To get annoyed to be asked to sponsor this?

[Cersaj]

My cousin has just text to ask me to sponsor her baby's splash challenge. Literally a challenge which involves taking the baby into a pool and carrying him splashing to the other side. We are close, but AIBU to think this is taking the piss?

I've just given him a quite expensive baptism present less than a week ago, plus all of the usual baby shower/baby born/Christmas presents, and she's still asking me for money. It's really grated on me. Obviously I'll be saying no.

No you are NBU, this kind of thing would annoy me too. I put the entire sponsorship for my children's events in myself to avoid annoying people.

No not unreasonable that sounds ridiculous. I hate all the sponsored skydives and things like that, they aren't really doing it for charity they're doing it because they want to do a skydive

God that sounds like a load of shit
I sponsor people who aren’t runners doing a first marathon and that is it
Yanbu.

She's joking right?

Nope not at all BU

Bloody ridiculous! I don't sponsor anyone anymore, purely because most of it is piss taking.

A fucking what?

Raising money for what?

But what's it for? To raise funds for what?

What's it raising money for?

A charity called Tommy's. It's not the charity itself I object to.

I must admit that the whole concept of being asked to sponsor someone for something they want to do anyway annoys me in general, but this is the most ridiculous one. Donating money because a 7 month old splashed about.

YANBU, I felt the same about having to sponsor my baby to listen to stories at nursery to raise money for charity when the nursery costs alone were making me starve myself and walk around with holey shoes. Just say you'll send a donation to Tommy's direct when you get paid, then do it if you feel like it

YANBU.
Take Grange Hill's advice, and 'Just say no'

Yanbu. My baby niece did something similar and my sister refused to even pass around the form other than for us to have a giggle at. I think she bunged a couple of quid in for the charity and left it at that.

Whilst I agree that no one should feel compelled to sponsor ANYONE for ANYTHING, particularly if you don’t feel the thing they’re doing is that worthy, I do think you are being unreasonable for claiming you’re cousin is ‘asking you for money’. She’s hardly pocketing it herself is she? Tommy’s is a charity who fund research into premature and stillborn babies.
If you don’t want to donate that’s fine and entirely your choice, but to begrudge a fundraiser because you chose to buy an expensive baptism gift is bizarre; the two things aren’t at all linked to one another.

"oh Tommy's, yes.. I've got a direct debit set up for them already"

(I donate to a specific local charity every month, 97% of funds goes straight back to the cause. I refuse to be guilted into donating like this)

If you don’t want to donate that’s fine and entirely your choice, but to begrudge a fundraiser because you chose to buy an expensive baptism gift is bizarre; the two things aren’t at all linked to one another.

They are. She is asking me to donate money to a cause she has chosen, knowing that it would put me into an awkward position to refuse. If I sent her a message saying 'Hello! I'm doing a fundraiser for my chosen charity. Please donate money to them and in return I'll go and put my feet in a paddling pool' I'd be told no, and quite rightly. It is asking people to donate to her chosen charity for absolutely no reason other than so they don't feel guilty for refusing a baby.

YANBU but I have seen worse.

Some years ago one of the managers at work was going round with a sponsor form for his son who was dong something or other to raise money for "school funds." Until he reached one bloke who said "Hang on, your child goes to a private school. Why should I subsidise his expensive education?" He had no answer to that.

5 foot - because fundraising in private schools doesn't go towards fees. It normally goes towards extras for the school that they wouldn't otherwise have. Think playgrounds, outdoor classrooms, etc.

Can you just delete the text? If she asks, act confused, go through your phone and say theres no text there. Repeat as required, maybe she'll get the message!

I'm just not going to reply to it at all. It'll be interesting to see if anyone donates on the page.

ISayWhatNow - but why should other people pay for those things? Surely it's down to the people who use the school to fund these.
It isn't as if the sponsored evet was doing anything useful. It was a spelling bee or something.

I think sponsored events should either be doing something that benefits society as a whole, e.g. picking up litter, in which case you can raise money for whatever you like as you are already doing something useful or, if it is an event that does nothing for the greater good (spelling bee, sponsored walk), should be raising money for a cause that is worth supporting.

So a social useless activity like a spelling bee used t raise money so already privileged children can have extra facilities at someone else's expense seems cheeky to me.

I'm with HolyMilkBoobiesBatman, I don't see how these things are connected and she may not either. Charities just want to raise money, it doesnt really matter to them how, and this splash challenge is probably just seen as a bit of fun. You are under no obligation and as you said you are going to say no. If she takes umbridge, then I could understand you being upset.

When my kids needing sponsoring, we would ask grandparents, and occasionally godparents, having first explained that we really would not be upset if they refused and, if they did agree, to not give a large sum. And we did not ask the wider family or friends. We also would have a 'you do mine and I'll do yours' agreement with friends. We limited it because we know ppl can feel uncomfortable saying no. I do not have that problem!

I think YABU OP. Your cousin is fundraising for a charity, so she's going to ask all of her contacts to donate. That's kind of what fundraising is.

YAB totally U to conflate it with previous gifts given, especially those given months ago and maybe a year ago? If your still dwelling on Christmas presents the following May, you have an issue that has nothing to do with raising money for charity.

Just ignore. That's what I do when skint or not interested in the charity.

It's tricky saying no to family especially though. Pisses me off as charities, often paying substantial salaries to the people who think up such bullshit, actively encourage this without thinking about how it might affect relationships with family and friends who don't really want to sponsor yet another dress up day or paint your face like a tiger day or whatever other perfectly normal activity is lazily being turned into a chance to make money.