Just received our daily postal delivery and amongst all the junk mail was an envelope from The Red Cross. Inside I had a pen,2 coasters,2 blank verse cards and envelopes and a bookmark. The pictures on all these items were of embroidery done by the female prisoners in Changi prison which they made into a tapestry during WW2. Then there is an appealing letter asking for £5 donation to aid Red Cross work going on now. I am really shocked at the amount being spent on gifts in this appeal. Gifts would not make me feel guilty about keeping them and if I wanted to donate I would do it in a different way.
Comments welcomed. I am so cross.
charity is a big industry nowadays, just putting a free pen in the envelope is enough to make people feel guilty enough to give. its a shame that a tiny fraction of what is donated actually gets to the person it was designed for.
Think you'll find that if even 10% of those targeted respond then the outlay will be well worth it. I'm like you, I pick my own charities to donate to and don't feel guilty at ignoring others.
Goodness, the same happened to me yesterday.....( you live in my road ? ) and I thought the same thing Patsyann. I was amazed at the ' gift' on the off chance I might reply. Sheer waste I thought.
We received something similar in December from the Red Cross.
The pictures are The Humanity Rose by Elizabeth Cameron.
I wonder how much is costs them to get these things printed?