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Years ago, I submitted my home number with the database of the National Do Not Call List. For a while, I didn’t get any unsolicited calls. Then slowly I started receiving tzedaka solicitations and community notifications along with advertisments of various vendors and shiyurim coming to town. Its at the point where I get an average of 10-20 unwanted calls daily. Am I the only one? How do I put a stop to this?
Nonprofits, charities, political and religious organizations are exempt from the do no call list regulations.
And why would you not want to receive tzedakah calls? Tzedaka tatzil mimoves.
Non-profits (and politicians) aren’t required to abide by the do-not-call list. As for vendors, they’re breaking the law. What’s particularly egregious is the recorded calls that tie up your line — they don’t disconnect when you hang up. Suppose you had an emergency! There’s a certain furniture store that pulls this trick. They’ve lost my business for life.
One solution that sort of works in not to pick up unless you recognize the caller ID.
I make it very clear to the caller that I will NOT make a monetary committment on the phone & that if the organization wants to send an envelope in the mail that is fine. I have found that after a while the organization stops calling.
the recorded announcements for chinese auctions and raffles etc. that go on forever are a different problem…I wonder what to do to stop those.
Back when we lived in the states, we had caller-ID. We had a list of numbers we knew never to answer, and we posted the list near the phone. I think there is a way to block certain area codes as well, but I guess this won’t work well if you live in or near those areas. Good luck!
Shrek: same here. i never make commitments over the phone, always request an envelope. But i still get calls! If i do happen to pick up a call that is not a recording, i tell them to remove me from their calling list as i dont give solicitations over the phone, and then give them my address for an envelope…but i dont think it works. I guess chinese auction season is over now cuz i havent gotten an calls lately…or maybe it does work….
Is the next thread going to be “How do I stop all the Minyanim?” (three times a day is much too much.) Or “How do I stop Hatzalah?”
OC, not quite. There is no obligation to receive phone solicitations for tzedaka – in fact, millions of people managed to fulfill their obligation of tzedaka before the advent of the telephone. People these days have precious little time to spend with their family, and little patience to be interrupted at dinner time for a particular cause they will never want to donate to.
There ought to be a rule attached to the Do Not Call registry requiring opt-in for non-profit/political/survey calls.
There is no chiyuv to go to minyan, either. Perhaps daven at home, better spend the time with your family and skip all the minyanim.
Tzedaka, OTOH, (unlike minyanim) IS a chiyuv.
Tzedaka tatzil mimoves.
By your logic, I suppose that means that only the ones that call me unsolicited protect.
My tzedaka budget is fully allocated and I have plenty of other causes that I’d contribute to if I suddenly find myself with a windfall. I don’t need unsolicited calls.
The Wolf
Y’know, I was just skimming through some old threads here and I see multiple threads of certain people constatntly complaining that they receive:
a) too many tzedaka phone call
b) too many tzedaka letters
c) too many baalei tzedaka collecting in shuls
d) too many baalei tzedaka collecting at their houses
They derogatorily refer to these people who give them so many golden opportunities to get the mitzvah rabba of giving tzedaka and saving themselves from death and negative decrees as “schnorers”. The only reasonable conclusion one can come to, is that these type of people don’t want to interrupt their busy lives of movies, entertainment and vacations to spare an “unnecessary” expense for the needy.
They derogatorily refer to these people who give them so many golden opportunities to get the mitzvah rabba of giving tzedaka and saving themselves from death and negative decrees as “schnorers”.
I said no such thing.
The only reasonable conclusion one can come to, is that these type of people don’t want to interrupt their busy lives of movies, entertainment and vacations to spare an “unnecessary” expense for the needy.
Or, perhaps, that our tzedaka budgets are already allocated and that we even have “waiting lists” of other tzedakas to give to.
Or is it your contention that only unsolicited tzedaka opportunities save one from death?
The Wolf
Why is EVERY tzdekah deserving of my money. Just because someone has a tzedakah doesnt mean I have to give to them.
For example what if you are a Satmar and you get a Call from someone collecting for the Medina, Are you supposed to give?
BTW Not all money given to tzdekahs goes to the tzadekah, I know someone who worked for a Call center and they got paid a percentage of how much they collected from the phone calls for tzdekah money
My contention is that giving tzedaka unsolicited or solicited or giving tzedaka to an unsolicited request all save you from death.
To make oC happy:
Lets say I already gave Chomesh, and my Rov (let’s say he is Rav Shmuel) Paskened that I MAY NOT give any additional Tzedaka. How can I stop such calls, which are only the Atzas Yetzer Hara to try to get me to disobey my Rov the Gadol?
My contention is that giving tzedaka unsolicited or solicited or giving tzedaka to an unsolicited request all save you from death.
Then I am already saved through my regular giving and do not need to give to unsolicited callers.
The Wolf
@OC
I fully understand, accept and agree that tzedaka is a mitzvah that saves lives. In fact, I have at least 6 pushkas at home, which are regularly donated to. My paycheck is automatically split to a maaser account, which we use to support causes we know are worthy.
I still don’t understand why you believe that I am obligated to be available by phone for solicitation. Can you explain?
The only reasonable conclusion one can come to, is that these type of people don’t want to interrupt their busy lives of movies, entertainment and vacations to spare an “unnecessary” expense for the needy.
I feel sorry for your limited capacities that that is the only reasonable conclusion you can come to. I’m talking about eating dinner with my kids, and you imagine things about my “type of people” for what reason? Movies? Entertainment? Vacations? Vos is dos? And incidentally, a lonely random person is a regular guest in our home.
People are entitled to not want to be solicited by phone. It’s as simple as that.
WolfishMusings: What gives you so much confidence that you do enough?
WolfishMusings: What gives you so much confidence that you do enough?
What does that have to do with unsolicited donations? As I mentioned above, I have a list of charities to contribute to if I receive an unexpected windfall. So why do you seem to think I still need to give to unsolicited callers? If I have extra money (or feel the need to give extra charity), I’ll give it to the organizations on that list, not to unsolicited callers. You yourself agreed that that saves me, so what is your problem with my actions?
The Wolf
Unless you are supremely confident you give enough tzedaka, you should welcome unsolicited opportunities to give tzedaka.
a) too many tzedaka phone call
b) too many tzedaka letters
c) too many baalei tzedaka collecting in shuls
d) too many baalei tzedaka collecting at their houses
They derogatorily refer to these people who give them so many golden opportunities to get the mitzvah rabba of giving tzedaka and saving themselves from death and negative decrees as “schnorers”.
See what R’ Elazar says at the top of Kesubos 68a.
Unless you are supremely confident you give enough tzedaka, you should welcome unsolicited opportunities to give tzedaka.
Why? Why are they better than the organizations on my “stand-by” list that I should give preferential treatment to them?
The argument is not whether or not I give enough tzedaka. The argument is whether I need to be bothered by unsolicited calls when I already have tzedakas waiting on a list. So far, you have failed to show why I should be bothered with such calls when I have plenty of other opportunities for tzedaka. Unless your contention is that the organizations on my list don’t save from death, I don’t see why it makes a difference that I give to the ones on my list rather than the ones who disturb me with unsolicited calls. So far, you have failed to show why I have to give to the unsolicited callers over the organizations that I want to give to.
The Wolf
Look at it this way, not everyone has a “stanby list” like yourself. So even if you’re correct about yourself, there are many other people who should and do benefit from unsolicited tzedaka requests. (And the fact the baalei tzedaka keep coming back, indicates others have given to unsolicited tzedaka requests in the past.) So you certainly have no legitimate in general argument against unsolicited tzedaka fundraising.
The reason they keep calling is 1) they need money, 2) their available pool of potential donors is limited, should they start calling southern baptists or members of the PAL? 3) lists get sold and resold to the various organizations and more often than not, the same firm does the calling and is using the same list over and over and 4) with robo dialing and technology, they can dial hundreds and hundreds of numbers an hour with only a few people manning the phones, so even a small response rate can result in a positive campaign and lastly, often the dead air at the end of the phone is not a solicitation at all, but rather a computer logging the time(s) of day you pick up the phone so that when they really do want to call you, they can be reasonably sure you are home and will pick up.
I never give tzeddakah to someone i do not know…maybe a dollar or so but i first make sure that its not a…
1. Scam
2. Money that will be wasted on stuff like drugs/alcohol
3. Goes to where they claim it will go
To that end, if i would get a guy coming to my door asking for money, i invite them in, offer refreshments/food, talk to them see if they are legit, give money.
Over the phone stuff….no i have no idea who the other person is, if they are who they say they are and all that stuff….I’m very weary of even giving online because i know that very often even big organizations like will either squander the money or most of it doesn’t really go to where they say it goes.
I would get a caller ID, and just block those numbers via the phone company or something. You can probably report a certain number for harassment if it’s that bad…but don’t cause a hilla hashem if possible.
People have no reasonable right to call you for tzedaka late in the evening or early in the morning. I have gotten calls as late at 11:30 PM and as early as 8:15 AM. When my phone rings at those times, I jump, because my friends and family know not to call before 9 AM or after 10 PM unless it is an emergency of some type.
Personally, I hate getting tzedaka calls from people who pretend I have donated to them before, and with a specific amount.
One person sent me a bill for the “same as last year, $36.” I never heard of this organization and certainly would never have committed to such an amount when I have relatives and friends whom I help support with my maaser money (people who are out of work through no fault of their own, or ebcause of illness). I don’t say refrain from giving, but it’s become very difficult to field all these calls.
I really don’t like the fact that a number of these tzedakah callers act like they know you in order to get you to the phone. “Hi, it’s Sarah calling, can I speak to Mr. or Mrs. Shrek?” so Shrek Jr. calls me to the phone and says “it’s Sarah, she wants to talk to you”…so I interrupt whatever I was doing to take the call and “GOTCHA”.
These callers are always representing organizations. In contrast to the individuals who may getcha in shul or at the door whose identity you may never know or be able to research, the organizations tend to be somehow known. I respond to all of them that I never pledge on the phone. I remind them that their marketing tactic gives away their legiotimacy, since I never heard of them, certainly did not give last year, and am already overdrawn in my tzedokoh donations already. Before they can continue with their barrage of arguments (they are well trained for exactly this), I tell them something like “Thank you for calling, but please remove my name from your list – I never, ever give in response to phone solicitation.”
Zahavasdad wrote:
“BTW Not all money given to tzdekahs goes to the tzadekah, I know someone who worked for a Call center and they got paid a percentage of how much they collected from the phone calls for tzdekah money”
So do you think the call centers should do it for free? They have to make a parnasa too and this is how they do it. It is not a tayna on them, nor is iyt a tayna on the tzedaka since that is part of their budget, by paying a percentage to callers they make more money so your money is going to a good cause either way. The tzedaka has bills to pay, whether it is to pay a Rebbe, pay a janitor, pay con-ed or pay a call center. The tzedaka has these bills to pay and your mitzvah is to give to them to help with those bills.
To all who want to stop the calls. If you were running a necessary valuable organization, mossad, service etc. and needed to fund a budget, how would you propose to go about it without coming on to the most naturally charitable sensitive giving caring Baalei Chessed in the world whose coreligionists are the beneficiaries??
The truth is both sides have to consider each other. Yes, it is true organizations need money and must fundraise, however, they must do it with seichel. If they contract out to a call center, they should be sure they don’t engage a firm that uses tactics that browbeat and try to shame and humiliate people into giving a donation (you don’t want to help feed poor starving orphans?!!?) or otherwise use harrasment or annoying tactics. Those solicited on the other hand must keep in mind that the caller is trying to reach you when you might be home and available to speak with them. When do you expect them to call, when you are at work? Would you give them your cell phone or work phone and ask them to call you there? Remember, you answered the phone, if it is a bad time, don’t answer it, let it go to voicemail, tell your kids who answer the phone, you are not available to come to the phone, don’t be upset with the caller because you interrupted what you were doing and answered the phone!once on the phone, there is no reason to treat the caller like a disease carrying rat.
So, the question is not, how to stop people from soliciting tzedaka, rather, how to deal with those who do so in a manner not befiting a respectable organization. When such a call is received, one is not obligated to respond positively to the solicitation, but one must respond like a mentch.
The painful reality is that the organizations are in more trouble today than ever, and their efforts to fund raise are being expanded out of desperation. Every dollar for them is a plus (or more accurately, less of a minus). I can understand their interests in finding Yidden anywhere and everywhere to pull in a few more dollars. However, just like they are hurting, so is everyone else. The yeshivos and school where we send our children have had massive cutbacks in funds, and they turn to the parents to keep them afloat. Every other organization where we have been giving has lost donors and other sources of money, and we are pressured to keep them afloat. Our costs of living have also increased. The tzedokos to panhandlers in shuls and at our doors have also increased. Many of us have relatives or neighbors who are unemployed, and we are shunting our money there. Bottom line, there are fewer tzedokoh dollars available for these organizations who call me on the phone that I don’t know or have any connection to them. I try to be nice in telling them that I still give more than I am able, I still have unpaid debts, and I will never pledge on the phone. They are desperate, and insist on postdated checks or my credit cards. That’s chutzpah, but they are desperate.
I simply pray that these organizations find these forms of fund raising to be losses for them, not profitable. They will then stop this. I’m all for tzedokoh, and legitimate forms of obtaining it and using it for wonderful things. To be interrupted at work many times a day for these arguments is a major disturbance. I wish they would stop. I wish I could get my name off their lists.
Instead pray you should have enough Parnassah to help them as well.
Or daven they should find a BIG donor to take the pressure off. Why daven for them NOT to succeed just to get them off your back. Use your emotions to daven for them to be matzliach and not need you anymore!?
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