Are Charity Runs Selfish?
Sure, but who cares. Okay, I'll expand my statement.This morning I came across this article from Yahoo Finance in which a financial advisor criticizes fundraising through recreational and adventure activities as essentially vanity projects.In her words:
“Climbing a mountain, running a marathon, leaping out of a plane, and other common fundraising activities are ‘self-gratuitous adventures’ that serve no purpose to society,”
As someone who works professionally with charities and an active participant in a variety of outdoor athletic endeavours (I do product and event reviews with Get Out There Magazine) I think I can voice my two cents here.There is some validity to the idea that using activities that we would love to do anyway as a vehicle for fundraising can be manipulative. Certainly there are times when the participant portrays the event as something other than a personal achievement or dream fulfilled to encourage more giving. That's often somewhat less than fully honest. It is very rare in my experience for anyone to run a marathon against their will to benefit a hospital, orphanage, or homeless program. And if that did occur, none of us should be party to it.Like the poorly construed argument that money spent on short term international charitable trips would be better used by just giving it directly to the people in need, this article misses the point by creating a false alternative.If the average young person doesn't go to Ecuador to help at a soccer camp they aren't giving the money to the orphanage, they are spending it on a vacation, new smart phone, or tuition. And if your friend doesn't ask you for $20 in support of their charitable 10k they aren't going to ask for it for a day spent sorting donations at the food bank.These kinds of arguments may generate heated internet comment debates, but they do little to address reality.If people want to add a feel-good charitable component to their adventures that seems like a generally good thing. Sure, some of them are pushy, and some will act as if they are doing something more noble than tagging support for a cause they may or may not truly be passionate about to what you might consider a basically selfish pursuit. (I admit that my own races and events are primarily for my own benefit).So what?If you don't want to give to the next golf marathon, 100km cycling event, or parachute jump just say "no thanks". If they persist asking after that you have my permission to tell them to leave you alone with as much rudeness as is necessary. But don't be so superior to suggest that there is something fundamentally wrong with these events. They generate untold millions for charities, help motivate thousands of people to actually do things they might otherwise only dream of, and give all of us the chance to believe the best about ourselves for roughly the cost of lunch.There are definitely better ways to make a difference, but that doesn't make these ones wrong.By the way, I am currently training for both a two day 220km bike ride in British Columbia in September and my first ever marathon in November. If you want to chip in a donation so that my selfish adventures can also help some people in need just let me know. I'd be happy to let you share in the achievement.