Dear Matzav Inbox,
I can’t be the only one who’s fed up with the flood of tzedakah brochures that get sent home for our children every Purim. It’s bad enough that these organizations know no bounds when it comes to fundraising, but now they’ve figured out how to rope in our kids with promises of prizes if they raise enough money. And let me tell you, it’s not just the kids who are caught up in this madness — it’s us, the parents, who are left to pick up the pieces.
Every day for weeks leading up to Purim, our homes are flooded with brochures. “Raise X amount, get a prize!”
The focus on money becomes so intense that the real essence of Purim is completely overshadowed. Instead, our kids are obsessed with competing to see who can raise the most. We have to drive them to all different neighborhoods to collect. They’ve become obsessed with the money. It’s never enough. And they’re driving us parents meshugeh!
This obsession with fundraising, driven by these tzedakah organizations, takes over our homes. The constant pestering, the nagging to collect from neighbors, and the pressure to perform in order to earn prizes — it’s driving families crazy.
We parents are at our wits’ end, trying to keep the kids grounded. It’s a losing battle.
Enough is enough. These organizations need to stop using our children as fundraising tools. It’s ruining the entire spirit of the Yom Tov. Instead of simcha and orah, our homes are filled with stress, pressure, and frustration.
Let us have our Purim back.
Sincerely,
A Frustrated Parent
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Agreed
Stop kvetching and find something productive to do with your time.
As tzdakas and organizations become more sophisticated and media savy . Like Social Media preys on children and teenagers, Tzedakas used to prey on askanim, but they overloaded and over hunted thier prey with Online Chessed, Tzedaka Matching campaigns, tele solicitors all day and night. For the past 60 years Chinuch Atzmei, Peylim, Bartons chocolate sales before pessach all had children going out and collecting an in turn receiving nominal prizes. Today there are more Tzdakas more Mishulachim, more pressure and better media driven campaigns. Like an over harvested field , thier are no more nutrients just big bucks
Fully agree with the writer. Stop using the children as pawns to collect money for your mosdos.
I’ve never won a raffle, lottery, or giveaway. Tzedaka is a mitzvah, not a gamble. Therefore, when the letters come, the decision is made with the assumption of receiving nothing back in return. Tzedaka is given based solely on the cause.
We just got another box in yesterday’s mail. But the funny thing is that there were perhaps 10 ads for tzedakahs right below your letter. While each one is surely worthy. It does seem like our frum media is overdoing it.
I really like the mutated, deformed “Hebrew” letters that AI generated for the picture above. I didn’t know it was possible for a computer to get into the “ad dilo yoda” spirit. Ah freilichen Purim!
I agree with your concerns, and really don’t like what the tzedaka organizations are doing, although I believe that, done in the right way, it is good chinuch for kids to collect for good mosdos, even if there is incentive. However, your wording seems to be a bit over the top. Words and phrases like: ruined, fed up, madness, pick up the pieces, obsession, meshugeh, crazy, Purim is completely overshadowed, stress, pressure, frustration, all contained within your short letter, indicate an overreaction. While it may take a lot of work to undo what is going on with the collecting, it may be easier to reign in your emotions and you will enjoy Purim more, even if nothing on the outside changes.
We throw out the brochures before my kids se them.
im sure the organizations follow Daas Torah
Then there’s something wrong with that too
Who’s in charge of your kids?
“We have to drive them to all different neighborhoods to collect.”
Oh well, if you HAVE to… Maybe if you ask your kids really nicely you they’ll allow you to not drive them?
Where are the letters about parenting?
What is a parent’s job?
How are they supposed to do it?
Are children who control their parents happier?
Are kids capable of reasoned and rational decisions?
Are children who have parents which are in control happier?
How do children learn how to make decisions? By getting whatever they decide that they want, or learning it through osmosis – when they observe how their parents make decisions about them?