topic Re: GoFundMe for personal use? in Community Chat

GoFundMe for personal use?

feline groovy — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 01:38:32 GMT

Q community board peeps ~

I know that this is an unusual question, but here goes:

Has anyone here been forced to set up a GoFundMe account for their own use as a total last resort, due to the lack of help elsewhere?

And if so, could you please detail your experience(s) here?

FYI, BTW: if the recipient doesn't have a bank account, a check will be sent instead if there's any funding.

Thanks mucho for any info, tips, &/or other stuff that you've got.

~ Feline 8-)

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

esmeraldagooch — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 17:53:33 GMT

Looking forward to the responses you get on this topic. I am amazed how well or not so well this way of funding works out for those asking.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

Snowpuppy — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 17:57:38 GMT

Never been to the site but based on posts here I've seen worthwhile causes that could be funded.

What would be a personal need that you would ask strangers for funding? How is this different than panhandling?

I'm not on FB but I hear complaints about people posting their personal drama and then begging for donations. Baby Mama got a worthless Baby Daddy who won't buy diapers, a crib or a carseat.

So please donate "cause she on her iPhone and too lazy to get a job.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

Plaid Pants2 — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 17:59:12 GMT

Would I donate $ to someone's GFM account, just because they couldn't balance their checkbook?

No, but I'm sure that people do.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

KarenQVC — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 17:59:23 GMT

My suggestion is for the person in question to go to the social services offices. They may be eligible for aid. If a senior, they should call the local Agency on Aging. If the person has assets like a house, they should go to a non-profit budget planning agency. They may be over their heads in general.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

proudlyfromNJ — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:06:51 GMT

You can check all of them out on the Gofundme site. Tells the story, how much has been raised, etc.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

RazorSharp — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:08:27 GMT

I read a story about a woman who was fired from her teaching job, because she made a video of an intimate encounter with a guy, and that guy hacked into her computer, stole the video, and posted the video on the webpage on her school's website. All of her students saw it, and she was held responsible and fired. She raised over 20K in a week on one of these fund raising sites. I've also seen people raise money for other who are in the hospital as well as for sick pets. It seems to be quite an effective way of raising money very quickly.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

terrier3 — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:10:01 GMT

It depends on what you need the money for, IMO.

People use Kickstarter and other sites to fund movies or new businesses...I saw one for a woman who needed money for a lawyer - she was arrested for having a loaded assault type rifle in her car and wanted help for 2nd A types.

I think that the site keeps a portion of the proceeds too.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

chrystaltree — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:10:01 GMT

......wouldn't it be quicker to just panhandle on street corner? I hear those people rake in big bucks.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

Lovingq — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:13:54 GMT

I think it's tacky for personal use but if people want to donate it's on them for being so foolish.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

Lovingq — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:16:30 GMT

@RazorSharp wrote:
I read a story about a woman who was fired from her teaching job, because she made a video of an intimate encounter with a guy, and that guy hacked into her computer, stole the video, and posted the video on the webpage on her school's website. All of her students saw it, and she was held responsible and fired. She raised over 20K in a week on one of these fund raising sites. I've also seen people raise money for other who are in the hospital as well as for sick pets. It seems to be quite an effective way of raising money very quickly.

Well she was stupid to make such a video and as a teacher should know better.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

RazorSharp — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:20:06 GMT

@Moretofollow wrote:
I think it's tacky for personal use but if people want to donate it's on them for being so foolish.

In some instances I think you're right that these causes could be very foolish, but if you know the person, and you are aware of the circumstances, it seems like a good way to help out. Look at what happened at the Wounded Warrior Project. Millions of people made donations and it turns out that they were mishandling the money. The two heads of the organization were fired within the last couple of days.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

bri20 — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:25:09 GMT

A friend of ours lost her husband suddenly. He was the main breadwinner of the family. They had four small children under the age of 10.

A GFM was set up for her to pay her mortage for six months and other immediate expenses that she had.

I would donate for something like that. But for somebody who can't manage their finances, no, I wouldn't.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

RazorSharp — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:26:12 GMT

@Moretofollow wrote:
@RazorSharp wrote:
I read a story about a woman who was fired from her teaching job, because she made a video of an intimate encounter with a guy, and that guy hacked into her computer, stole the video, and posted the video on the webpage on her school's website. All of her students saw it, and she was held responsible and fired. She raised over 20K in a week on one of these fund raising sites. I've also seen people raise money for other who are in the hospital as well as for sick pets. It seems to be quite an effective way of raising money very quickly.
Well she was stupid to make such a video and as a teacher should know better.

I agree that anyone with any kind of professional job should be careful of their behavior in their personal lives. However, it's not against the law to make a video. It is illegal, however, for someone to steal someone's property and hack ino a school's website. If someone broke into your home, snapped a picture of you in the shower, posted it on your company's website, and you were fired, would that be your fault? Just because you find making the video an immoral action doesn't mean it is an illegal one. Her state's Board of Education found that she was not in violation of any morality clauses in her contract, so she is suing the school district.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

chrystaltree — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:29:14 GMT

@Beachy1 wrote:
A friend of ours lost her husband suddenly. He was the main breadwinner of the family. They had four small children under the age of 10.

A GFM was set up for her to pay her mortage for six months and other immediate expenses that she had.

I would donate for something like that. But for somebody who can't manage their finances, no, I wouldn't.

I would only donate to something like that if I was 100% sure that the story was true. My guess is 99% of the stories like that on GoFundMe,com are fake or greatlu exaggerated.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

RazorSharp — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:31:36 GMT

@chrystaltree wrote:
@Beachy1 wrote:
A friend of ours lost her husband suddenly. He was the main breadwinner of the family. They had four small children under the age of 10.

A GFM was set up for her to pay her mortage for six months and other immediate expenses that she had.

I would donate for something like that. But for somebody who can't manage their finances, no, I wouldn't.

I would only donate to something like that if I was 100% sure that the story was true. My guess is 99% of the stories like that on GoFundMe,com are fake or greatlu exaggerated.

You bring up an interesting point. I wonder how, if at all, GoFundMe vets the people who want to set up a campagin on their website?

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

sunshine45 — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:39:13 GMT

here are two different scenarios that friends of mine experienced this past year. they both set up gofundme pages and yes, i did contribute. for me, it has nothing to do with foolishness, but everything to do with compassion.......especially when you know the people involved.

one.....

a friend of mine who is unemployed and seeking a job found an abandoned kitten. the kitten was in desperate need of food, shelter, and medical attention. he had many problems and there was no way she could afford the medical bills at the vets and she had a hard time buying quality cat food with her limited funds. she set up a gofundme page to help raise money to be able to take care of the kitten. she shared the page on her facebook page.

i dont remember how much money she finally raised, but it did help her. unfortunately, her little kitten didnt even make it to a full year. she found a beautiful spot in a wooded area near the water and buried him there with a small marker.

two.....

another friend of mine has been dealing with his ill father for the last several years. his father moved in with him because he could not drive, had multiple health problems, and had some dementia. my friend could not work because he needed to be a full time caregiver for his father. they managed to live off of the fathers social security and pension check, but were just scraping by. this past year his father got progressively worse and passed away. of course, there was no extra money and the social security and pension stopped. he needed some funds in order to be able to bury his father. he set up a gofundme page to raise some funds for that. he also shared it on facebook. in the meantime now, he is looking for a job at the age of 60 and selling off his fathers collectibles on ebay.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

Snowpuppy — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:36:13 GMT

@Beachy1 wrote:
A friend of ours lost her husband suddenly. He was the main breadwinner of the family. They had four small children under the age of 10.

A GFM was set up for her to pay her mortage for six months and other immediate expenses that she had.

I would donate for something like that. But for somebody who can't manage their finances, no, I wouldn't.

This is why you have term life insurance. To replace income if you are the main breadwinner so your family isn't in a desperate situation should something happen to you.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

HappyDaze — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:39:04 GMT

@chrystaltree wrote:
@Beachy1 wrote:
A friend of ours lost her husband suddenly. He was the main breadwinner of the family. They had four small children under the age of 10.

A GFM was set up for her to pay her mortage for six months and other immediate expenses that she had.

I would donate for something like that. But for somebody who can't manage their finances, no, I wouldn't.

I would only donate to something like that if I was 100% sure that the story was true. My guess is 99% of the stories like that on GoFundMe,com are fake or greatlu exaggerated.

Agreed! There have already been all kinds of stories about gofundme products that never got made by the people who were suppose to make them. There is no accountability for it, meaning if the people never produce the items they set up the gofundme account for, they don't have to return the money or anything. It is essentially "donate at your own risk" kind of thing. I think alot of it is a scam but if people want to be gullible, well, their money to do so! I would never donate to anyone's gofundme account for any reason. There are better, more legitimate and safer routes to donate money.

Re: GoFundMe for personal use?

bri20 — Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:41:15 GMT

@chrystaltree wrote:
@Beachy1 wrote:
A friend of ours lost her husband suddenly. He was the main breadwinner of the family. They had four small children under the age of 10.

A GFM was set up for her to pay her mortage for six months and other immediate expenses that she had.

I would donate for something like that. But for somebody who can't manage their finances, no, I wouldn't.

I would only donate to something like that if I was 100% sure that the story was true. My guess is 99% of the stories like that on GoFundMe,com are fake or greatlu exaggerated.

She was a friend of ours. We knew her. I don't know if people donated to her that didn't know her.

I don't know if I would donate to someone I didn't know...