Angel Fund?

If you know someone that would like to subscribe but can't, how do you go about accessing the Angel Fund for them?
Thanks so much!

Send a D-Mail to Trish (that's her username). Give her the particulars of the situation and she'll forward the request to the Garden Angel committee. They will then decide and apply the subscription.

best,
dave

I'm not familiar with the Angel Fund. Could you give a brief description?

Here's a quote from Trish from a past thread:

"The Garden Angel fund exists for the very purpose of helping out those who can not pay for a subscription. It is also now here for those who are unable to pay the full amount, but who are willing to meet us halfway. "

Thanks! I was wondering if members contribute to the fund in order to help whenever a situation such as this occurs.

Yep, we do. And, many Roundups also collect donations to the Angel Fund.

darius

How do you make a contribution???

Patty

A contribution can be made by check to Dave with a notation that it is for the Angel Fund. I don't remember if it can also be made via Paypal as it has been 2 years since I collected money for the Fund. You can also pay for a specific member's subscription. Send Dave a Dmail for details. Dave@davesgarden.com

Might check with Trish first on whether they are taking contributions now...this came up back when the subscription rate went up and she said that the Angel fund has plenty of money right now and they don't need contributions. If you have a specific member who you want to buy a subscription for that option is always available and you can do it from the same place where you would renew your own subscription.

Good thought, ecrane.

However, with the increased subscription price, the Angel Fund might have more applicants. I know of a few oldtimers here who post regularly who are considering dropping out when their current subscription expires, mainly due to the exchange rates of money.

All I know is what Trish posted when this came up right before the subscription increase. She'll let us know when they need more donations. At the time she posted saying they didn't need money, she knew that there might be more people applying for it because of the subscription increase but still said they didn't need donations. But if there are some oldtimers who you personally don't want to see go, you're always free to buy a specific person a subscription regardless of whether the angel fund needs money. Depending on these people's situations, they may not be able to get help from the Garden Angel fund anyway, but if you want to buy a subscription for someone then it doesn't matter if they would have qualified for help from the Angel fund or not.

I was chatting with another DGer recently, and this came up....

I think it would be lovely if there were a way to purchase a gift subscription for somebody and have the option that the giver be anonymous. Currently, when a gift subscription is purchased, the recipient gets a Dmail informing them that so-and-so has purchased a subscription for them... While I might choose to include my name, especially if I'm giving the subscription as a thank-you for past generosities, I would also like the option of anonymity so the recipient doesn't feel any obligation... sometimes anonymous giving just works better!

Could we make this an option please?

Jill, I've been the recipient of a couple of gift subs. None have ever come with someone's name, nor would Trish tell me when I inquired.

I'm sneaky about that, aren't I, darius :)

I'll try to answer all of the questions at one time.

If you have specific questions about the Garden Angel Fund, please do not dmail Dave- click on the "contact us" button, or dmail me directly. If you do dmail Dave, he'll just tell you to dmail me.....might as well save yourself the step :)

I am NOT currently taking donations for the fund. I'll be honest and give you the reason- Name Media owns that money :) Now, don't get me wrong- I trust them (really, I do), but our members have given to that fund out of the goodness of their hearts. The fund has PLENTY of money to cover needs for at least a year (depending on how many need it), maybe more. With the fund so nicely padded, I see no point in putting anymore in until it is needed. Lets not just throw money into a pot and watch it grow- it is not needed. I don't feel right about adding money into any corporation if it isn't being used for the purpose for which it was given.

Once we've used up the money that is already in the fund, I've been thinking long and hard about ways to keep the money in our own fund (not corporate funds), until it is used for the purpose intended. We're a ways away from that, so we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Make since?

Jill- when placing a subscription, 2 emails are sent out. One email is sent to the person receiving the subscription. That email states that "a subscription has been placed in your name". THAT email does not tell who gave the subscription. The second email is sent to the person who PAID for the subscription. THAT email states who paid, and who received. Often what happens is that when placing a subscription for oneself, that person assumes that both emails are the same (or that it was an error that they got 2), and they don't read them both, or just glaze them over and don't realize they are different.

As Darius said, the recipient doesn't know who paid. Often the recipient will ask. I will then email the giver and let them know that the person wants to know who gave them the subscription. Sometimes they will ask me not to tell (and I don't), sometimes they will ask me just to pass on a note, and sometimes they themselves will contact the recipient and let them know. I never assume, and Dave and Terry pass all inquires of Garden Angel stuff to me, so they don't get involved at all.

At any time, members are welcome to let me know of another member in need of the fund. The information is then passed on to the Garden Angel committee (a small anonymous group), and gets taken care of from there.

New this year is the opportunity to pay the old price and ask the Fund to fill in the rest. I trust that no one will take advantage of this situation, as we want to keep the funds available to ALL with limited incomes, or for when disaster strikes. Certainly we don't want to loose any "old timers", or new comers for that matter, due to the price increase. Feel free to spread the word to those who may not be aware.

I hope I didn't leave anything out :)

GREAT explanation, Trish. Thanks.

I agree, you explained it in a great way!!

Then I guess this must've been a glitch... I received a gift subscription last fall, and I got the following Dmail from Dave's Garden:

"Dear [DG name of person who gave me the subscription],

Today you placed an order for a subscription for the DG user critterologist. That subscription has been processed! critterologist is now fully subscribed through Jan 12, 2008 2:29 PM and they have been notified by us of this news!

best,
Dave and the team"

It sounds like their Dmail notification was sent to me rather than to them.

I was recently talking to another DGer, and she said something similar had happened... she gave a gift subscription, would've preferred to have it anonymous, but the recipient was notified of the gift and that she had given it.

Odd.

My notification tattled too. Thanks you-know-who!

mg

*frown*

I brought this to Dave's attention. Thanks for letting us know.

Same thing happened to me.

Ugh, of all mistakes to make, I say that's one of the worst kinds.

This bug has been fixed and will not happen again. I apologize to those who have had their cover blown. :(

Dave

I don't know if I did anything to try and be anonymous,but when I gifted a subscription, the "gifted one"lol was notified that it was me as well.

Was not sure if they would qualify for the Angel Fund, so sprung for their subscription.

So my next question is, if someone is not on a "fixed" income, but income is low and living expenses high-would that qualify someone? I realize I need to be more specific.

I have a friend who has mentioned DG (I keep asking her to join, not thinking that she can't pay for a membership right now), who recently moved here from up North, has 5 kids-most grown, but two are at home now. It took her and her husband several months to find work, and I know they barely make ends meet.

Would this situation qualify or do you need income info, etc?

Suggest her to Trish and as much info as you can. She will take it to the Committee.

thanks darius!

Before you request a subscription for her through the Angel fund, you might want to have her at least come here and sign up as a member, that's free and it'll accomplish two things--one, she can see if she really likes it and would want to spend more time here and have access to the other features (if she doesn't then no sense in getting a subscription!), and if she participates in the forums and things that she does have access to as a member, it'll show Trish and the others on the angel committee that she would be a valuable person to have around, they're probably not going to want to use the Angel funds to pay for someone who hasn't demonstrated that they will be an active participant in DG.