Asking for donations for a worthy cause is not begging

IN RESPONSE to Sandile Ntuli’s article titled “asking for donations is like begging” which appeared in the Little Spot section of The Star newspaper on Tuesday, August 23.

As the territorial public relations secretary for the Salvation Army, one of South Africa and the world’s oldest charitable organisations, I read the piece with some interest.

Although the author raises some valid points, I believe that charitable giving has a significant part to play in the lives of many South Africans.

In the public relations department of the Salvation Army we find ourselves asking for donations (or begging as Ntuli put it) on a daily basis. Without these donations, we would find ourselves unable to continue our work of helping people of all societies who need it most.

It is necessary to clearly delineate the concept of begging from the idea of asking for donations, simply because they are in fact completely separate issues.

Begging is something that individuals undertake when they are in desperate need, for food, money or, sadly, drugs or alcohol to satisfy an addiction. The seeking out of donations, on the other hand, is something that is done by an organisation, be it a school or a charitable organisation, to help them achieve a collective goal or aim.

In our case, collected donations are used to help vulnerable people in society, such as the homeless, abused women and children, the elderly, and orphaned and abandoned babies.

Asking for donations for such causes is not begging in our minds, but rather an effective means of collectively raising funds to run our operation – rather like the concept of crowd funding.

Donations to organisations like the Salvation Army and other NGOs are a way for everyone to get involved in helping others. Such organisations also create jobs for those who work there, something which is essential in a country with such high levels of unemployment. As such, our fundraising team does not see itself as a group of beggars, but rather as a team who align collectively gathered capital with pressing social needs.

Similarly, asking students to raise funds for schools is not begging either, but simply a way to get the broader community involved in meeting a need at the school.

Distinguishing between begging and fund-raising is vital to ensuring the continued success of organisations such as the Salvation Army, which has cared for people in need for the past 150 years.

Ntuli has highlighted some significant social challenges in his piece, such as the safety of our children. However, this discussion is something we believe to be a separate issue. Asking for donations for a worthy cause should not be regarded as begging, but as social upliftment. Major Carin Holmes Territorial secretary Salvation Army South Africa

They are in fact two completely separate issues