CMG-San Diego -
Info about Fees
A note from the local committee

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Our "Turn no one away for money" policy:

In general, we try never to turn anyone away from events because of money.
We realize that some members of the community are out of work, on fixed incomes, struggling to get by on what they are making, etc. and we want them to feel welcome, too!

CMG-SD does need the income we request to cover costs, as explained below.
That being said, for most events, we have room for flexibility.

Most of our events are either uncapped in attendance (ie: picnics, outings) or we're fairly certain we'll cover our costs (ie: a house party), so if you have concerns, it is fine to let the donation collector know that you need to pay less.  Anything you can contribute is appreciated.

The two less common times where we might not be as flexible on costs are:

1)  If a flat fee is involved:  For instance, if we're doing a night at La Jolla Playhouse,
     the ticket cost is fixed and we cannot reduce the rate.

2)  If we're needing to cover expenses with a limited headcount.  For instance, a few
     years ago, we did a small event and needed to rent a particular space for it. 
     We determined the suggested donation price such that we could break even. 
     For that one, when someone contacted us about coming in for far less, we were
     in a position of possibly giving away a space that someone else could have
     paid for.

     The compromise we reached was that, if the event didn't sell out, we would
     accept what he could cover.  He was fine with this and, as it turned out, we 
     called him the night before and he took the last spot.

Again, these two situations are more the exception than the norm.  In most cases, we'll work with you if the suggested donation would be a challenge for you and accept what you can afford.

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Why are you charging for events, especially the ones where I have to bring food myself?

CMG-SD has expenses that are ongoing, even in the months where the events we offer (movie outings, theater nights, street fairs, etc) bring us no money.

We pay for the notification system, insurance, provisions at events, printing, and more.  We also do outreach as a non-profit and there are costs there in making new people aware of what CMG is about.  The annual pride booth and parade are quite expensive and fundraising all year long helps pay for those two, where more new people learn about us than anywhere else.

In addition, part of the Local Events Committee's goal is to raise funds to help those with financial needs afford to go to the CMG retreats.  In particular, we in San Diego try to support the Fall Gathering in Idyllwild.  The retreats are the foundation of CMG from which local events eventually sprang forth.

Hopefully, understanding that CMG is a statewide non-profit organization with strong goals to create community locally and across California makes it easier to feel like your donation is going to a worthy cause!  Especially when, as you read above, not everyone you see at the event may have been able to pay the full amount in order to feel included.