Date ideas if I feel like dressing up?

[Trainwreck20]

Not a gala type person, but most of them are probably welcome to any member of the public....if you 'donate' a few 1,000 dollars for your ticket .

[austinnerd]

Originally Posted by buffettjr

To who?

How much?

Many of the fine arts folks in town will have fancy soirees for donors (e.g. Austin Symphony, ALO, AMOA, Austin Chamber Music, Ballet Austin, etc). Exact levels vary by org, for example, $800 will get you into a black tie affair with the Austin Symphony. Generally about $1000 will garner some type of formal event for the larger orgs. Note that smaller amounts and smaller orgs will get you into donor events that aren't necessarily black tie, but that you can still get dolled up for if you don't mind that not everyone will be similarly attired.

Of course a night at the symphony, opera, etc is always a good excuse to get dressed up in and of itself.

[buffettjr]

Aha. Thanks for the info, AN. I looked up the Austin Symphony and it looks like $800 per person will get one invited to the opening Gala.

I've seen some free publication - I think it is called "Tribeza" - that always features photos of glamorous looking people at various galas, and I was just curious how they got invited to them. I didn't think that specific institutions would have donation pages on their websites that would itemize benefits.

Thanks,
WBJ

[austinnerd]

Originally Posted by buffettjr

Aha. Thanks for the info, AN. I looked up the Austin Symphony and it looks like $800 per person will get one invited to the opening Gala.

I've seen some free publication - I think it is called "Tribeza" - that always features photos of glamorous looking people at various galas, and I was just curious how they got invited to them. I didn't think that specific institutions would have donation pages on their websites that would itemize benefits.

Thanks,
WBJ

Most of them do, that's how they get you to fork over more money ....

"I think I'll donate $20 to the symphony, ok, click here, oh, wait, it says here that if I donate $50000 I get the same free paper fan that I would have gotten for the $20 donation but now I also get an invite to a black tie event where I can hobnob with the intelligentsia from Avery Ranch while PhD transplants from California wait tables and duped former Chicagoan's park my car."

It's interesting to see how folks who donate more than a minimal amount fully expect many of these perks (which to me seems like a waste of my donation dollars but I guess it helps pull in more donations so what the heck do I know).

[buffettjr]

I thought that this morning during the current NPR pledge drive. If I donate a certain amount I get an NPR mug. I was thinking, I'm already giving you money for free so I'd kinda rather you not order mugs with it and actually use the money for its intended purpose, but I know they do it because it raises more money in the end.

On a similar note, they are doing CFC drives right now through government and I was appalled when I looked up what the CFC does and what it costs. Essentially all it does is take your money and then hand it to someone else. It is a financial intermediary and is not actually a charity, yet it takes a 10% cut of your donation for simply taking your money and giving it to an actual charity. That's the same administrative fee as the Red Cross, which actually response to disasters, facilitates aid, organizes contractors, etc.

[oldtoiletsmkgdflrpots]

Originally Posted by buffettjr

Donating to Austin Pets Alive! gets one invited to galas? Do they hold galas? Do they invite you to galas for others?

Well, I'm not gettin it...why would someone donate just so they can get invited to a "gala"? Either ya got money or ya don't, (to give away). But, I'm cynical anyways...I don't like getting "dressed up", I don't like the phony baloney of "rubbing elbows" and I well...better stop because I just remembered if I don't have anything good to say I shouldn't say anything at all. Most of the time I forget.

[buffettjr]

I don't think anyone said they want to donate money just to be invited to a gala. I asked how these people get invited to galas, and you said donate lots of money to Austin Pets Alive. I was just confirming that Austin Pets Alive throws galas attended by donors.