The Jane Goodall Institute was the charity that my daughter raised money for when she had her Bat Mitzvah nearly 15 years ago. At a Bat or Bar Mitzvah, a 13-year-old has the opportunity to give “tzedakah,” or to make a charitable donation to a worthy cause. At that time, my daughter felt that the work that Jane Goodall did was worthy for her tzedakah project.
I don’t remember how much she gave, but, since then, the Jane Goodall Institute hasn’t stopped calling and sending solicitation letters.
When does the charity stop calling?
Don’t you think that after several years of not getting a donation, the charity should take the hint? We keep telling them, every time they call, that we are finished giving, but they don’t stop.
The other day, a guy calls my house. “Are you Ms. Topper?”
I said, “who is calling?”
“This is John from the Jane Goodall Institute, I’m calling…” he said. I didn’t let him finish.
“Listen, my daughter gave to you when she was 13 years old. She is now 27. She hasn’t given you a dime since she was 13 so don’t you think it’s time you take her off your caller list and email list? You have probably spent more money trying to solicit her than what she has actually given you,” I said.
I felt bad saying this but it was getting ridiculous.
What do you think about charities and solicitations?
