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.

Why should I subsidise his expensive education?

I’d sort of want to be cheeky and say “because I’m funding your child’s state education”.

Ignorant =/= cheeky

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.

I find it hard to believe that she is specifically asked you just to put you in an awkward position, she’s surely asked everyone she knows or at least those she feels closest to that she could, in theory, ask without judgement.
Either you simply ignore the request or you reply saying to her ‘what a lovely idea, sorry money is really tight right now but I hope X has fun’ then move on!

I’m just saying that it’s fine to disagree with a way people choose to fundraise, or even a charity’s cause, but it’s a bit of a leap to imply someone is a CF to want to fundraise for a cause or that they should consider everyone’s individual financial situation before they consider asking for sponsorship.
If nothing else events like this raise the profile of the charity and that can hardly be a bad thing surely?

Yep Ignorant=/=cheeky

I work for charities and I regularly donate to various charities- and this kind of thing annoys me no end!!

Fundraising for worthy causes should be about communicating strategically about the value of the cause. I hate all this faffing around with hobbies and activities that have almost nothing to do with the cause itself.

If she wants to take her baby swimming then she can. If she wants to donate to this charity then she should. If she wants to raise more money than she can provide herself then she should communicate to people about the value of that cause.

I think people should make their charitable contributions in a considered way to charities they believe in and the social change they want to see in the world. That is powerful. But reactively throwing a few pounds here and there to get relatives off your back is not doing much at all or even giving the donor any value.

Id ignore the email, or just write back 'oo sounds fun, please send photos of baby swimming' or whatever. You don't need to donate to this cause if it isn't one you would have chosen based on its own merit