a little light shed on TARGET... :(

[j]

This by Dick Forrey of the Vietnam Veterens Association:

Recently we asked the local TARGET store to be a proud sponsor of the
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall during our spring recognition event.

We received the following reply from the local TARGET management:
"Veterans do not meet our area of giving. We only donate to the arts,
social action groups, gay &lesbian causes, and education."

So I'm thinking, if the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and veterans in
general do not meet their donation criteria, then something is really
wrong at this TARGET store. We were not asking for thousands of
dollars, not even hundreds, just a small sponsorship for a memorial
remembrance.

As a follow-up, I e-mailed the TARGET U.S. corporate headquarters and
their response was the same. That's their national policy.

Then I looked into the company further. They will not allow the Marines
to collect for 'Toys for Tots' at any of their stores. And during the
recent Iraq deployment, they would not allow families of employees who were
called up for active duty to continue their insurance coverage while
they were on military service. Then as I dig further, TARGET is a
French-owned corporation.

Now, I'm thinking again. If TARGET can not support American Veterans,
Then why should I and my family support their stores by spending our hard
earned American dollars and to have their profits sent to France.
Without the American Vets, where would France be today?

Feel free to pass this along to whomever you want.

Sincerely,

Dick Forrey

Veterans helping Veterans

[GalvestonDuck]

(All quotes below are highlighted for ease of reading. The entire text is from Snopes. None of it is mine.)

http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/target.asp

Claims: Multiple — see below.

Status:
The Target Corporation does not contribute to veterans' causes: False.
The Target Corporation is French-owned: False.
The Target Corporation provides corporate grants for 'gay and lesbian causes': False.
The Target Corporation does not contribute to the 'Toys for Tots' program: False.
Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2002]

TARGET STORES DO NOT SUPPORT VETERANS!!!
Subject: Vietnam vets not worthy?

Vietnam Veterans Not Worthy Of Target's Help?
By Dick Forrey, Vietnam Veterans Association.

We asked our local Target store to be a sponsor of the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Wall during our spring recognition event. We received back a reply from Target management that "veterans do not meet our area of giving. We only donate to the areas of arts, social actions and education."

My thought: If the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and the Vietnam veteran himself, does not meet the criteria of these areas, something is wrong at Target. We were not asking for thousands of dollars, not even hundreds, but simply sponsorship endorsement for a "memorial remembrance".

As follow-up, I e-mailed the Corporate Headquarters and their response was the same. Personally, I will NOT be buying anything at Target Stores again. If the Vietnam Veteran does not meet their area of giving then why should I as a Vietnam veteran, spend my hard earned money in their stores?

Please pass this on to as many people as you know. Maybe Target and other businesses will get the message.

Origins: As
Strother Martin's character wryly commented in Cool Hand Luke, "What we've got here is failure to communicate."

Dick Forrey, of the Howard County Vietnam Veterans organization in Indiana, penned the above message in March 2002 after failing to secure a $100 sponsorship for a travelling Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Wall exhibit from his local Target store. Mr. Forrey was rebuffed, because Target does not give out cash donations through local stores; they donate money only at the corporate level, and only through grants to organizations falling within their defined general areas of giving:

We want to clearly and completely apologize for any misunderstanding regarding Target's support of the Vietnam Wall and our corporate giving program. Giving back to the communities where our stores are located is something we're proud to do. In fact, nationwide, Target Corporation gives more than $2 million a week to the communities in which we serve.

In March of 2002, a veteran approached one of our stores seeking a $100 donation for a display of the "moving wall" in his area. Target does support events in the communities in which our stores are located. While each store determines which events to sponsor, any contribution is limited and is made in the form of a gift card. The stores are not able to give cash contributions to any organization. Stores are also able to donate volunteer hours to community events and projects.

Our corporate giving program that does incorporate cash donations is handled through a process called grants. Unfortunately, the veteran and his organization were not provided the proper information to facilitate consideration of a grant from either the store or our corporate office. The initial response of the team member at the store and the reply from our corporate office are inconsistent with the respectful manner in which we want all of our guests to be treated. We are truly sorry for this oversight and the resulting confusion that has taken place.

We accept all applications for grants from January 1 to September 30 of each calendar year. Any guest can request a grants application brochure at their local store, called "Grant Guidelines." Veterans programs may be considered for grants if the subject matter falls into one of our three general areas of giving: education, arts and family violence prevention.

Guests can also access a grant application at our web site.

This is certain: Target appreciates the dedication and service of all our veterans. Thank you again for your interest.

Sincerely,

Daniel Cleland
Group Team Leader
Guest Relations

Granted, Target deserves a small share of criticism for initially failing to explain their policies clearly to Mr. Forrey when he approached them, but the stance presented in the message quoted above — that a company which won't financially contribute to someone's pet project doesn't "support" whatever cause is being represented and should therefore be boycotted by all like-minded people — is a selfish one, and in this case a grossly unfair one. The Target Corporation donates a tremendous amount of money to charitable causes every year, and in both 2002 and 2003 they topped Forbes magazine's list of "America's Most Philanthropic Companies." Among the many organizations to which Target donates are veteran-related causes, including exhibits like the one for which Mr. Forrey was seeking a contribution:

In the Greater Cleveland area alone, Target has recently donated more than $95,000 to such worthwhile causes as the Museum of Art, the Rape Crisis Center, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, and the Cleveland Reads literacy program.

The company has been no less generous toward veterans. Not only did Target contribute to the World War II Memorial and sponsor the 2003 tour of "The Wall that Heals" — the same exhibit for which Forrey was soliciting donations — but it also donated to the Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association in New York, the Hays County veterans in Texas, and the Disabled American Veterans Auxiliaries in Michigan and California.

As the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) noted on their website:

Although there has been a resurgence of patriotism and support for our nation’s veterans, there have been various messages posted on the Internet that would lead people to believe that corporate America, specifically retail department stores, are falling short in supporting our nation's veterans.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars would like to remind all that the Internet culture weaves rumors and misinformation. Simply put, don't believe everything you read. For example, an e-mail message urging veterans to boycott Target has been circulating on the Internet because a solicitation request to support "The Moving Wall" was denied.

Target has a long-held corporate policy regarding donations. And in all fairness, Target contributes more than $2 million weekly to charitable causes and is one of the corporate sponsors for the 2003 tour of the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Fund's "The Wall That Heals." "The Wall That Heals" is a traveling Vietnam Veterans memorial and museum that has a strong educational component for schools and serves to honor all our veterans.

Since this message first began to circulate, several other claims have been tacked onto it by those seeking to make Target look bad: that Target responds to charitable requests by stating they only support 'gay and lesbian causes,' that Target is French-owned, and that Target does not contribute to the Toys for Tots program sponsored by the U.S. Marine Corps:
Target provides grants at the corporate level for programs involving the arts, education, or family violence prevention, and donates at the local level to a variety of charitable causes. The line about Target's responding to inquiries by stating that they provide corporate grants for 'gay and lesbian causes' is a falsity added to later versions of the message.

The Target Corporation (which now also includes the Mervyn's and Marshall Field's chains of department stores) is an American firm which has been based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, since it began as the Dayton Dry Goods Company in 1902.

Although Target stores do not directly participate in the in-store collection of toys for the Toys for Tots foundation sponsored by the U.S. Marine Corps, the Target Corporation contributes to the program through their chain of Marshall Field's stores, who are one of the National Corporate Sponsors of the Toys for Tots program.

[j]

So GD....are you saying that he mis-quoted Target as follows:

"Veterans do not meet our area of giving. We only donate to the arts,
social action groups, gay &lesbian causes, and education."

The rest of what went down is arguably spin, but I'd be amazed that a person would intentionally mis quote like this.

[GalvestonDuck]

So GD....are you saying that he mis-quoted Target as follows:

"Veterans do not meet our area of giving. We only donate to the arts,
social action groups, gay &lesbian causes, and education."

The rest of what went down is arguably spin, but I'd be amazed that a person would intentionally mis quote like this.

I'm not saying anything. As I said above, it's all from Snopes. They explained it thusly:

Since this message first began to circulate, several other claims have been tacked onto it by those seeking to make Target look bad: that Target responds to charitable requests by stating they only support 'gay and lesbian causes,' that Target is French-owned, and that Target does not contribute to the Toys for Tots program sponsored by the U.S. Marine Corps:
Target provides grants at the corporate level for programs involving the arts, education, or family violence prevention, and donates at the local level to a variety of charitable causes. The line about Target's responding to inquiries by stating that they provide corporate grants for 'gay and lesbian causes' is a falsity added to later versions of the message.

The original text of his message doesn't even include "gay and lesbian causes" according to this. Even if it did, I don't think he misquoted anyone. He probably told it like it is. But he dealt with some jerk at Target on a local level, who could not and should not have spoken on behalf of the company. Probably a liberal-minded employee who personally prefers to only give to the arts-and-croissant causes personally, but who had no right to say to whom or what his company contributes.

[j]

so.....the moral of this story is large corportaions should avoid hiring Liberals. Ok..I got it now.

[GalvestonDuck]

LOL! No, just that he should have kept his personal politics personal.

[stormchazer]

You assume that no employee could be that stupid to represent his company that way, but they are out there. If I were a Target Exec, I think a demotion would be in order. I admit that my view of Target is a bit different now.

[GalvestonDuck]

You assume that no employee could be that stupid to represent his company that way, but they are out there. If I were a Target Exec, I think a demotion would be in order. I admit that my view of Target is a bit different now.

No, I agree they are out there. Thought I made the pretty clear.

[stormraiser]

Jara, it should be a perfect world. I tell people all the time that their employees are misrepresenting their company. Some care, some don't. That's life in a "free" society. You make your buck by how you treat your customers. Why do you think Wally World has so many people coming back for junk? Price, yes, but they treat their customers fairly decently. I have been treated like trash in Target as well, but I wouldn't start an internet smear campaign (inadvertently or not), but I won't shop their either.