Wednesdsay September 8, 1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER A9 HAPPY IN HIS WORK: Spruce Lane Farm employee, John MacMaster and Belgian horses Mack (left) and Major (right) enjoy a ride through one of Bronte Creek Provincial Parks trails. Almost within earshot of the QEW, John hitches up his team to take visitors around the park. Photo by Peter J. Thompson MADD meeting for volunteers MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) Halton is hosting a special volun teer awareness evening on Mon. Sept. 13th. The event gets underway at 7:45 p.m. in the Trafalgar Room of Town Hall, located at 1225 Trafalgar Rd. The purpose of the meeting is to offer information to members of the public who are interested in participating as a volunteer but are uncertain as to where their time and talents can be best utilized. According to MADD Halton president Stephanie Dooley, many people are under the impression that volunteering with a non profit organization involves a huge commit ment of time and effort. MADD Halton's purpose for the evening, said Dooley, is to dispel this myth. For complete information about the evening or MADD Halton, please call 844- 0096. G ood grou ps suffer from scam a rtis ts (Continued from page 5) "Do Not Mail" file or visit their website at www.the-cma.org and register on-line (it's free). All you have to do is click on the Helping Consumers icon and then on the Registration Form icon. This file is used by most charities that use the mail as a source of fundraising, and they will sup press names that do not wish to receive their solic itation letters. Although this will not totally elimi nate all of the solicitation mail you currently receive, it will certainly reduce the number of mail ings you receive. Protecting yourself from telephone scams... The telephone is quickly becoming a very pop ular fundraising tool for charities. Many charities hire professionals referred to as telemarketers to conduct telephone fundraising campaigns. These campaigns usually are very successful for the char ity. If you are known to be a good donor to the charity or one that has not contributed for a period of time, you will probably get a call. When you receive a telemarketing call, make sure you ask questions. Remember, once you give your credit card number over the telephone, the deal is done. Here are some questions you should ask when a telemarketer calls and you are not quite clear on the cause or who is calling: • What is the mission of your organization? • What is the name of the caller? • What is the telephone number they are calling from? • Where is the charity located? • Who is the Executive Director? • What percentage of my donation goes to the 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 these or any one of these questions, or the telemarketer is very hesitant to send you any information but rather pushes for the donation... then your best pro tection is to hang-up. Should you suspect that there's something just not right about a telemarketing call or you have been victimized, you should contact Project Phone Busters or Project Senior Busters. These are pro grams operated by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and their sole purpose is to provide infor mation to consumers and investigate telemarketing scams (especially when seniors are victimized) with the objective of apprehending the scam 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 that was mentioned earlier and have your name placed on their "Do Not Call" file. It works the same way as their "Do Not Mail" file. One other organization that you can contact and register a complaint is the Competition Bureau of Industry Canada established by the Government of Canada. Their purpose is to ensure that Canadian businesses conform to the laws of this country, and they will investigate civil and criminal matters including fair or unfair business practices. They can be reached at 1-800-348-5358 or visit their website at www.competition.ic.gc.ca. Remember the old saying, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Here are a few other warn ing signs that the call is probably a scam: • If you are asked to make a very quick finan cial decision. • If the deal is presented as a limited opportuni ty- • If you have won something but you need to put up a small amount of money to get the prize. • If the caller is more excited than you are. Your best protection is simply to hang-up and report the call. Protecting yourself from fraudulent door-to- door canvassers If a volunteer comes to your door and asks for a donation and produces very little identification or does not have any information about the charity or organization he/she represents, then chances are this may be a scam. Before you make a financial contribution at the door and are skeptical about the canvasser or the organization,'ask the following: • Can you see a photo I.D. • Are they a paid canvasser? • What service does the charity provide? • Where is the charity's office located and what is the telephone number? • Do you have information you can leave with me? • How much of the money collected goes to the charity? • Do they issue a tax receipt on the spot for the donation? • What is the Charity registration number of the charity (known as the Business Number) -- this number should be printed on the literature and must be printed on the tax receipt and it starts with the letters BN in front the number. If you feel unsure and the canvasser is pushing for the donation, your best protection is to say no. Call the number that the canvasser has provided for the charity (o make certain it is a viable organi zation and if it is, report your experience with the canvasser to the charity. If the charity is a bogus organization, report it to the local police or the OPR Remember, that any reluctance on the part of the canvasser to reveal information to you should be a tip-off that something is just not right. The vast majority of charities which do utilize these forms of fundraising and have been doing so successfully for years and would like nothing bet ter than to eliminate the scam artists. The good, unfortunately, suffer because of the antics of the scam artists who make quite a good living by rip ping people off. The statistics provided by Project Phone Busters are quite alarming. Once you have been victimized in a scam, you're put on a list no one wants to be a member of, a sucker list that is sold to other scam artists. Protecting yourself is as easy as hanging up the telephone or just saying no and shutting your door when you have a feeling that something is just not right. And help others by reporting the incident. Oakville resident, Frank Greco, has been working in senior management positions within the charity sector for more than 15 years. 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A ll ve h ic le s com e w ith a fu ll ta n k o f g a s an d flo o r m a ts. N O W U N D E R N E W O W N E R S H IP OAKVILLE M5° spews Re™,i - OAKVILLE i°H N I S S A N ltd 8 2 7 - 1 1 7 7 ™ Zi SPEERS RD LAKESHORC PD Th. N i s s a n A l l N e w 2 0 0 0 N i s s a n M a x i m a Well-equipped from $29,990 Come in. fo ra spur^ "event F i n a l t o u r o f H e r i t a g e D i s t r i c t S u n d a y The last in the current series of Walking Tours of the town's Heritage Distrit, takes place on Sunday. The tour is conducted by O a k v i l l e Historical Society volunteers who are long-time or life-long residents of the Town who can readily explain the back ground of the many landmarks on streets adja cent to the O a k v i l l e Harbour. The tour begins at 2 p.m. and run approxi mately 1-1/2 hours. The fee for non-members is $10; members, $8; children under six years, free. Reservations are requested. To book your tour, call 844-2695. Less f lo w e r . M o r e p o w e r . 1.8 Lfr. 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