, etc. They probably spent $200 trying to get more money out of me. I also think I got a lot more tree-hugger type people knocking on my door bugging me because of this. Warning: donate anonymously to stuff like that.

I try and give blood whenever I can and this is a major reason I dont do it more often. They are annoying as hell. Getting a call every day is not an exaggeration.

LOL, I was just making a joke based on the way you worded the sentence. It sounded as if the guys with signs could be from any city, yet they all fly back to Seattle for their beatings.

Is the group called WWF as well?

Yes. I just didn't want confusion with pro wrestling.

I don't give to charity. I figure there's 7 billion people out there, I can't help 'em, so why try? They're not in my MonkeySphere, **** 'em. Any dollar given away to randoms is less money for my kids' college, and my kids are roughly 7 billion times more important to me than random starving third-world kid. I know this makes me a bastard, but I just don't see any compelling reason to care. I'm all for improving the world with clever and scalable inventions, but giving away my money to temporarily alleviate some intractable problem with an ultimately futile gesture? No thanks.

How to end World Hunger:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0q4o58pKwA