News
The latest news on this change — carefully culled from the world wide web by our change agents. They do the surfing, so you don't have to!
How Pink Is Their Love?
Move over black and orange, October's got a new signature color—pink!
The month that used to be known for Halloween and Oktoberfest is also breast cancer awareness month. It's now as common to see pink vacuum cleaners, toasters, t-shirts and fingernail polish as it is to find a SpongeBob SquarePants costume at your local market. And if you're managing a breast cancer diagnosis, it is probably heartening to know that so many companies are trying to raise money to find a cure.
But are all those pink products practicing what they preach?
An article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune examines the pink phenomenon and raises the question about the authenticity of many companies' pink product claims.
For example, Ann Taylor offers an "Ann Cares" card that customers can purchase for $25. They offer that 90% of the proceeds from the card will benefit breast cancer.
But, explains reporter Kristin Tillotson, " if you buy a card and spend only $100, the BCRF gets $22.50, and the company still makes $60 (assuming the $2.50 left over from the card price is for handling and service costs)."
A commenter on the site suggests visiting www.thinkbeforeyoupink.org for information on a particular company's pink efforts. We suggest checking out the individual campaigns. If you think they're putting forth a worthwhile effort, then by all means, go pink!
I took a course in graduate school about the inner workings of non-profits. It was a real eye opener. I had been naively thinking all the money we send to these various organizations was being funneled to the cause. The truth is each organization has administrative costs and some are run more like a business than others. What you need to find out is how much of every dollar you donate goes to the cause. In that way I think you can make a more educated choice about who to donate to.
Great suggestion—I will def. check the website. While I commend retailers for trying to build awareness, I've often wondered exactly how much goes to BC charities...wouldn't it be better just to write a check or volunteer?