As many of you will know the AFA is a charity started in 2007 to help people with atrial fibrillation. The charity sponsors this forum on Healthunlocked which so many people enjoy and to some extent rely on for information and support.
At this difficult time of pandemic, like all charities the Association is suffering really badly financially with no government support and with no events possible income stream has been badly affected. Many volunteers over the years have run marathons, done iron man events and other lunatic events to raise money but these are not posiibile right now.
If you find the forum useful and would like to make a small contribution then please go to the main website and donate whatever you can afford. Don't forget to complete the tax refund paperwork.
Thank you
Bob
Written by
BobD
Volunteer
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Now, I'm cross went straight to make my donation and lo and behold was asked to add another £1.50, it automatically added it on. Yes, I could have dropped the added extra down to 50p, but not to no amount added on. This type of of pushiness drives me wild!!!
It’s been my rock for many years and kept me sane. I will be giving a contribution for sure.
In fairness to the AFA, some these ruses to squeeze more money out of donors may not be their fault. Most charities use agencies such as Just Giving and others to generate income, and its they which tend to come up with the marketing ploys designed to increase revenue. As far as I can remember, the AFA has only once asked us to contact our MP’s to help influence government help, they haven’t tried to milk their members like so many other charities.
Without their existence, we wouldn’t be here today. It’s hard to contemplate how much more difficult our lives would be without the support they offer.
I came across this type of thing in my practice some years ago, trouble is that proving breach of confidentiality and privacy is very difficult.
It saddens me that people who are in a position of trust may either knowingly or unknowingly disclose private and personal information inappropriately which may later cause harm.
Good Morning BobI am currently doing a virtual walk along Hadrian's wall just to add a bit of interest to my day to day walking, usually doing about 4-5 miles a day. I have 60 miles to go, When I finish in about a fortnight I will chip in with pleasure.
I have enjoyed reading the contributions from all and sundry, had a laugh at the horrible jokes and learned a lot about what can be done and what progress is being made, so I hope everyone manages to chip in and keep the ship afloat.
Hi TraceyThere is a bunch called Ultrachalleng.com who enable anyone to enter virtual walking challenges and who work with quite a number of charities to help raise funds. I think the BHF is one of them. Have a look and see what you think. Ian
Thank you Bob for your post. May we add that we appreciate all your kind comments and any donations are always much appreciated - this helps the Charity to continue providing comfort, support and advice to all who need us!
I'm a big fan of the AFA. Their advice and the fantastic information I found on this forum were hugely beneficial to me when I was diaganosed with AF in 2015. I've been lucky to have had a successful ablation and I'm now back running regularly.
Therefore I'm super happy to have been chosen to represent the AFA at this years London Marathon.
I'll be ramping up both training and fundraising over the coming months. I'll start a new thread to share more info but for now all donations large or small would be most gratefully received.
When I managed to find the website -I eventually found it under heartrhythmalliance, I was given the option to donate via PayPal which was very easy, and no extra money was taken, no tax forms were requested though, so maybe AF doesn't get tax relief? Hope I've done the right thing here as this forum has been brilliant for me and I'm happy to support.
I'm not sure about the tax situation in general but signing any gift aid form means that HMRC repay the tax on the amount of the gift thereby increasing the donation. When I joined AFA I signed a gift aid form so mine should be grossed up. If Tracy reads this perhaps she can clairify.
Thank you Bob - I can clarify that if you are a UK taxpayer? then you are able to Gift Aid donations. This allows the Charity to claim 25% of your donation from HMRC at no extra cost to you. If you wish to do this, then please contact me on info@afa.org.uk - thank you for all your donations gratefully received to date !
This Forum has been so helpful, educational, supportive and comforting to so many of us. I have now donated.
Thank-you BobD for bringing the need to our attention.... and for your personal knowledge and support to the members of the Forum. I can assure you that we all greatly appreciate your experience and sensible postings !
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