This doesn't sound very "Charitable"

[Minnesota!]

I stopped donating to them last year...as well as the American Cancer Society. Both put WAY too much money into "stuff" rather than research, etc.

My money now goes to places that I can see the $$ at work.

Most of my charitable donations go to "Hope Kids" which is an organization that provides "entertainment" for families with sick kids. Such as free movie passes, sporting event tickets, parties, etc. My goddaughter, who passed in 2007 from brain cancer, and her family utilized them all the time and it was really a bright spot in their grey world!

 

[doxdogy]

NBC news covered this a couple of weeks ago. If I was ever inclined to donate to them, the story changed my mind. There are many other deserving charities to donate too. Especially ones that are associated with Orphan Diseases, those are the ones that get the list amount of attention. For example my disease Neurofibromatosis research is slowly but surely making strides in finding the causes and how to stop it.

 

[Carlyzmom]

WOW! That's just sad. They should be ashamed!

 

[zachnsamsmommy]

NBC news covered this a couple of weeks ago. If I was ever inclined to donate to them, the story changed my mind. There are many other deserving charities to donate too. Especially ones that are associated with Orphan Diseases, those are the ones that get the list amount of attention. For example my disease Neurofibromatosis research is slowly but surely making strides in finding the causes and how to stop it.

I saw it on NBC news as well. I mainly give to our local Children's hospital now...they have a telethon and I can see where my money is going. I gave for new incubators for the NICU (my son was in the NICU there almost 10 years ago) the last time.

I think SGK has become more 'big business' and a whole lot less 'charity' IMO

 

[cm8]

This is the problem with people being able to trademark common, everyday words and phrases. And let's face it, finding a cure for anything can become big business and that's the sad thing. It may have started out as grass roots, but it has become a business.

I happen to recall a while ago another organization who was chasing after small organizations who it thought was using their name and their property, which was actually gotten from another huge organization.

, I think I know which one you reference

 

[bumbershoot]

"October is Breast Cancer Month!" It gets plastered everywhere. That's spiffy. I'm glad people are aware of breast cancer. Why isn't there a "Coronary Heart Disease Month" with a blue ribbon? Or stroke? Long cancer? Pulmonary disease? Why does the media and the NFL and everybody and there mom focus only on this one disease? I do understand that it's #9 on the list of top 10 killers in First World Countries. What about the 8 that kill more people?

Annnnnd...it's so female-centric that it's almost impossible to realize that MEN get it too. And that it's very very very bad when men get it, probably because all the radiology centers are pink and purple and don't even have intake forms that allow for the possibility that it's not a woman filling it out. That sort of thing makes men ashamed to go to those places, makes them embarrassed to BE at those places, and that's just not good. (at least have one master copy of a man's intake form, make a copy when a guy comes in and hand it to them)

Heck, our dog got it...anyone with tissue in the chest region can get it...but Komen has made it so pink, sparkly, and female, it's hard to see around that.



As for trademarks...once you have one, you *have to* defend it firmly. Otherwise it can be taken from you. So since they have it, they canNOT allow another group to infringe upon it...

 

[honugirl]

I too have an orphan disease, Cushing's Disease (now Addison's, which is the reverse because of how they had to treat the Cushing's). There is so little funding for orphan diseases, it's depressing. NIH has allocated I believe $300,000 TOTAL to researching my disease. You can't even hire a researcher for that much less do any research! So it just really ticks me off when Komen decides to be a bully and pull this trademark crap. I already hate pinktastic October, now they have to horn in on the little guy too? It sucks. Big time. I wil never, ever do another Komen walk or buy anything associated with them. They aren't focused on the cause any more and it's sad.

 

[Mama_Dis]

Yuck, yuck, yuck. I have always thought that SGK put a disproportionate amount of importance on JUST breast cancer. Like one of the commants said under the article, where are all the gold ribbons for childhood cancers? Until reading that, I didn't even know what color ribbon they had.

 

[ToTLaugher]

OP thanks for bringing this to our attention.

 

[mhsjax]

It is disgusting. But did you ever see the movie about the 2 scientists that discovered the AIDS virus. I believe one was from France and the other was American. Can't remember the details, but the info would have come out much earlier if the 2 weren't arguing about who would get credit. It was very disturbing. I guess nothing is immune to greed.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

This makes me sad.

My high school has several people (staff and most recently a student) affected by all kinds of cancer and we started an annual fundraiser last year called Kats for a Kure.

Are they going to come after us now?

 

[luvmy3]

Yuck, yuck, yuck. I have always thought that SGK put a disproportionate amount of importance on JUST breast cancer. Like one of the commants said under the article, where are all the gold ribbons for childhood cancers? Until reading that, I didn't even know what color ribbon they had.

Its a foundation that was created to help find a cure for breast cancer, not every type of cancer. You really cannot blame them for the lack of awareness for other types of cancers. You can't blame them because others haven't come foward to create their own for a disease that has effected them.
Also I found it interesting to read that they raise 35 million a year in contributions, so that $1 million towards their legal fees is 1/35. I wonder how that percentage compares to other charitable organizations. Having said that, I'm not defending their tactics, I think going after other organizations that use the word "cure" is dispicable.
On a personal level, I feel that the bigger a charity gets, the less I'm inclined to donate to them, they just have too many other expenses and I'd rather most of money go directly to who/what they are trying to help.

 

[SaraJayne]

Its a foundation that was created to help find a cure for breast cancer, not every type of cancer. You really cannot blame them for the lack of awareness for other types of cancers. You can't blame them because others haven't come foward to create their own for a disease that has effected them.
Also I found it interesting to read that they raise 35 million a year in contributions, so that $1 million towards their legal fees is 1/35. I wonder how that percentage compares to other charitable organizations. Having said that, I'm not defending their tactics, I think going after other organizations that use the word "cure" is dispicable.
On a personal level, I feel that the bigger a charity gets, the less I'm inclined to donate to them, they just have too many other expenses and I'd rather most of money go directly to who/what they are trying to help.

If you look at this page http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=4509 you'll see 93% of the money donated goes to program expenses and admin.

It's all overhead. That's disgusting. So the money people give keeps them in business, and only a teeny percentage goes to research.

 

[luvmy3]

If you look at this page http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=4509 you'll see 93% of the money donated goes to program expenses and admin.

It's all overhead. That's disgusting. So the money people give keeps them in business, and only a teeny percentage goes to research.

It is disgusting, but thats why its important for people to do their research when choosing a charity.

 

[SaraJayne]

It is disgusting, but thats why its important for people to do their research when choosing a charity.

I agree.

 

[tlbwriter]

Also I found it interesting to read that they raise 35 million a year in contributions, so that $1 million towards their legal fees is 1/35. I wonder how that percentage compares to other charitable organizations. Having said that, I'm not defending their tactics, I think going after other organizations that use the word "cure" is dispicable.

Yeah, I wouldn't mind them spending that amount on legal fees, if it weren't for the fact that the legal activity is stopping other organizations from using the word "cure."

 

[tlbwriter]

It is disgusting. But did you ever see the movie about the 2 scientists that discovered the AIDS virus. I believe one was from France and the other was American. Can't remember the details, but the info would have come out much earlier if the 2 weren't arguing about who would get credit. It was very disturbing. I guess nothing is immune to greed.

You might be talking about "And The Band Played On," the HBO movie based on the really good book by Randy Shilts.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

You might be talking about "And The Band Played On," the HBO movie based on the really good book by Randy Shilts.

Love that movie. I love Matthew Modine in it.

 

[Magpie]

I just wanted to say, thank you very much for this thread! I'll be careful where my money goes in the future.

 

[luvmy3]

Yeah, I wouldn't mind them spending that amount on legal fees, if it weren't for the fact that the legal activity is stopping other organizations from using the word "cure."

I agree, I was more bothered by the way the article was slanted, I don't believe in trying to make your point unless you are willing to give all the facts. The fact is that their legal fees are a small part of their expenses, but without telling people exactly how small compared to what they raise in a year, or what their other expenses are, statements like the one below are only meant to cause a more negative shockwave.

Blum told HuffPost that legal fees comprise a "very small part" of Komen's budget, but according to Komen's financial statements, such costs add up to almost a million dollars a year in donor funds.