[kylebeagle]

In an effort to increase our Garrison’s charity fundraising efforts, the event request response email template was updated in 2008 to include the following paragraph, “Although the 501st Legion does not charge for our appearances, we do encourage a monetary donation in the form of a check made payable to one of our charity organizations (e.g., Toys For Tots, Foster-a-Dream, Make A Wish Foundation), in whatever amount of your preference. By informing us of the amount of donation, we could better track how much of an impact our organization has to our community.”

In addition, the https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PcnxETbWUa6xYrZkOn8N3yx80d5T6531BDhMkQ4T3eM/edit#gid=0
Garrison Donation Tracking Log was created to track both the donations raised at the Garrison level, as well as at the member’s level.

In order for a donation to be reflected in the tracking log, proof of the donation would be required to be validated by either:

1. A digital photo of a donation check made out to one of our charity organizations, or
2. An email acknowledgement of donation from a charity organization, or

Frequently Asked Questions :

Q1: Is it acceptable for us to accept donation checks from the event requester at the event?

A1: Yes, LFL has stated that they are quite comfortable having 501st Legion members taking possession of the donation check from event requesters to ensure the donations are actually made to one of our charity organizations. The check (preferably a cashier check) should be made payable to one of our charity organizations. The following is an excerpt of the meeting highlights between LFL, Mark Fordham and I on April 12th, 2006:

Quote:

Finally, Steve and Mary recognize that 501st Legion may, at times, be bombarded with request for appearance by private individuals (e.g., at birthday parties, weddings, etc.). While Steve believes that it is inappropriate for 501st Legion to request financial compensation for appearances at these private functions, it is entirely appropriate to ask the requester to submit a donation to one of the Garrison’s charity organizations, even to the extent of collecting the donation check at the event.

Q2: Can the event requester submit their donations directly to the charity organization?

A2: Yes, the three charity organizations that GGG works with all have a website where donations can be submitted electronically (e.g., credit card, PayPal, etc.). In order for the GGG to track this donation, however, the event requester would need to copy or forward the donation acknowledgement to gcr@501stGGG.com.

Q3: How much does the GGG charge for appearing at events?

A3: GGG does not charge for our appearances; however, we encourage event requesters to help donate any amount which they feel reasonable to one of our charity organizations.

Q4: Which charity organizations does GGG work with?

A4: GGG has primarily been working with three main charity organizations: Foster a Dream, Make-a-Wish Foundation and Toys for Tots.

Q5: If I am uncomfortable accepting donation check from event requester, what should I do?

A5: If you are uncomfortable accepting donation check from event requesters, simply let the donater know that they could make their financial contributions directly online to any of the GGG charity organizations. In order for us to better track donations that we helped raise, please do ask that they copy or forward the donation acknowledgement to gcr@501stGGG.com.

Q6: I received a donation check at the event which is made payable to one of our charity organization, now what do I do with the check?

A6: There are two options to process the donation check:

Option 1: Take a digital photo of the check (if it’s a personal check, blur or black out the account number and personal address) and post the photo of the check with the rest of the photos taken at the event. Once the photo of the check has been posted, email the link to gcr@501stGGG.com , and then, mail the check to the appropriate charity organization’s mailing address.

Option 2: Simply mail the check to Golden Gate Garrison, 1576 Park Crest Court, San Jose, CA 95118, along with an email to gcr@501stGGG.com stating which event this check came from and we’ll do everything (photo of the check, uploading of the photo, mailing of the check and add the amount to the list of donations received).

Option 3: The event request may submit his/her donation online directly to one of our charity organizations and email a copy of the donation acknowledgment to gcr@501stGGG.com stating the amount and the event which the donation stemmed from.

Option 4: https://www.501stggg.com/donate/

Q7: Is there a way to show the amount of donations raised by GGG members?

A7. Yes, a https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PcnxETbWUa6xYrZkOn8N3yx80d5T6531BDhMkQ4T3eM/edit#gid=0 has been created that lists the donation raised by GGG members. Refer to https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PcnxETbWUa6xYrZkOn8N3yx80d5T6531BDhMkQ4T3eM/edit#gid=0 for details.