Now it’s happening locally. A local farm had their barn burn down. Apparently, the barn was insured for about 1/4 of what they lost - the barn itself, inventory stored in the barn, etc. So now they’re having fundraisers all over town to raise funds to cover their losses.
The whole thing has left a bad taste in my mouth. If, say, we were talking a car dealer, and not a hippy-dippy home-style down-to-earth farm, there’s no way they’d get people to donate money to them. Add in the fact that the farm is owned by two couples, both of whom have one member working outside the farm in a profession that brings in at minimum, six-figures, putting them solidly in the upper few percent of incomes in my area (I don’t live in a particularly wealthy area, so $100K puts you right up at the top end of incomes). Most of their fundraisers are being held at venues that attract young people and families, so in essence, they’re asking for money from people who in most cases have net incomes much lower than the farm owners themselves.
I’m totally hip to non-profits or even private families who have suffered similar losses to appeal to the community for help, but something just doesn’t work for me when it’s a business who was simply under insured. Am I a mean-spirited curmudgeon, or does this not pass the smell test for other people, too?
It depends what kind of fundraiser it is. I wouldn’t flat out donate to a business, but other sort of fundraisers would be okay. For example, in my area it is not uncommon for a person to run certain types of events for a profit - bus trips , a “party” at a bar, etc. The person running the event makes all the arrangements and the ticket price is set so that a profit is made. It’s not a group trip where a group of people get together and split the costs- advertising flyers are distributed and the participants may not have any connection to each other. With that type of fundraiser, it doesn’t matter to me if the profits go to a business, a non-profit or an individual.
I have seen fundraisers for technically for-profit businesses (like that independent bookstore) that, due to the times, aren’t making enough to stay in business without some help, but have a clientele that would very much miss them if they were gone. I can understand why a fundraiser would make sense to them, but IMHO they really ought to reincorporate as a nonprofit.
Hell, maybe that should be the test: if it doesn’t make sense to the owners to turn their business into a nonprofit, then they shouldn’t be holding fundraisers. That would probably exclude the farm right there.
The case of the farm reminds me of a situation with some similarities from long ago: I was in South Carolina when Hurricane Hugo plowed through in 1989. Afterwards, the TV was showing film that a helicopter had taken of the damage along the coast. While the announcers discussed the damage in somber tones, I realized I was looking at damage to a bunch of yuppie vacation homes. I remember thinkng, why on earth should my tax dollars go towards repairing someone’s vacation home? I’d feel the same about my charity dollars and that farm.
Yeah, but that’s not a fundraiser, that’s someone making a buck by providing a service: running an event of some sort. That’s called “business as usual.”
We have a local diner that’s an institution in our town (where I used to live). It had a massive grease fire and it was underinsured. They couldn’t rebuild, but the community came together to do fundraisers to help. Some folks were annoyed since the owner didnt have adequate coverage and felt we should not pay for their renovation, but most of the community felt this diner was worth it.
Yep, except when it’s done for a non-profit it actually is a fundraiser and I can imagine certain businesses advertising it in fundraiser style as " Help keep the hippy-dippy farm open" . The OP referred to “having fundraisers” and "Most of their fundraisers are being held at venues " so I assume we are not talking about the farm just soliciting actual donations.
They are soliciting donations as well as having events at local bars, restaurants, and parks. Their website has links where you can donate money or do things like organize a bunch of people to bring them lunch at the farm (). They also have a list of items they are looking for people to donate to them, including no less than 3 vehicles. I’ve seen local places are offering special deals, like “Every Farm Sandwich you buy includes a $1 donation to <farm name>.” It’s literally everywhere.
I’m not hardhearted, but sheesh, this is a business we’re talking about, not a charity. I didn’t much pay attention to the first few fund-raisers and donation requests I saw, but it’s just so all over this town now that it’s really backfired for me; I really don’t want to buy their stuff anymore, because my sense of them is that they’re entitled hippies who think the world owes them a living. Like I said, I’d like to see the local car dealer try something like this; they’d get laughed out of town.
This is what I mean- I wouldn’t bring them lunch, donate money or a vehicle or add a dollar to my supermarket bill to go to the farm But if the sandwich is priced reasonably (and a dollar isn’t going to make the difference) , I don’t care if the seller gives that dollar to the farm , keeps the dollar or lights it on fire. Same thing if someone’s selling tickets to an event at a bar- if it’s something I want to do for the right price I don’t care where the profit goes. Although if they’re mixing donations and events and it’s everywhere you turn , I might get annoyed enough about the begging to avoid the events on principle- not because I really care what happens to the dollar, but because I dislike greedy, entitled people
But the OP was talking about entities that specifically **weren’t **nonprofits - that’s the point of the thread. So I assumed you weren’t talking about nonprofits.
I might feel differently if we were talking about a farm family that would be without a livelihood if they couldn’t keep the farm going. But this is obviously not the case. The farm is somewhere between a hobby and a supplemental income for them. Why on earth should anyone be raising money for that?
And unlike IvoryTowerDenizen’s example in an additional way, it’s hard to see how Hippy Dippy Farm was the community’s gathering place, or filled any other irreplaceable need in the community’s life.
If I lived there, I’d be writing a letter to the editor of the local paper, asking, “exactly why the hell are we raising money to benefit these two well-to-do couples?”
If they are upfront about what they are and what they are doing, I really don’t see any problem with it.
There are companies I would gladly toss a couple bucks to get through a temporary hard time if it meant the difference between staying open and closing, either because they provide a product I really like, they fill a role in the community (providing jobs, keeping a storefront filled, etc.) or because I just know and like the owners and want them to succeed. If it really is an unexpected one-time speed bump, rather than a sign of consistent poor management, there really isn’t any benefit to them closing. A community with businesses that stay open is generally better off than a community where the businesses close.
Well, would they be able to keep in business without help? For instance, have they explained why they can’t borrow against those two six-figure incomes to put everything back together again? If they haven’t explained why that won’t suffice, then they are not being “upfront about what they are and what they are doing.”
And based on what Athena has told us so far, I’m betting they haven’t.
How could it be illegal? If I want to voluntarily give money to a business, how could the government make that illegal without violating my free speech rights? Or what if a parent wanted to pump cash into a childs business?
The OP thinks they are making that much. Has she seen their tax forms?
Even if they are making that much, it sure doesnt mean that they cant be having problems. After taxes and factoring in losses it is quite easy to believe they are struggling. Or, perhaps there is a strong sense of community?
Sure they can- but they’re not tax deductible to the donor, and the business will have to pay taxes on the gifts just like any other income.
I wasn’t - that’s why the rest of the sentence included “I can imagine certain businesses advertising it in fundraiser style” (emphasis added) - but you said earlier that running events was “business as usual”. It is, but running events was apparently at least part of what the OP meant by “fundraiser”.
I have not seen their tax forms. I have, however, seen their names and professions advertised, and given what they do, it would be unreasonable to think they have less than a six-figure income. There are just some professions that pay well, and it’s no secret that these couples both have one person who are off doing something besides farming.
). They also have a list of items they are looking for people to donate to them, including no less than 3 vehicles. I’ve seen local places are offering special deals, like “Every Farm Sandwich you buy includes a $1 donation to <farm name>.” It’s literally everywhere.