Agggh..asked to donate to niece running Marathon

I know you probably feel it's never-ending supporting charities and sponsoring family, but kudos to your niece for putting in the work, and it's very likely that her own parents have also sponsored her generously. As any amount is gratefully received anyway it can be as little or as much as you want it to be - you're in charge of that. You could always say that as you already donate on an ongoing basis you're just putting in a token amount - think that is fair enough, and nobody's going to think any less of you.

When asked, if I'm happy to support that charity then I'm willing to donate, if I don't like a particular charity then I refuse and say so. Easy peasy.

If this is the London Marathon then she will have been in training for several months, and if she is running for a charity they will expect her to raise a certain amount of money. It's not like this money is for herself and since you already support the same charity surely it is easy to make a small donation?
You should be very proud that she is making this effort to raise money and encourage her

As you support the charity and she is your niece, I can't really see the issue with giving it that way.
It is not just about the fact that her parents could afford to give her enough, it is about the encouragement that she would get from other people sponsoring her.
Her parents may be takers but are you sure that she is? Don't judge her by her parents.
It doesn't have to be much. If it is difficult for you to afford much, give this as an alternative to your normal way of giving.

If the money is going to the charity, give whatever you want. The fact that her family is well off has nothing to do with it as presumably they will be giving a nice fact amount as well. I support my family when they do the same sort of thing, usually give £5 or £10.

Grannyben I so agree. Actually raising the money can be harder than the training for the marathon>
26.2 miles is just the final lap, she will have done many hours/miles of training before the day>
Most certainly a giver>
I know, I still am crazy enough to 'run London' when I can get a place, though can't manage to raise fund every year so can't take part every year

I donate to many charities and would support any family member doing something like running a Marathon when the money is going to charity. Your niece is 'giving' a great deal in time, effort, commitment etc, etc, and her family will have been involved too in one way or another - things like watching children while she trains, doing extra chores, driving duties she might usually do. If they are well off I would be pretty sure they themselves are making a sizeable donation.

We had an IT business and where I drew the line was a customer asking us to 'sponsor' his daughter and her Mum to take her horse to a show in England, (we are in north-east Scotland). We would have been funding their travel and accommodation. At the time our own daughter, (now 34), was 12/13 and was doing 4 X dance classes, drama class, violin lessons, guitar lessons, ice-skating, orchestra, hockey, tennis lessons every week....and we were paying for it all, not asking others to fund her 'hobbies'!!

My daughter is running the Manchester marathon next Sunday in aid of Pancreatic Cancer UK in memory of my son in law who died last Christmas. Training for this has taken and enormous commitment and great physical strain. Anyone who puts themselves through this is a giver and a small donation from friends and relatives shows how much you respect her commitment and effort- definitely donate and tell her how proud you are of her.

Mon 01-Apr-19 19:24:30

Surely the money won't be channelled through the family but will go straight into one of the online places where you can add the gift aid? Not sure anyone goes round with a form these days, just send you the link to Just Giving or whatever.

Sometimes runners have to commit to raising a certain amount for the charity to gain entry to the marathon. There is usually a Just Giving site set up so you will be sure the money in going to the right place rather than into someone's pocket.

The charity is wonderful and I donate to them at every opportunity
So why are you reluctant to donate this time? This is another opportunity to donate - and your niece is giving up her time, working hard, training hard so that your preferred charity will benefit - well done her.

I think the fact that she is doing something to raise the money is something to be proud of.... IF she had just donated money you and or others would probably have criticised that saying something equally unpleasant such as - well she can afford to etc. She is dammed if she does dammed if she doesn’t.

In the words of Bob Geldof, 'Just give her the bl**dy money.

If its a great charity, I might do a total amount like a tenner rather than an amount per mile...It's not like your niece is personally profitting from running the marathon and it's raising money for a worthwhile charity. Maybe all her well off family will donate as well and it might add up to a lot of money raised.

Are you suggesting her family won’t be supporting her?

I take my hat off to anyone running a marathon and I’d support the charity. Doesn’t have to be a huge amount, not sure why you resent it. You can always say no.

it takes a lot of time and effort to train for a marathon we used to do them in the 80's.If she's willing to do the hard work in hope of people donating then I think even a small donation from you will be more than welcome.
My OH does the kilt walk now rather than run the distance ,he did his first just a few months after heart attacks and his family and friends were so proud of him walking over 26 miles they donated shedloads of money.7 years on and the money isn't as much but we still all think he d eserves our support.

Bloody phone gn not GM!!!!

You can sponsor her for 50p a mile or give say a maximum of £10 if she finishes. Rather her than me but it takes commitment to run a marathon, I'd say that makes her a giver.

Hello, maddy are you new to GM? Welcome if you are.

Hi Maddy
I'm a bit confused doesn't take much

Is the money going to the charity rather than the runner?

I would think running a marathon and trying to raise much needed funds for a charity is something to be very proud of and, in my book, makes her very much a giver, not a taker.

I think it's quite rude of them to ask for money especially considering they're well off, and you donate to them on every opportunity.

I suggest talking to her about this personally

Give a tenner and leave it at that!