GoFundMe- Is it me?

I was involved in charity fundraising last year and it was all on-line. I had a terrible time trying to keep up with payments from cash donations etc and the charity staff were very bad at replying to me over technical issues and even when I spoke to them they seemed clueless about my problems.
This year they contacted me again to see if I would take part again but I said no due to the difficulties of on-line fund raising.
I still support the charity in my own small way but will never do on-line charity fund raising again. I did it in my brother's memory and found it very upsetting that the whole process was tainted by confusion and mistrust.

Though it started as a good thing, now everyone has jumped on it. They are easy to set up, so it has gotten flooded with them; social media is full of them. Unless it is someone I know or a cause I would believe in, then no, sorry.
Controversial, but there are two I will not contribute to: one, people who have had house fires and lost things. You see this so much, and the fact is people do not learn; you need house insurance. We only pay under £20 a month, and it's worth every penny.
2. Paying for dogs to come to the uk Sorry, I know so many are ill-treated abroad, but there are too many homeless dogs in this country anyway and many more dogs being cruelly treated.

Primrose53

I’ve seen several GoFundmes for people who have passed away and their family ask for help in “giving him/her the send off they deserve”.

I find those a bit odd. I know some people have genuinely fallen on hard times but if it were me I would just do my very best with the budget I have available.

Hi all together,

I somehow stumbled upon this thread because I also need to start a charity campaign for that exact reason you mentioned. Trust me, never ever would I have thought, that I need to ask strangers for financial aid online.

But I just lost my grandmother, who was the most important person in my life. She took custody of me when I was one year old because my parents weren't able to take care of me. This was a little over 30 years ago.

We never had a lot of money but she gave me the best childhood one can ask for. She definitely was a loving and caring person. So naturally I wanted to return that and took care of her as long as I could. But the last years, she needed care 24/7 - so she got a place in a nursing home. I helped her financially to cover the bills but it completely ate my savings and parts of my paychecks.

And now almost 6k for the funeral and still some open bills totaling 3k for the nursin home are not manageable for me anymore.

And the funeral is not over the top or something fancy. It's almost the basics in most terms.

The last days I tried to get infos on how to get started with a gofundme, but every thread, article or comment I read, is pretty negative. I mean I get it, many people tried to scam with charity platforms and the trust of people willing to help might be low. But what other opportunities do I have?

Maybe you have an idea here?

Best wishes from Austria

I never have, and I never will donate to any GoFundMe appeals. One was set up some years ago for a work colleague who had taken seriously ill and needed an electric wheelchair, we donated directly to the cause once the money had been collected…..minus the charges which were applied at the time - not sure how it works now but things don’t get generally done for nowt do they?

I would have thought the same as the op[still do about travel insurance ones], until a few weeks ago, when I was sent a link about one, where family members know what is happening. And it is a tragic case.

I dont think I still doubt that some are not always genuine.
But that is not true in the one I know about.

Silvio13. Sorry, no, I dont have ideas.

It may be worth starting your own thread.
Else people will reply to just the original thread.

I have contributed once a few years ago but I am another who thinks people should buy life, house and travel insurance.

I no longer travel anywhere, but in the days when I did, I certainly bought travel insurance for a day trip to France, whereas I know many would not bother.

If I cannot afford something, I do not buy it. I have my funeral paid for, and my house is insured, as was my car when I owned one.

No, I don’t co tribute to any go fund me requests. Some may well be genuine, but I’m not convinced that the majority are.

Unless desperate never fund anything via a GoFundMe appeal the fees are high.
Better off zapping money to the charity or whatever.