(Topic ID: 138881)

Pinball EDU Charity Raffle - Win a Pinball Machine

By joesaid

8 years ago


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  • 662 posts
  • 134 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 4 years ago by J-Freeze
  • Topic is favorited by 38 Pinsiders

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Topic index (key posts)

38 key posts have been marked in this topic, showing the first 10 items.

Display key post list sorted by: Post date | Keypost summary | User name

Post #65 Bemmett wins September 2015 drawing. Posted by bemmett (8 years ago)

Post #76 October 2015 raffle announcement. Posted by joesaid (8 years ago)

Post #111 Tentative opening timeframe March-June 2016. Posted by joesaid (8 years ago)

Post #151 Thanks from the winner of the November raffle. Posted by fxdwg (8 years ago)


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#477 7 years ago
Quoted from joesaid:

Pinball EDU's financials are on its website at:
http://www.pinball-edu.org/financial-statements/

joesaid Your website does not have any financial information. It currently shows only that a 990-N was filed. As a charity that took in more than $50,000 gross in 2016 Pinball EDU does not meet the criteria for filing a 990-N.
https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/annual-electronic-filing-requirement-for-small-exempt-organizations-form-990-n-e-postcard

The disclosure requirements for a 501(c)3 organization are given at
https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/public-disclosure-and-availability-of-exempt-organizations-returns-and-applications-documents-subject-to-public-disclosure

https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/public-inspection-and-disclosure-of-form-990-t

I look forward to your compliance so interested parties can see exactly how much money Pinball EDU has collected, how it has been spent, and how much remains.

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#485 7 years ago
Quoted from Darren_Sisco:

Wow, why are you guys beating up on JoeSaid? If you don't trust the raffle, then don't buy a ticket.
If you have in-depth tax questions, instead of calling him out to put him on the defense, just PM him and keep it private. I'd say most people on this forum realize the risk and don't care.

Joe is answering questions about how the charity is run because providing records and being transparent with the accounting are part of the responsibilities a charity accepts as a 501(c)3 organization. Those answers are best given in a public forum. Most donors to a charity want to know how much of their money is actually being used for the charitable purpose. Joe's post above shows about 58% goes to buy prizes and another 12% or so for other expenses and 30% hasn't been accounted for yet. Interested parties can and should use the information available from a charity to decide if their donation is being used wisely. Generally a top rated charity uses 75% or more of donations for its charitable programs, 25% or less for fundraising costs.

Quoted from joesaid:

Pinball EDU has a raffle license.

What is the license number?

#489 7 years ago
Quoted from Mike_M:

It's not like you can deduct purchasing raffle tickets as charitable donations on your tax returns.

I think you can. That's one of the benefits of donating to a 501(c)3. Typically a portion of your donation can be deducted from your gross income.

2 weeks later
#498 7 years ago

He wants evidence that the money is being used for its intended purpose. Same as I asked for a few weeks back and didn't get.

Pinball EDU will not get donations from me until they show how much they collect, what it's being spent on, and how much is left.

#503 7 years ago
Quoted from Jason1413:

Genuinely curious, are you donating more money than beyond the $40 raffle? I mean I get if you're throwing extra money as an actual donation and you don't feel it's being used appropriately. I could see you wanting more info, but if you're just buying raffle tickets for a chance to win a pinball machine, then what's the issue?

One charity I support is the Texas Ramp Project. I know 100% of my donation (labor) is used to build handicap accessible ramps for people who could not otherwise afford it. That is using your resources appropriately.

If your goal is to support a charity, do enough research to satisfy yourself that your donation is being used to your satisfaction. Less than 30% of my donation helping those in need doesn't meet my criteria.

#508 7 years ago
Quoted from Jason1413:

But are you supporting a charity when you're buying a ticket from EDU

Yes. If you want to enter a raffle to win a pinball machine worth $5000 just get 249 of your buddies together and raffle one off. The tickets are only $20 if you're not donating to charity.

Quoted from Jason1413:

I see a bunch of posts on this thread (from others as well) have this weird angle like people have been throwing money at this charity and have somehow been duped into paying for a guys vacation house and Ferrari. When really you've been putting $40/chance on trying to win yourself a $5000 pinball game. Would you have done this raffle even if you didn't know where the money was going? Let's not kid ourselves here.

If all you care about is the pinball machine why pick Pinball EDU instead of a more transparent charity or doing your own raffle? If raffle A & raffle B are the same price for the same prize and raffle A is raising money to spread the word of pinball among children but raffle B is financing some guy's vacation house and Ferrari which ticket would you buy and why? And how would you find out what is really happening to the money?

4 months later
#572 6 years ago

Make sure you research before contributing. A low percentage of money collected actually gets used for helping kids.

#575 6 years ago
Quoted from Dee-Bow:

How low? What's the percentage?

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/pinball-edu-charity-raffle-win-a-pinball-machine/page/10#post-3639027

I haven't seen more recent information than what's been posted already.

8 months later
#642 5 years ago

I would not say it's a scam. I will say it's not transparent enough exactly how much is collected and what it's used for.

If you want a chance to win it's fine. If you actually want your money used for a charitable purpose I suggest a more transparent organization.

The sad part to me is many non-profits use the lack of transparency to hide shady operations so they are all under a cloud of suspicion. Look at the recent Red Cross scandals. Ask Tim Arnold why he no longer works with the Salvation Army.

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