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The Canadien Champion. Friday, October 22, 1999 - 23 Most charities are legit, but some are not By FRANK GRECO Special to The Champion There are more than 75,000 registered charities and non-profit organizations in Canada and on aver- age, Revenue Canada gets about 3,000 or so new applications from individuals each year wanting to register a charity. AIl charities nccd financial support to survive and carry forth Uscir mandate but, along the way, a "number of phony or bogus charitics do spring up to tap into this multi-billion dollar market. Statistics Canada estimates Usat Canadians give more Usan $45- billion each year to charities. On top of the direct financial contai- butions, Canadians also spent approximately $1 .28-billion to sup- port a charity or non-profit organization Urough indirect contribu- tions. This is when we purchase a product (chocolate bar, coupon books, raffle/lottery tickets, etc.) associatcd or endorsed by the charity or pasticipate in a charity-sponsored gaming event (bin- gos, casinos). With the number of charities and non-profit organi- zations in our community, combincd with Useir nccd for money, individuals do get bombarded with requesta boUs from famsiliar and unknown charities. What can we do to minimize the number of solicitations at our home and safeguard ourselves from bcing victimized by a phony or bogus charity acheme? Gctting ton much unwantcd mail... Ibe most succcssful form of fundraising for moat charities is Use mail. How many limes have you received a letter asking you to make a financial contribution, although you have neyer heard of Use charity and havc wondcred how they acquired your naise? If you subscribc to any magazine or currently donate to a chari- ty, or are ins the telephone directory, chances are Usat your name and address have been rented to/or exchangcd wiUs otiser organi- zations on a regular basis. It is a common practice with most charities and subscriber- based organizations. To reduce your current or unwantcd solicita- tion mail volume, here are a few stcps that you should take: -Contact the charities that receive a financial contribution from you and inform themn you do not wish exchanged. Have You i'àââ& Always L~]Wanted to Enhance Vour Appearance? Now is thse perfect linte. t*isave the solution seS state-of-tis-art iasertedsaalaym a quiet, coesfortable andprivte office seting. %* oflel realmnent for Spider Vehs *Age& Brown Spots aFacial Veas *Sun & PASpots BiDtthmarls * Ttîo Innovai *FadaI Pigmentation * Warts *Surepy for Varlcose VeIna - injettion Sleeotlsenpy for Vaites. Veina ForadnconsaocdL- Dr. A 4edk M& F5L5c Pee si-c **MVýSL11rCn SUNDAY OCT 24 2-4 PM 687 Syer Drive, Milton Audrey Newell in attendance $179,900 RE/MAX Blue Springs Realty (Halton) Corp. SUNDAY OCT. 24 1:30 -4 PM 30 Heslop Road Unit 33 Donna Stark in attendance $1 24,900 Prudential Town Centre Rgalty your namc to be - Inform the charities that you want their volume of mail to you reduccd. - Contact the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) at 416- 391-2362 and have your name placed on ilseir "~Do Not Mail" file or visit their website at www.the-cma.org ansd register on-line (itfs free). Ail you have to do is click on the Helping Consumers icon and tlsen on the Registration Form icon. This file is seen by most char- ities tisat use the mail for fundraising, and they will respect your wishes. Although this will not elimidnate ail of the solicitation mail you receive, il wiIl certainly reduce if. Protecting yourself from telephone scains... Ise telephone is quickly becoming a very popular fundraising tool for chari tics. Massy charities hire professionals, referred to as tclemarketers, to conduct telephone fundraising campaigns. These camspaigns usually are very sucoessful for the charity. If you are known to be a good donor to the charity or one that has not con- tributed for a period of time, you will probably get a calI. When you receive a telemarketing cail, make sure you ask questions. Remember, once you give your credit card number over the telephone, the deal is donc. Here are some questions you should ask when a tclcmarkeler calîs and you are not quite clear on Use cause or who is calling: " What is Uie mission of your organization? " What is Use name of the caller? " Wlsat is Use telephone number they are calling from? " Whcre is Use chanity located? " Whso is Uhe executive director? " What percentage of my donation goes to Uhe charity? " How did you get my name? " Can you send me an annual report/information to help me make my decision? If you do not receive a direct answer to any one of these ques- tions, or the telemarketcr is vcry hesitant to send you any infor- mation but raUser pushes for the donation, Usen your beat protec- tion is to hang up. Should you suspect that Userc's someUing just not right about a telemarketing caîl or you have been victimized, you should con- tact Project Phone Busters or Project Senior Busters. These are progranas operatcd by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and tseir sole purpose is to provide information to con- FOR you your AI E')ISN I contact the (Cbampturn TEAM- L8i5~Unda ~I~t Lataban ~jmpion surners and investigate telemnarketing scams (especially when seniors are victimized) with the objective of apprehending the scain artists. They can be reached at 1-888-495-8501, or visit their website at www.PhoneBusters.com. You can also contact the Canadian Marketing Association and have your name placed on their "Do Not Caîl" file. It works thse same way as their "Do Not Mail" file. One other orgaisization that you can contact ansd register a com- plaint witis is the Competition Bureau of Industry Canada, estab- lished by the federal govemment. Their purpose is to ensure tlsat Canadias businesses conform to thse laws of this country, and they will investigate civil and crinai- nal matters, including fair or unfair business practices. T1hey can be reached at 1-800-348-5358, or visit their website at wýww.com- petition.ic.gc.ca. Remember thse old saying, if it sounds too good to be truc, it usually is. Here are a few other wamning signa that the caîl is probably a scain: " If you are asked to make a very quick financial decision. " If the deal is presented as a limited opportunity. " If you have won something but you necd to put up a small amount of money to get the prize. " If thse caller is more excited tisai you are. " What service does the chanity provide? SIERVICFE evu FREE ESTIMATES EP--1R S M 1 7I i-~ SHê S"-_2 TO AILL C ýUN, JLýMAýKE rawo876-1175n MILONHEIGHTS ACADEMY DIV. OF SAFE & SOUND CHILDREN'S CENTR INO. Proud to be Milton's Firat Private School Kindergarten to Grade 6/7 Located in Main Building ae thse Farm Museuma witb a beautiful open concept. Class sizes 8 to 12 children Lunches providied Staff foar one-on-one tutoring Incloor and outdloor play areas Philosophy based on new Ontario Curriculum " Environtrents * 3 Rs Social graces and etiqucet " French/ Spanissh * Music *Arts " Heritage * Agriculture *Computers Tuition fées range from $3,500 to $6,500 plus registration and administration fées per achool year Promotional ofliz discount on registration féèe. riqsrcs Dmr 3/99 5% discousi on family twuon (Year round) For more information, please cali Teaching Principal Deborah Martin, B.A., B.Ed., E.C.E. 905-693-1557 NO APPOINTMENT NECESSARV 1 a