y'all know i come from a nonprofit background, right? that most of the gigs i've had to date have been in the nonprofit sector? i know and have worked with a number of people in fundraising and development. so really, i get it when organizations send their end-of-year appeal letters asking for specific amounts that might be slightly higher than their normal ask. i understand it, i do. you're taking the chance that your donors may be in the holiday spirit and are feeling more generous than usual, and you also figure that you'll never know if that donor will contribute (insert dollar amount here) unless you specifically ask for it.
i was going through my mail yesterday and there was an end-of-year appeal letter from an organization here in chicago that i've previously supported. it was pretty standard as far as donation letters from this organization go - they did their mail merge correctly and inserted my first name more than once to make me feel special, etc. i skimmed it, really, b/c this organization is usually on my list of year-end charitable contributions anyway, but then i got to the ask.
"eulalia, your gift of $2500 or more will..."
i literally laughed out loud. well, as much as someone with laryngitis can laugh out loud, anyway. as i said on twitter yesterday, the most i've given to this organization is maybe $100, and that's been in a very good year when i was working full-time and actually was staying in my own place, etc. my usual contribution amount is in the $20-$40 range, depending on my list.
needless to say, this organization won't be seeing a cent from me this year. i know i should probably contact their development office and tell them that asking me for that kind of money is just ridiculous, especially given my current circumstances, and maybe i will, after the 1st of the year. right now, though? whine whine whine bitch bitch bitch.
No comments:
Post a Comment