Community Chat

[Still Raining]

Sounds like a scam to me and I would warn the member who was first contacted to let them know too.

Perhaps a warning to the congregation is in order?  But no names.

[Wsmom]

@beach-mom , I absolutely agree it was a scam.  Good catch.

I have a question though.  Was this young mom who needed help in your congregation also and was given your number or some random "young mom" who randomly contacted the gal on FB and she gave this random stranger your phone number?  

[Kachina624]

@beach-mom.  Pleas such as the one you describe are all over the NextDoor app.  It just boggles my mind the number of people that expect free goods from strangers,  including free vehicles.   Yesterday a woman wanted someone to drive an hour to her house to pick her up to take her dog to the vet.  Another had an extensive list of favorite junk snack food she wanted someone to deliver to her gratis.

No shortage of nerve out there.

[JudyL]

@Kachina624  - I saw one the other day where someone was asking if anyone had a spare set of 4 used tires that he could have because his tires were shot and he couldn't afford new ones right now and had to drive 1 hour to work each way.  

[Kachina624]

@JudyL.  I've seen that too, as well as every type of household furnishing and kitch appliance.

[beach-mom]

Thanks for all of your comments everyone!

First, we are NOT a food pantry. We do collect nonperishable food items to give to two sister churches, one that does have a busy food pantry. When the government shutdown happened we put two large bins outside for people to leave donated food items. If anyone takes some food from those bins we are OK. Why would someone take something unless they need it?

The person who gave my personal number is an active member of our church. She should have known better, and I will talk to her tomorrow.

I had never heard of the woman who called me. She lives over an hour away. She is a single mom with 3 young children and was panicking. She said she had no food, no formula, and no diapers. Apparently no one could help her. 

She got my number when she DM'ed our congregant on her Facebook page. I don't know how she found our member. I imagine our member had posted saying we are collecting food. I don't have personal social media. 

I asked the woman if she had any food pantries or churches near her. She said she didn't know, but not within walking distance. I could hear a baby crying. She wanted me to send Target or Walmart gift cards electronically. That's when I started questioning. 

Then when a man picked up her phone, saying she wasn't there but he would give her the message, I decided something didn't seem right. Why couldn't he help somehow? 

I blocked her number. Others have told me I should be OK, just don't open any suspicious links on my phone. 

I don't plan to change my number or do anything else.

[We rescue cats]

I feel sad that in today's world one must be on guard when their heart wants to help.There was a time that we invited a family being housed at our women's help center to dinner at our home on holidays. It added as much to our holiday as we hope it did theirs. About 10 years ago we had to stop doing it for safety sake, I miss it, but now I donate dollars to the shelter to help pay for a holiday at the center. Today's world is so different.

[Etoile308]

Unfortunately the time we live in has created a new breed of scammers. They depends on either an individual's vulnerability or their desire to show kindness and help their fellow man.

Once they identity someone who will offer and show kindness, they'll build on that and ask more and more.

Never believe the story a stranger tells you. They take your trust and use it for their benefit.

It's understandable for the first reaction to be to try and help. In these cases the best help to offer is to direct them to an agency that has some ability to vet those requesting assistance. 

Anyone requesting gift cards screams Scam.

[RescueLover]

@beach-mom 🤗


I’d definitely report this to your local authorities.



People inform the police when this type of scam happens. You wouldn’t want other members of your community taken advantage of.



Not everyone catches on like you did.




It’s one of those …do the right thing to help protect others.




If you see or hear something…. Say something.

[manny2]

You’re safe ,  this was just a common scam. They were trying to pressure you into sending gift cards, which are untraceable and easy for scammers to cash out. Since you didn’t share personal details or send anything, there’s no danger. Blocking the number was the right move.