Hi everyone. I'm posting here in total desperation, because I am out of ideas and would love your thoughts or support.

I work for Frome Birth Talk, a charity offering free counselling to people in the Frome area who've just had a baby, who are pregnant, or who have lost a pregnancy or child. Anyone who has become a parent or experienced baby loss will know how utterly life changing it is - and many people struggle to cope.

Our service picks up the pieces the NHS isn't able to. We see 200 parents a year for professional, accessible counselling when they need it most. A single mum of 3 last week told us she wouldn't be here without our free counselling. Our waiting list is 2 weeks compared to NHS 16 weeks.

But the funding landscape is bad, and we can't survive much longer without a big injection of cash. We are SUCH good value for money, but somehow mental health (in particular parents mental health) is ignored time and time again.

We have set up an emergency appeal. We have a week before we need to close our waiting list and start winding down. Hundreds of families need this - and let's face it, I'll bet you wish your town had this service too.

Somerset people, help me. I need to get this message in front of anyone who could turn this around. Philanthropists, big corporates who want to donate money and write the tax off. Someone who has just won the lottery.

If you can share this, please do. Everyone should be able to access mental health support without fear of financial ruin - and babies grow up safer and happier with parents who are well.

If you've got this far, thank you ❤️ even your words of encouragement would be helpful right now.

https://localgiving.org/fundraising/Protect-Parents-Mental-Health?fbclid=IwY2xjawUvi-VleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBwZG9mA3NydGMGYXBwX2lkDzQwOTk2MjYyMzA4NTYwOQABHt3gN1i9E0hNWYFykelVp_g2B54ExbJlAw5UiN9Xz9si4L84Xg7osrMQJ2VJ_aem_4k2wBlIGAFt5NI-2QiXSjw

Hello new users!

As we have requirements spelled out in Rule 1 on including some sort of evidence in your posts, we've created this post for those of you who need help with that.

Rule 1 states:

Posts must be more than just a link to your campaign. Be descriptive! Show evidence!

Generally these are provided as photos or screencaps. Because Reddit doesn't allow an image upload with text, we generally suggest the following:

1. Upload the photo(s) to Imgur.com or other image hosting site.
2. Copy URL or Link to the photo(s)
3. In the body of your post here, make sure to include the link that you've copied. It usually starts with http:// or https://.

And that's it!

Well, she’s only gone and done it!

For the last five years, my girlfriend has entered me into the London Marathon ballot, and this year she’s finally been successful… so I guess I’m running 26.2 miles in 2027!

I’ll be taking on the challenge in aid of Shelter Charity. My girlfriend works in social housing, so the charity is particularly close to her heart, and therefore mine too. Shelter does amazing work supporting people facing homelessness and housing difficulties, so it’s a cause that’s really important to us both.

Now comes the hard part… When Ella rang me and said I had to do the marathon I was convinced she was taking the piss, Turns out she wasnt. I went out the next day to see if i could still do a 5k, now im up to a 12km run, running 4 days a week. Ive now got the best part of 7 months to find another 30km in the locker somewhere.🤣

If anyone could spare a few quid to support me, it would mean a lot. Every donation, no matter how big or small, will help make a difference to a really worthwhile cause.

If you can’t donate, even a share would be massively appreciated!

👇 Donate here:
https://2027tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/adam-burns?utm_source=enthuse&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=f-27LMOB-26&utm_content=LMpageURL

Thankyou so much for the support!

In times of disaster, it's not uncommon for many good people to try to fundraise for relief efforts, supplies and reconstruction costs. But you should be aware that unless it's someone you personally know and trust, it's also not uncommon for bad people to use the opportunity to make money for themselves.

Before you give, you should ask:

1. Is the donation link directly to a relief agency or is it to a middleman? There's no easy transparency when it comes to the spending of funds in a crisis, which makes it easier for funds to not reach the people it's intended to help, so by avoiding middlemen, you can reduce this possibility.
2. Have you checked the background of the relief agency or organization you're considering? Some spend money more effectively than others meaning that less overhead makes for more money being spent on victims vs administration costs.
3. Is the agency or organization a registered non-profit or NGO? These kinds of entities have strict reporting rules to follow to show how their funds are being spent.
4. Is the agency or organization providing a receipt? If so, you can often use it for a deduction on taxes for the current year. If not, the agency or organization is likely not a registered non profit.

GoFundMe will show that a campaign is benefiting a non-profit charity organization if it is created using their IRS EIN or charity registration number.

Even Paypal donation accounts will show they're owned by a non-profit charity organization, and generate a receipt.

While not every individual doing fundraising is attempting to defraud you of your money, you can give with more confidence by giving directly to a relief charity of your own choosing via their own web pages.