Donor choice a negligible factor at United Way

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ^ | August 31, 2003 | BRUCE MURPHY

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

No, that is not quite correct- most UW's DO honor donor designation, and distribute this money separately (minus their "cut" for overhead).

That said, I only give to UW (always via a designated gift) because it is a big deal for my company. When I become a contractor (soon) I will just give directly to the charity, and they will get the full amount.

I have noticed quite a bit of "downsizing" of the UW campaigns, at least in my (very large, multinational) company over the past couple of years. This may be a trend.

[gitmo]

So some Untied Ways lie to their donors and others don't? How does one distinguish between the two?

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

Ask them- seriously, they have to tell you what procedure they use to distribute the money they collect.

And don't think I am sticking up for the UW- I once worked for a company that would have you kneecapped if you didn't help make management's promise of "100% particpation" good (AND they had "suggested gift levels" for your salary grade...)

[libstripper]

Strip away all of the polite language and Clintonese, and it's clear the Milwaukee UW and others like it are defrauding donors by giving them the impression that their contributions are being directed to specific charities, while cooking the books to make sure such donations really aren't.