Save The TA TAs Donation Run

[Brody]

Jackie and I have been talking about doing this for a year or so and when I went over to install her new bumper and winch combo yesterday, we discussed it some more. Here is what we are planning on doing, suggestions are going to be welcome:

We are going to be putting on a Breast Cancer Donation Run to be held at China Wall. This run is going to have a $10 per head fee and all the money is going to be going to promote breast cancer research. The run is going to combine an obstacle course and will also include a recovery clinic and will be an all day event.

LaDawn is going to research who the best/most honest people/organization are going to be to donate the money to. One of the biggest breast cancer things like this originated in Denver, so this shouldn't be too hard for her to dial in.

I am sure that any breast cancer donations are going to be tax deductible, all donations will have a dated receipt and will get a copy of the donor organization receipt for their records.

I will need help with with the recovery clinic from people who are experienced with all manner of recovery techniques (Hi Lift jack use, winches, etc.). I will need at least two other people to help.

I will need volunteers to help set up obstacle courses for stock to modified rigs. I will need at least 4-5 people on this one.

Like I said, suggestions are appreciated. The actual date will be announced well before hand in order to plan for this. This is just a feeler to see what kind of interest is out there.

[DKDunn04]

If I am home and not doing re-integration I will help!

[RockyMtnHigh]

TA TAs, got my attention Pete! :lmao:

I doubt I will make it, but will be more than happy to donate!

Will the donations be taken at the time of the event or will there be a separate payment option such as PayPal?

[Brody]

I don't know whether Jackie or LaDawn is going to be handling the financials. I know LaDawn has a PayPal account, so I imagine that both PayPal and donations at the event will both be taken.

I am also wondering about getting another group or two involved. I suppose that will depend on what kind of response we get from this group. It would be nice to be able to donate a substantial amount to a good cause. I know way too many women who have both survived and have died from breast cancer.

Biggest thing is to have the money go to the actual cause and not line some greedy fucker's pockets like 'Jerry's Kids' or any one of the number of donation scams going on. Whomever we donate the money to is going to have to provide financials showing where the money is going and receipts for the money.

[4Runninfun]

Sounds like a good idea Pete! As you get close to announcing a date I will list whether or not I am able to volunteer.

[GaryG]

Summer is filling up, but definitely interested in helping out

[Jackie]

Hopefully LaDawn will be willing to handle the financial part. I wouldn't know where to begin with that.

[Neversummeriam]

Happy to help sounds like fun.
Hope I'm free when the time comes.

[Mesomelas]

I can provide free breast examinations for all the women out there. :D

[Jackie]

:lmao:

[Robert B]

hey brody id love to help :) and i dont have vast knowledge of winching but my dad does so one of us could help you there

[Squshiee1]

I can provide free breast examinations for all the women out there.
Thats what i told my Girlfriend! but she didn't believe me! :thumb:

[Jackie]

You guys are too funny!!!:lmao:

But on a serious note, I lost an elder sister (Mary) to breast cancer. She was 8 yrs my senior and only lived to be 39. She also had hodgkins disease when she was just a school girl and was actaully one of the first survivors of hodgkins. Our cousin, who was also just a teenager, and Mary's room-mate at Childrens Hospital, died right in front of her. Not easy for for anyone.

When the breast cancer took over, it was furocious. Mary fought for 3 yrs but died at 39.

I have a sister-in-law that recently had one breast removed because of cancer, but I think she is going to be OK.

This event is important for so many reasons. But it goes beyond breast cancer. There are so many bad forms of it atttacking men women and children and we really need to get a grip.

I'm not sure how much I can contribute to this run except to say that we can use my winch and test it on bigger/smaller vehicles, or we can stage my Jeep in a "stuck" situation and pull it out or what-ever. I'm looking forward to the event and learning some really great stuff while raising money that might save one of your family members' lives!

[Brad]

As long as I don't have to work I will be there.
I have had a stepmother die from breast cancer, my mother has beaten it and my mother in law is currently fighting it off.

[glacierpaul]

Thanks Pete!! I will try to help in any way I can. Cancer has taken lives and body parts from a few in my family, and many friends as well.

[Java]

going through this in my family right now (Stage 4 small cell lung), I'll help any way I can. China Wall looks great!

re: money / donations: I worked for a nonprofit in Miami and when we collected money without a permit we didn't collect it, we gave out donation envelopes to be mailed in. If you never touch it you have no liability.

[RidgeRunner]

Count me in as long as schedule allows. Anything for the TA TAs!

My mom survived breast cancer about 17 years ago.

[Stephen]

I am a huge fan of the ( o )( o ) :D

If I can make it, I'll be there! :thumb:

[Brody]

How about volunteers /suggestions for an obstacle course?

I have never set up one and it needs to be semi stocker friendly, so suggestions would be great...Ditto with another brain or two....Mine if semi functional at best..:D

[Jackie]

I've never even seen one, much less driven one. Thinking... Thinking... Thinking...

[Patrolman]

I would be interested in the run once a date is announced. IF I can make it, I wouldn't mind helping with the financials side.

[Brody]

If you and LaDawn can put your heads together on this, that would be great!

The obstacles would be set up much the same way that competition courses are run, I would imagine. Cones or flagging set up with X distance between them, points taken away from tagging a cone, etc. Kinda like a sick Driver's Ed course. I did a couple a long time ago when I was dating a lady who owned a Jeep and was all about the big Jeep thing that was being put on by Jeep. They had some courses set up, pretty basic, really, that people had to drive through. Something along those lines would be fun and China Wall would lend itself to that rather well.

I had almost forgotten that I had done these. Thing I remember about the last Jeep thing, which was held in Leadville, was that we argued all the way there and when we got there, I left her and her Jeep and hitch hiked back to Denver. Then I went rock climbing and had some fun....:D

[Coonburger]

id be game for it love the tah tahs. WHen i was actually in shape id do marathon runs for it but not anymore too fat lol. If we plan this correctly we can get a huge f'ing turn out like post on other forums about it etc.

[Brody]

I wondered about the other forum stuff and my thoughts on that right now are to keep it strictly Front Range and try to avoid having some government service/entity 'wannabe a real cop' get involved and start dictating just what we can and cannot due on land that we pay for with our taxes. Not posting it on other forums maintains a bit of a lower key, off the radar thing.

I personally do not like any government, anywhere I have ever been, and especially DO NOT LIKE some bunch of morons in suits/uniforms of one kind or another telling me what I can do or can't do. Never have, never will.

That said, let's keep this low key and simply contribute what we can.

[Patrolman]

I haven't seen anyone bring this up, but since it is an organized "event" do we need some sort of permit? Just getting some folks together for a run is one thing, but having an all day event and setting up cones, do we need permission from someone?

[Jackie]

I called a friend of ours who is a doctor with a private practice in CA, and he suggested we look into this site as a possible recipient for the funds we raise: http://www.bcrfcure.org/

I haven't read much of it yet, but I will. Other suggestions are welcome as well.

[Brody]

I haven't seen anyone bring this up, but since it is an organized "event" do we need some sort of permit? Just getting some folks together for a run is one thing, but having an all day event and setting up cones, do we need permission from someone?

See my first post on this where I said "as far as anyone is concerned, this is simply a trail run". .

In other words, let's not make a mountain out of a mole hill, especially when we are trying to donate money from our own pockets for a good cause on forest land that we pay for the use of with our taxes.

We can set up flagging instead of cones that we can easily remove later. The Anniversary Runs attract more people than what I expect will show up for this one. We have had them at China Wall with no problem for a number of years and these are all day events. We have also run 'recovery' clinics at China Wall, again with no problems and this was also another all day event with quite a few people attending.

I will repeat what I said earlier: As far as anyone else is concerned, it is simply another trail run.

[Coonburger]

lol i love it but so right u start getting the government in this kindof thing u loose all control and it becomes something for big brother to control another aspect of our lives in this "free" country. Thats when the heart and integrity of the "run" gets shrouded in a wave of government bs.

[Brody]

lol i love it but so right u start getting the government in this kind of thing u loose all control and it becomes something for big brother to control another aspect of our lives in this "free" country. Thats when the heart and integrity of the "run" gets shrouded in a wave of government bs.

Joshua summed it up rather nicely and with less anger than my original post. I deal with an HOA where we live and having petty bureaucrats getting involved means that all you have are a bunch of petty bureaucratic hoops to jumps through, making a simple thing into a rotting pile of crap. You triple the paper work, you add confusion, committees have to be formed, stuff has to be voted on, requirements have to be met, and what was once a simple thing becomes a ever increasing bunch of idiocy, way out of proportion to what the original idea was.

Personally, I like simplicity....and don't like idiots.

[Stephen]

If you want to skip accepting donations, there are nonprofit charities you can donate to using paypal. You pick the charity and we could possibly print our proof of donation to use as a ticket to play type of deal. Just throwing that out there.:erm:

[Coonburger]

good idea

[Jackie]

That really is a good idea, Stephen. That way none of has to be responsible for money, receipts etc. We could tally up the amount donated just by keeping a tally on the amount of receipts shown by the participants.

All in favor, say :thumb:. If you have a better idea let us know.

It would be nice to see more suggestions for charities. This one our friend suggested looks pretty good from what I've read so far: http://www.bcrfcure.org/

[Robert B]

firewood put in a line or something for bumps
when me and my fireds go camping we use a whole dead tree for fire wood so that could be really fun :D

flags to not hit
could use these kinda like the pros and get 1 or 2 lines that are a little bit more interesting than going straight through something

try to take your mirrors off type of thing
if it takes your mirrors off my fenders have to come off :P


so who wants to start this?? i can help some since im closer than most of you are :) (finally!!)

[Brody]

What it would take is to have a couple folks camp out the night before or start up earlier and do a course set up.

[Coonburger]

Great idea heather!!!!!!!! Some logs and cones set up for certain lines would be interesting thats for certain. A relay of sorts race to one end grab flag and race back kindof thing

[Brody]

I like the relay idea, too!

[Gossamer]

Depending on the date im definitely in !!!....How bout a rig tug o war ?

[Coonburger]

I did it alot in highschool kindof happens when u go to mud bogs alot. It is not as cool as u might think 90 percent of the time especially on dirt people just sit there spinning. Let me me know ahead of time so i can drop tire size and get the power back lol

[Coonburger]

so when we gonna pull the pin on this and have a date and a list of items/materials were gonna need. Iam gonna be off for the rest of the summer looks like so ill help with set up and that kindof thing the day prior.

[Titus]

Depending on the date im definitely in !!!....How bout a rig tug o war ?

Tug of war? I like my chances!!!

[Coonburger]

yeah ill put money u as well lol

[Jackie]

That means "more money for ta tas"!:D

[Gossamer]

LEts do this

[Brody]

We are thinking about Susan G Komen or Avon right now for an organization for the money to go to. Anyone have other suggestions, i would like to hear them.

[Brody]

This was just found on Colo 4x4:

Susan G Komen rockcrawling event teaser
I am trying to find out what kind of preliminary interest there would be in this event in October. I know it is a long ways away but they have to set up the details well in advance.

The event will be on October 1st, 2011 at the Eagle county fair grounds. Hosted by Hobbs Excavating, I am sure they will be able to find some good sized rocks! There will be 4 classes, Stock, Modified, Unlimited A, and Unlimited B. All the proceeds will go to the Susan G Komen fight against breast cancer.

I just wanted to check with you all, the biggest wheeling group that I am associated with, and get an idea of how many people might want to come to something like this. As we get closer and they get me a flyer I will post it up for more complete information.

Thanks!

Not much has been added to this thread since the last post, but I have been talking to quite a few folks about it and trying to figure out where the money should end up. The Susan G. Komen Foundation IS NOT one of them because, as I have found out, 90% of the money donated to them for "cancer research" goes into the pockets of the people who are running the non profit organization, as so often happens.

I feel pretty strongly about people making money off of other people's misery and illness, especially since there has probably been a cure for cancer in existence for 20 or more years, but the drug companies and medical professionals are making so much money from it, so why not milk the cow. I don't like that attitude. This is too much like the "Jerry's Kids" BS, where all the money just goes to making already rich people richer.

I am in favor in doing a benefit run, for sure, if the money actually goes somewhere it will benefit breast cancer research/cure. I am not in favor of putting money into some asshat's pockets. If we can come up with a viable organization where the money is actually going to do some good, then let's do some more research and find one.

If there aren't honest organizations out there, then I guess we will simply pass on this and I will offer my heart felt feelings to all the organizations out there that take advantage of the good nature of people:

**** YOU.

[gm4x4lover]

What about alexs lemonade stand

www.alexslemonade.org

[Java]

I give to animal charities a lot through work, and most of the small shelters you can see that your cash is going into a gas tank, or ordering lunch... so I get thier needs list and buy stuff like food, litter, papertowels, bedding, etc... and they get what they need without any $$ wasted. We could find a charity with a need for an item and fill it.

As long as we're beating up non-profits, I have an issue with the Denver Rescue Mission. I moved here in 98, and I was a project manager at MCI Telerelay in South Fl and also worked for the Deaf Services Bureau of the United Way and have a soft spot for charities and the people who are involved with them. The rescue mission needed someone to manage a call center and I applied and was offered the job- during the process I signed a few things, one of which was a page with 4 bible verses on it that I had to agree was the only viable scripture. I'm raised christian so I said whatever, and then the interviewer told me in conversation that if there is any conflict over that paper they won't hire the person. I asked if they had a similar one for donations and she laughed, thought I was joking. So my wife is Jewish, they would take her check but wouldn't let her put soup in a bowl for a homeless dude... elitist crap... reminded me of the old african missionaries that would give out food after church only, no believe no eat, when the reality is those people would have followed Charles Manson for a sandwich . There is a good book about that, The Poisonwood Bible. DRM can suck it, IMO.

[Rob]

The Susan G. Komen Foundation IS NOT one of them because, as I have found out, 90% of the money donated to them for "cancer research" goes into the pockets of the people who are running the non profit organization, as so often happens.

Where did you learn that?

Charity Navigator rates it highest among five breast cancer charities and CharityWatch.org gives it a grade of B+. Here's the group's balance sheet for 2010 ("program expenses" is what it spends on its stated purposes as a nonprofit):

Income Statement (FYE 03/2010)
Revenue
Primary Revenue $273,707,240
Other Revenue $38,148,304
Total Revenue $311,855,544

Expenses
Program Expenses $254,840,077
Administrative Expenses $37,629,831
Fundraising Expenses $23,797,862
Total Functional Expenses $316,267,770

Payments to Affiliates $0
Excess (or Deficit) for the year $-4,412,226

Net Assets $165,602,778

I wouldn't say 90% is lining pockets.

Check out both Charity Navigator and Charity Watch. Interestingly, while CN gives Komen a four-star rating, CW gives Breast Cancer Research Foundation only 3. CW gives Komen a B+ and BCRF an A+. BCRF doesn't raise nearly as much money as Komen (which is a fundraising juggernaut and spends more on administration and fundraising that BCRF raises and spends in a year), but it spends more on programs and much less, percentagewise, than Komen on administration and fundraising.

I'd say either one would be a good beneficiary, but I'd lean toward Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

[Brody]

I have been talking to some people involved in breast cancer and other charity/fund raiser stuff, and they said that they now no longer donate to the Komen foundation because of the stuff I mentioned. LaDawn has also done some research and came to the conclusion that the Komen foundation maybe isn't the best place for donations unless it is to simply see money vanish...

I have some real issues with any kind of charities who market and sell "for a good cause" and the "good cause" happens to be themselves or family and friends...in other words, a racket. People like that need to have one of their legs simply pulled off and then left by the side of the road.

I have asked for viable suggestions for charities for a donation run. Your kind of input is what I was asking for. There have been very few suggestions overall, so the more we can get, the better to choose from. I work too hard for the money I make to have it line some slimebag's pocket, as I am sure that the rest of the folks here do, too.

[RockyMtnHigh]

I just give all mine to my wife...hey wait a minute, I think I'm getting had! :lmao:

At least you had it to give to her, mine just gets direct deposited and I never see it! :frown:

[RockyMtnHigh]

I get my allowance...sometimes! :D

Sometimes it's better to ask for forgiveness, than it is to ask for permission. :lmao:

[Popsgarage]

I just give all mine to my wife

They're ta ta's, ain't they?:D Mine's mine, her's is hers. As long as I make the house payment, I'm good.

[Brody]

So.....back on track here:

Unless someone can come up with a viable breast cancer charity...and one where the money actually goes to the cause and not to a bunch of ******* thieving bastards...and a charity where the 'charity' can actually show some real proof of where the money goes, then we ought to just **** can this idea.

Someone can't come up with something in the next week or so, I am just going to delete this thread as a waste of time.

[RockyMtnHigh]

My wife has done the Komen run the last 4 years and will be doing it again this Sunday, while I disagree with the earlier statements I won't argue them.

Here's another organization that I plan on tying flies for this winter, they do take monetary donations as well: http://castingforrecovery.org/home

[Rob]

Unless someone can come up with a viable breast cancer charity.

You don't believe the audited financial statements and 990's? They're available for both charities I mentioned.

[glacierpaul]

Another thing that could be done, is find a women in need of monetary help for this condition, and give directly to someone in need. That way you bypass all of the money grubbing. I think the idea is sound, just need to figure out the "in need". I know there has to be a women out there, with breast cancer, that needs some monetary help on a legitimate level.

[Coonburger]

there is ill talk to my wife my mother in law has been fighting breast cancer for a long time

[Coonburger]

i dont know either way doing nothing is worse then doing something and having part of it misplaced. The whole system is not perfect but alteast we can make some kindof of a difference every lil bit helps. So where are we going to do this and when in october *before snow starts flying hardcore up in the mountains*. How bout talking to the guys at Core maybe we can do something with them to do this on a weekend at their place. I know they charge 10 dollars a person but maybe we can do on a weekend 20 per rig advertise it a lil bit get some more people raise some more cash just a thought. If someone knows the owner personally plz step up well see what we can get going. If not let me know and ill come up with a plan show the owner what were looking at and go from there. I know some people just wanna do a pure club thing but this will actually show more of the 4x4 community who we are get our name ou there and possibly some new members.

[Brody]

I know some people just wanna do a pure club thing but this will actually show more of the 4x4 community who we are get our name our there and possibly some new members.

First off, I appreciate your wanting to help.

Secondly, the main reason for keeping it a 'club thing' is mainly due to the fact that if we do this in an area that the FS maintains , there are restrictions on the number of vehicles (heartbeats) that we can have before we have to start jumping through a bunch of rather BS hoops, get permits, etc, etc, all because we want to raise money for a good cause. Personally, I am not going to jump through any government BS hoops if there is any way to avoid it.

Thirdly, I don't think we are dying to get 'our name out there and attract a bunch of new members'. We do just fine with a smaller group and that is one of the reasons that we try to keep the group size down to under 200. We have found that many of the clubs that have huge 'member numbers' also have a very, very low percentage of people who post, go on runs, etc., but their member count is huge. We aren't going to go that direction.

The purpose of the run is to generate money for a good cause, not to tout the benefits(whatever) of Front Range, nor to gather a bunch of new members. The owner of CORE is also a member of FR, BTW, and has worked out stuff with FR before.

Let's find a source for the donations , then go about the planning, something I believe has gotten mentioned a lot.

[Brody]

The ultimate decision of where the money goes will most likely be decided on by the women members, not one of the guys, for the simple reason that they are more involved with breast cancer, have had more friends who have dealt with it and are easily more informed about the whole subject, including foundations that actually work.

The decision as to where the one is to be held and what the actual date is going to be is also going to be decided, probably by the person who actually started this whole thread (me) and will be posted WHEN we find the right place for the money to go.

The where and when is actually a very minor point. The to whom the money goes and does it do any good is not a minor point. I don't think anyone wants to see money that they worked (most of us, anyway) hard for go to line someone's pocket and not to the the right cause.

Suggestions as to viable organizations/charities are what we are after.

[Jackie]

I have participated in two events this year where the money actually went directly to the cancer patient. One was a male, the other a female who had a double mastectomy. The appreciation shown by the cancer victims as well as their family members was overwhelming. They were both 4-wheelers BTW.

I have donated a bunch of money to the cause over the years, especially since I lost a sister to breast cancer. But I agree that there are a lot of charities that mis-use the money.

I'm torn as to what we should do - but agree that we should and can do something to make life better for at least one person if not all people. (Breast cancer affects men too).

I also agree with Pete that I think they already know the CURE...it's just too profitable to give it up.

[Brody]

I am well aware that guys also get breast cancer. Maybe I am not totally representative of the guys, but all it would be for me it would be, "Glad I am alive. Gotta a new scar and missing a breast. So what? Just another scar to add to the ever growing collection."

I think it is a little bit different with women as it affects so many different mental and physical aspects of their lives, not to mention it affects more women than men. That is one of the reasons that the women on the forum (including wives and girlfriends) make the decision on the organization the money ultimately goes to. FYI, LaDawn also thinks that this decision should reside with the women.

[gm4x4lover]

:lmao::lmao:Pete have you looked in the mirror? You cant stand to loose anything, turn sideways and you damn near dissapear. :lmao::lmao:

[Brody]

Thanks Nick....You are about as funny as LaDawn thinks she is....:lmao::lmao:

So I gotta run around in stupid little circles in the shower...Surprisingly enough, there are days that I will eat 3 huge dinners about 20 minutes apart. LaDawn wonders where the stuff goes...so do I...especially since I never eat until I am stuffed.

[Brody]

Just an FYI and a reminder the "Think Before You Pink" and to back up my concerns that the funds actually go to the right place and not to line the pockets of some greedy *******(s):

The Breast Cancer Charity Scam
Margaret Hartmann
There are few causes that are more widely supported than the effort to end breast cancer, yet somehow making sure your money actually goes to supporting research and helping people affected by the disease has become exeedingly difficult. You're probably aware that companies pushing products festooned with pink ribbons are often giving almost nothing to breast cancer charities. However, it isn't just the pink yogurt lids and Snuggies for the cure that you need to watch out for. The world of breast cancer fundraising is riddled with despicable people looking to make money off of your good intentions. An article in the October issue of Marie Claire paints a disturbing picture of where breast cancer fundraising is right now. On the one hand, we seems to have reached critical mass on awareness now that NFL players are sporting pink on the football field, and people are donating tremendous amounts of money to the cause. The magazine reports: Last year, the National Institutes of Health, the nation's top agency for health-related research, allocated $763 million to the study of breast cancer, more than double what it committed to any other cancer. The Department of Defense also funds breast cancer research ($150 million this year), as do several states, most notably Texas and California. All that is in addition to the money raised by the roughly 1,400 IRS-recognized, tax-exempt charities in this country devoted to breast cancer. They operate in every state and in just about every major city. The largest of them, Dallas-based Susan G. Komen for the Cure, grossed $420 million last year alone. All told, an estimated $6 billion is raised every year in the name of breast cancer. And the money keeps pouring in. This has led to many developments in the way we treat breast cancer, but we aren't much closer to finding a cure than we were 20 years ago. Part of the reason is that many charities that claim to support breast cancer research actually only exist to make people rich. Some nonprofits are just mismanaged by breast cancer survivors are relatives who have no experience running a charity. There are also plenty of organizations that purposedly pose as breast cancer charities just to steal money from donors. For instance, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has filed a lawsuit against the Coalition Against Breast Cancer for allegedly being nothing more than a "sham charity." Marie Claire reports: According to the complaint, founder Andrew Smith; his girlfriend, Debra Koppelman; and their associates pilfered almost all of the $9.1 million raised in the past five years alone. Other eye-opening claims: The telemarketing firm hired to solicit donations was owned by CABC cofounder Garrett Morgan, who billed the charity $3.5 million for his services. In total, Smith and Koppelman paid themselves more than $550,000 in salaries between 2005 and 2009, plus another $150,000 in retirement accounts, this though both held down full-time jobs as recruiters. The CABC issued Smith a $105,000 personal loan, which he squandered on bad investments; Koppelman authorized a $50,000 loan to herself toward the purchase of a home. Nonprofits have to report financial information to the IRS, but it's easy to fudge the numbers. Money used to hire telemarketers can be described as funds used for education if the words "Don't forget to get a mammogram!" are stamped on the bottom of the charity's stationary. The value of gifts may be inflated to make it seem like the charity is bigger, and distort the fact that most of the money isn't going to breast cancer research. Even some respected groups, like the Texas charity the National Breast Cancer Foundation, are involved in potentially shady practices, like hiring a slew of family members and giving them six-figure salaries for filling vague roles like "senior consultant." You only have to look at the number of celebrities whose foundations have folded amid scandal to realize that the issue isn't particular to breast cancer charities. But it does seem that many scammers are drawn to the cause because people are quicker to donate when they're asked to help fight breast cancer. It's sick that you have to wonder if groups are making false claims about helping breast cancer patients, but the phrase "think before you pink" applies to official-sounding charities as well as the massive amount of pink ribbon paraphernalia. Marie Claire has a guide to figuring out if a charity is reputable, and lists a handful that are known to spend most of the money they raise on research and treatment. While it may seem like the more charities the better, smaller, poorly-run nonprofits are just drawing donations away from organizations that are actually make progress in the fight against breast cancer. The Big Business Of Breast Cancer [Marie Claire] Earlier: "Breast Cancer Is A Disease, Not A Marketing Opportunity" Image via i9370/ Shutterstock .
Like · Comment · Share · September 15 at 11:24am via Allin1social

[Brody]

And more:

from Marie Claire :The Business of Breast Cancer:

"There is a lot of deception that goes on with breast cancer groups," says Daniel Borochoff, president of the American Institute of Philanthropy, a Chicago-based nonprofit watchdog group. One problem, he says, is that breast cancer charities are often run by well-meaning but inexperienced survivors or relatives who duplicate the efforts of established organizations. They use donor dollars to print their own educational brochures, though they certainly exist elsewhere; they organize events to promote awareness — "Skydive to End Breast Cancer!" — then blow too much of their funds getting these events off the ground. There's no requirement of a college degree or business experience to run a charity. You don't even need a clean legal record. (The treasurer for the Coalition Against Breast Cancer was a Long Island housepainter with several warrants for unpaid child support.) Even the names of many charities are designed to fool donors into believing they are bigger and more impressive than they are. Case in point: Though its moniker suggests it presides over a vast network, The Breast Cancer Charities of America is a tiny, three-woman outfit operating just outside Houston that banked $2 million in 2009, mostly through telemarketers. (Founder Erica Harvey says she came up with the name "with a team of marketing consultants.") "Any bozo can set up [a charity] and start soliciting," adds Borochoff.

All charities must file detailed financial reports with the Internal Revenue Service, but they don't have to be audited, or certified by a licensed accountant. In effect, anyone can write them up and turn them in. Some states require that a CPA review the books, but the rules vary widely. In California, only groups grossing $2 million or more per year need a CPA's certification; there's no auditing requirement at all in Texas. Even still, it's alarmingly easy to boost a charity's numbers to make it appear as if it's spending more on its mission — education and support groups, for example — than it actually is, especially for the many nonprofit outfits that rely on telemarketing. Here's how it's done: If a telemarketer charges, say, 70 cents for every dollar it collects — telemarketers are as expensive as they are annoying — a charity can write off some of that expense as part of its educational mandate by stamping "Don't forget to get a mammogram!" at the bottom of its invoices to donors. Another common accounting trick allows charities to accept gifts — say, a used car worth $500 — but then report these contributions at a much higher value. Neither tactic is illegal, by the way. What's the point of all this financial monkey business? Size matters when it comes to charities. The bigger the organization, the more reputable it seems, and the more likely it is to receive your cash.

The Breast Cancer Society, based in Mesa, Arizona, has made an art form of this kind of creative accounting. Founded in 2007 by James T. Reynolds II, now 37, the organization provides critically ill breast cancer patients across the country with cash grants to pay for everything from groceries to medical bills, Reynolds says. In 2009 (the most recent year for which tax records are available), the BCS claims it raised $50 million in contributions, the bulk of which went to supplying medicines to hospitals in Third World countries like Guatemala and Ethiopia, ostensibly for the treatment of breast cancer. (Reynolds says he has visited only three of the eight hospitals that purportedly received these medicines.) Press him on his group's finances and he admits that, in fact, BCS raised just $15 million in cash donations in 2009. The other $35 million represented his estimate of medications that the BCS accepted as gifts or bought at a major discount but then listed on its books as having much higher values. For example, BCS reported that it sent $8.8 million worth of goods to hospitals in East Asia. "I'd have to look it up, but it probably cost us maybe $40,000 to procure and distribute that," Reynolds concedes in a phone interview. Where do these medicines come from? Reynolds says he gets them from other organizations, including the Ontario-based Universal Aide Society, which saw its Canadian charitable status revoked two years ago for malfeasance. (Its employees used funds to finance vacations and other personal expenses.) This so-called "gifts in kind" scheme makes BCS seem a whole lot bigger than it actually is and obscures the fact that the group spent 90 cents of every dollar that it raised on telemarketers, not patients.

Read more: Pink Ribbon Business - Breast Cancer Charity Scams - Marie Claire

http://www.marieclaire.com/world-reports/news/breast-cancer-business-scams-2

Personally, I would like to simply gut someone who does these kind of rip offs, and leave them holding their intestines in their hands while trying to fend off a pack of hungry dogs...

My concerns are valid as to where the money goes. It isn't just a simple subject and I don't care if we are talking about a $1 or $1,000 dollar donation, it needs to go to the right place.

[glacierpaul]

Behind you 100% Pete.

[Brody]

This may help. It is an independent rating for all charity organizations:

http://www.charitywatch.org/toprated.html

And the cancer foundations:

CANCER
AIP GRADE
Breast Cancer Fund B+
Breast Cancer Research Foundation A+
Cancer Care A
Cancer Research Institute A
CureSearch/National Childhood Cancer Foundation A
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society B+
Livestrong (formerly Lance Armstrong Foundation) A–
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center A
Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation A
National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund A
Prevent Cancer Foundation A
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC) B+
Susan G. Komen for the Cure B+

Shouldn't be too hard to figure out and then contact the best charity from this list. It would also be worthwhile to go to the listed site and read what their parameters are for establishing a rating to help you make your choice.

I am trying to get Aaron to do a poll for the charities, so here is the starting lineup. Once we establish the charity, we can then proceed with a date and time. I have sent an email to the owner of CORE to see if he is amenable to hosting the run at his facility. If he is, we can then 'host' the event as Front Range and get other clubs involved as we wouldn't have to be jumping through hoops with the FS, which has been my main objection to involving other groups on FS land.

This may be a good run to do sometime in November as all of the high passes are closed and there isn't too much going on besides Thanksgiving.

The Komen group probably lost points because they have been sueing everybody and their brother who used the words "The Cure" in any advertising. Now it seems that they seem to think that they hold the sole rights to the word "Pink". Talk about getting your panties in a bunchie....Anyone can take a look around and see that what we really need is more of that happy horseshit....I do have to say that there wasn't too much bad mouthing about the money they (Komen) collected other than an awful lot of it went to "run" the foundation and what was spent "running" the foundation was inversely proportional to the amount that actually went to the cause...

[Rob]

This may help. It is an independent rating for all charity organizations:

http://www.charitywatch.org/toprated.html


You must have missed post 53, Pete, where I suggested charitywatch.org and charity navigator. :)

[Brody]

I did indeed.

I am open to suggestions, but if this starts taking too long, I am going to designate a charity, and hopefully hear something back from CORE so we can set a time and date.

How does November sound? How does CORE sound?

How about some more suggestions?

7 days and I will probably shitcan this thread and idea if we don't get more interest.

[RockyMtnHigh]

I did indeed.

I am curious, did you miss the 2010 financial statement for the Komen Foundation he posted also? :confused:

[Brody]

Nope, saw that and did some more research.

Like I said, I don't really care what charity it goes to as long as the money doesn't do to some slime balls. Be nice to get more input.

[Brody]

That was another thought that I had, too, but didn't mention it as I couldn't figure out how to do it.

Six days before this goes away, BTW. Need some more feedback and responses.....and a little more interest shown. We have 4-5 people out of 200 showing interest. No ****, I am going to toss this in a few days we don't get a little more feedback and someone else can do all the BS stuff next time around.

[Jackie]

My daughter works at St. Joes in the surgery recovery unit. I just talked to her about our plans to do a fundraiser and suggested we MIGHT decide to give the money to one woman. She told me that she can't talk about her patients or suggest someone because of the HIPPA privacy rules, but she will be willing to ask the hospital authorities about how we could do that. I also have a friend that works in the oncology unit at Lutheran, so I'm sure that she sees more than her share of breast cancer patients. I might be able to get input from her as well.

I kind of like the idea of helping one person vs. giving it to a research company. At least we would know that we provided some "instant relief" for someone who has a long road ahead of her.

We should probably decide pretty quick which direction we want our money to go. I say we either give it to one woman or we give it to one of the A+ organizations previously listed.

[Brody]

LaDawn just suggested maybe going to one of the women's shelters locally and 'adopting' a family.

Since I do not like big corporations (corporations and politicians both suck) and also do not like dealing with some talking head, I much prefer a hands on approach, too.

[Jackie]

Great idea - especially with Christmas coming. It's time to clean out the closets as well. Give your good quality "no-longer-needed" items to a family who could use them.

But is that changing this from Ta Ta's to "family"? Either/Or or both are fine with me.

[glacierpaul]

The hospitals can simply do a raffle or some sort of drawing for the patients, that are in need since only the patient and the Dr./staff know their situation. Then we have one or maybe 2 women who receive the charity, and HIPPA is not an issue. But, there is the rub, will a Dr./staff do this for us?