Visit our Contributors' Pages:
Visit Family Christmas Online Visit Howard Lamey's own web page, LittleGlitterHouses.com Click to Sign Up for Maria Cudequest's Collectibles Blog
Visit Family Christmas Online
Click to visit Fred's Noel-Kat store.
Click to return to the Old Christmas Tree Lights Table of Contents Page

It is currently Thu Mar 28, 2024 4:40 am
It is currently Thu Mar 28, 2024 4:40 am
Note: - This site has just been moved to a new server with slightly different software. We've tried to make certain that nothing important has been lost, but if you notice any broken links or other issues, please let us know as soon as possible by using the contact page.

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 5 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Sun Nov 09, 2014 8:59 pm 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Fri Jan 24, 2014 10:40 am
Posts: 192
In case you wondered.

Someone has apparently put FamilyChristmasOnline.com on a list of places you can send unsubstantiated hardship stories and get money. You should know that nobody here draws a salary. In fact, it COSTS us money to run this site. We don't complain, and we don't ask for donations, because we consider running this site as one way to "pay it forward," in honor of folks who have shared great Christmas stories and traditions with us over our lifetimes. But everyone who has volunteered to help this site already volunteers and supports legitimate charities that help needy families. None of us has time - especially as Christmas approaches - to "vet" unsolicited requests for help from individuals so far away we couldn't check out their story if we wanted to. Nor do we feel good about diverting support from folks we know need help to people we know nothing about.

Actually, we did check out the first several requests we got, and the results did not make me feel good about trusting people I only know by e-mail. But even if the requests were legitimate, we've already made commitments to people and organizations we know are legitimate.

If you really have needs, you should know that, instead of ignoring needs like yours, we are devoting time and support to trustworthy organizations that have chapters in your community as well as ours.

If you really need help, contact your chapter of the Salvation Army for starters. If your kids are really in danger of going "toyless" this year, contact the regional Marines' "Toys for Tots." If your children have a parent in prison, contact the closest "Angel Tree" group. If neither of the latter two groups has a chapter in your region, your local Salvation Army may be able to suggest alternative resources. By the way, they're one of the charities we count on and support for this kind of work in our community, so I don't feel bad about listing them as a "point resource" in yours.

If you're thinking about your own charitable giving and you've been wondering what organizations really help the people they claim to, check out the organizations that check THEM out.

- http://www.charitynavigator.org/ - Charity Navigator
- http://www.charitywatch.org/" - CharityWatch
- http://www.bbb.org/us/charity - BBB Wise Giving Alliance

You'll notice that none of those sites list FamilyChristmasOnline.com as a charity. For tax purposes we operate as a business - believe it or not it works for us, because it allows us to use advertising to offset some of the costs and keeps us from having to ask for money. So don't send us money. But you can send us stories, articles, special memories, favorite Christmas songs, etc. :-)

Have a great holiday season.

Paul


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Mon Nov 17, 2014 8:11 am 
Offline

Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2014 8:16 am
Posts: 335
Well this was bound to happen sooner or later. It seems that in the last ten years or so, Christmas scamming like this pops up with greater and greater frequency. I'll spread the word!


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 4:05 pm 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Fri Jan 24, 2014 10:40 am
Posts: 192
It's starting already. "Where do I write to get gifts for my children?"

How about trying the agencies that I list in the contact page you used to contact me?

Once again, we try to support agencies with chapters in every state. If you need help, contact the local chapter of Salvation Army and Toys for Tots. If your child has a parent in prison, contact Angel Tree. They have local "feet on the ground" to make certain their limited resources are going to help real people with real needs. We don't.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Sep 30, 2015 1:39 pm 
Offline

Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2014 8:16 am
Posts: 335
Yeah it's started over in my world too


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue Oct 06, 2015 11:40 pm 
Offline
Site Admin

Joined: Fri Jan 24, 2014 10:40 am
Posts: 192
I don't really write these spammers and scammers and phishers back, but I've had some fun pretending to turn their own spams, scams, an phishing expeditions back on their heads:

http://creekdontrise.com/forums/viewtop ... f=28&t=202


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 5 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron




Click to see sturdy Lionel(r) trains that are perfect for your Christmas tree.



Visit our affiliated sites:
- Christmas Memories and Collectibles -
Visit the FamilyChristmasOnline site. Visit Howard Lamey's glitterhouse gallery, with free project plans, graphics, and instructions. Visit Papa Ted Althof's extensive history and collection of putz houses, the largest and most complete such resource on the Internet.. Click to return to the Old Christmas Tree Lights Table of Contents Page Click to sign up for Maria Cudequest's craft and collectibles blog.
Click to visit Fred's Noel-Kat store.
- Family Activities and Crafts -
Click to see reviews of our favorite family-friendly Christmas movies. Free, Family-Friendly Christmas Stories Decorate your tree the old-fashioned way with these kid-friendly projects. Free plans and instructions for starting a hobby building vintage-style cardboard Christmas houses. Click to find free, family-friendly Christmas poems and - in some cases - their stories. Traditional Home-Made Ornaments
- Trains and Hobbies -
Visit Lionel Trains. Free building projects for your vintage railroad or Christmas village. Click to see Thomas Kinkaded-inspired Holiday Trains and Villages. Big Christmas Train Primer: Choosing and using model trains with holiday themes Building temporary and permanent railroads with big model trains Click to see HO scale trains with your favorite team's colors.
- Music -
Carols of many countries, including music, lyrics, and the story behind the songs Wax recordings from the early 1900s, mostly collected by George Nelson.  Download them all for a 'period' album.
Best-loved railroad songs and the stories behind them.
Heartland-inspired music, history, and acoustic instrument tips. Own a guitar, banjo, or mandolin?  Want to play an instrument?  Tips to save you money and time, and keep your instrument playable. Own a guitar, banjo, or mandolin?  Want to play an instrument?  Tips to save you money and time, and keep your instrument playable.
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group