EXTREME CHARITY
KICKS F OR
F E7
Rachael Street has always been a cynic. So much so that she thinks Charity fundraising events are just a Cheap and easy way for people to have fun. She spoke to three people involved in ‘the money raising business’ to see if they could Change her mind.
maginc this conversation between two
friends:
Person A: I’m going to do the New York marathon this year. Person B: Wow. that's great — are you doing it for charity? A: No. I‘m just doing it to get fit and for a challenge. B ()h. right (and under breath. ‘I never realised my friend was such a self- centrcd moron' ).
This is a slight exaggeration perhaps but it wouldn‘t be a million miles from the truth to say that in today‘s society. the personal challenge is no longer good enough — you have to be doing it for a reason. ie. a good cause. But the flip side of this incidental fundraising culture is that charity jumpers — those people who do fun things (abseiling off bridges. doing parachute jumps. trekking through China) to raise money for a good cause — are often labelled self-centred morons. After all. what they’re really doing is getting other people to pay for them to do something they've always fancied and the raising money for charity bit is just a cover.
It seems that the vastly competitive market of
fundraising events. where you can do almost anything for any type of cause (Channel 4’s forthcoming Wank-a-thon being a prime example). has made charities seem more like businesses. Does this corporate veneer give charities a bad name? Has the diversity of the fundraising events market allowed unscrupulous people to use good causes as a
6 ma LIST 1&1? Aug 2006
smoke screen for getting their kicks on the cheap'.’ And do the ethics of it all really matter if a vibrant father of four who has been battling cancer for ten years gets to spend his last days at home with his family. cared for by a Marie Curie nurse. rather than being moved to some depressing NHS ward‘.’
THE ALTRUISTIC EVENTS ORGANISER
David Fox-Pitt is more familiar than most with the maxim that these days you can do anything and everything you want to raise money for charity. As the founder of [ivents and Activities. which organises both fundraising experiences and regular activity holidays. it‘s his job to come tip with increasingly inspiring charity events in an ever-expanding market. Previously he has coordinated the Caledonian Challenge. which involves walking a gruelling 54 miles in 24 hours. but his latest venture is coordinating the Hannibal Challenge for Fredericks Foundation. This follows in the footsteps of the Carthaginian general on a 75km trek through the Alps. a walk which Fox- Pitt recreated for himself last October dressed
THOSE PEOPLE WHO
DO FUN THINGS ARE OFTEN LABELLED SELF-CENTRED MORONS
, at ., Kittie-#5 ' . ,a . ,
in full battle gear. 'What we're trying to do is capture the imagination of people with this event. Charities can no longer expect people to donate money just because they do good things — they have to be creative.’ And for Fox-Pitt this means more than just coming up with an original concept: he aims to create a genuine challenge that will not only inspire individuals