My Nonprofit Reviews

While I think that the purpose of the USO and some of the support that it gives military families is highly commendable, as a donor I have to say I am very disappointed with their practices. I give to the USO in my name, and last year made a $5 donation in my daughter's name (she is now 2 years old) to send a valentine to a soldier overseas. Before I donated money, I wanted to donate goods to the USO at the Denver airport, as we lived in Colorado at the time. I had a lengthy conversation with a man there who seemed to be in charge. He basically told me not to bother with toiletries and other goods for soldiers at the airport office because the kids from the Air Force Academy in Colo Springs just come in and fill their bags with those items. HELLO? You guys are big boys, control that situation! Then he didnt want my stack of magazines because they weren't current. But they weren't current events magazines, either, they were Smithsonian, Outside, etc - rather timeless. SO he talked me into giving money. And I did. And now I am flooded with mail from the USO (and the emails...oh my!!). I wouldn't mind if the mail was free, but now the money I've given seems to have gone straight to their marketing dept instead of to soldiers overseas, as intended! The worst, though, is the result of my daughter's $5 donation. They have since spent that $5 ten times over on mailings addressed to her. She has a distinctive name, and her last name is different from mine, so I know she is on the USO list as a separate person. THE WORST PART?? They sold their mailing list. The USO is the only organization I've given a donation to in my daughter's name, and suddenly we are bombarded with mail for her from every organization there is, from Special Olympics to the World War II Museum. Very, very disappointed indeed.

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