Maruzza Foundation onboard charge

While I have no problem with making a contribution to the charity Silversea supports, I know from reading the Boards on Cruise Critic that many people do.

I find it sad that when reading threads about Silversea, the topic diverts away from that of the Original Poster, and ont the topic of the Charity. In an effort to allow other threads to concentrate on what the Original Poster wanted, I thought I'd start a thread so people could use this to comment on the Charity.

For those who are not aware of the Charity, the Maruzza foundation was set up in memory of Mr Lefebvre's sister who

lost her life to cancer at the age of 40. The charity is involved in activities Worldwide concerning palliative care, more information on the charity can be found on their website, http://www.fondazionemaruzza.org, including their financial reports.

The controversy seems to be two fold, one that there is a charity attached to Silversea which passengers are asked to donate to and secondly in the way that Silversea takes those donations from passengers when they are on board.

If you have not cruised on Silversea before, one night during the cruise a letter explaining the charity is be placed on your bed, usually next to the Daily Chronicle, along with a form that allows you to opt out. You can also opt out by letting reception know either by telephone or in person if yiou dont want to return the form. If you miss the letter the charge shows if you check your account whilst onboard, either in your cabin via the televison or at reception, and again on your final statement. It can be taken off by contacting reception.

Hopefully I have explained for those reading this thread as to what the Charity is an how the donation is taken.,

I will state I do not work for Silversea and have no connection with the Lefebvre family. However on our first cruise I did read the letter about the Foundation and also looked at their website so I could have a better understanding of what I was being asked to contribute to and so make an informed choice about contributing or not.

ard silvers will take

Thank you for posting this--we are cruising with SS in September and it has provided the insight for me to make a more informed decision. Very helpful and appreciated post

The donation they ask for is 1$ a day per person. I went to reception and asked about the charity, felt it was ok and left the charge. I felt no pressure at all about it. For me this is a nothing and has no impact on my opinion of SS.

Simple. Opt ins are ethically sound. Opt outs are not, they promote inertia and catch people who miss the explanation and cannot be bothered or are embarrassed to visit reception and have it removed.

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Simple. Opt ins are ethically sound. Opt outs are not, they promote inertia and catch people who miss the explanation and cannot be bothered or are embarrassed to visit reception and have it removed.

 

 

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We totally agree and always opt out! It would make more sense if SS suggested that people donate their spare leftover change and small bills to the charity since for many people, it is a hassle to get rid of currency that you will never use again. Although it would place an administrative burden on SS, in my opinion, it would be a better way of raising money for the foundation and possibly more lucrative.

Or indeed,as a company, offer a promise to match every donation made by each passenger to the charity, that may offer some reassurance to anyone that is unsure about a charity that they have never heard of, have no knowledge of and is heavily connected to the family.

As a Brit, I would find it mortifying to have to go and actively tell somebody that I am a heartless person that does not wish to support this charity. Many may not understand this but I would (and recently did) feel far too embarrassed to have to withdraw my support that has simply been assumed to support a charity that I have absolutely no knowledge of.

I am a large supporter of charity but every charity I regularly support is very carefully chosen. Many charities are simply money pitts that make very little difference where they should but many people live very well from. I’ve personally had my fingers burnt supporting donations of over £15k to a local hospice before I found out about what was really going on there and how much %age they paid their fundraisers.

I Believe that a company that is happy to shame people by forcing you to opt out rather than opt in, especially without offering any offer to match your donation to prove their commitment has questionable morals. But that’s another can of worms.

Simple. Opt ins are ethically sound. Opt outs are not, they promote inertia and catch people who miss the explanation and cannot be bothered or are embarrassed to visit reception and have it removed.

 

Agree completely. But I have had no difficulty simply telling reception that I opt out and I choose my own charities.

While I have no problem with making a contribution to the charity Silversea supports, I know from reading the Boards on Cruise Critic that many people do.

 

I find it sad that when reading threads about Silversea, the topic diverts away from that of the Original Poster, and ont the topic of the Charity. In an effort to allow other threads to concentrate on what the Original Poster wanted, I thought I'd start a thread so people could use this to comment on the Charity.

 

For those who are not aware of the Charity, the Maruzza foundation was set up in memory of Mr Lefebvre's sister who

lost her life to cancer at the age of 40. The charity is involved in activities Worldwide concerning palliative care, more information on the charity can be found on their website, http://www.fondazionemaruzza.org, including their financial reports.

 

 

 

The controversy seems to be two fold, one that there is a charity attached to Silversea which passengers are asked to donate to and secondly in the way that Silversea takes those donations from passengers when they are on board.

 

If you have not cruised on Silversea before, one night during the cruise a letter explaining the charity is be placed on your bed, usually next to the Daily Chronicle, along with a form that allows you to opt out. You can also opt out by letting reception know either by telephone or in person if yiou dont want to return the form. If you miss the letter the charge shows if you check your account whilst onboard, either in your cabin via the televison or at reception, and again on your final statement. It can be taken off by contacting reception.

 

Hopefully I have explained for those reading this thread as to what the Charity is an how the donation is taken.,

 

I will state I do not work for Silversea and have no connection with the Lefebvre family. However on our first cruise I did read the letter about the Foundation and also looked at their website so I could have a better understanding of what I was being asked to contribute to and so make an informed choice about contributing or not.

 

 

Perhaps they should also distribute information about cancer charities, heart disease charities, MS, hurricane relief etc. All these are worth while and SS has as much business asking for money or them as it does for Mrs. Lefebvre's charity....which is to say NONE.

 

Again, if they insist on demanding money from captive passengers the notice in the cabin should state that if you WANT to donate let us know, not the other way around. Why should we have to go out of our way to make sure the charge is removed. They should go out of their way to see if we agree to it in the first place.

 

 

 

and silvers will take

Perhaps they should also distribute information about cancer charities, heart disease charities, MS, hurricane relief etc. All these are worth while and SS has as much business asking for money or them as it does for Mrs. Lefebvre's charity....which is to say NONE.

Again, if they insist on demanding money from captive passengers the notice in the cabin should state that if you WANT to donate let us know, not the other way around. Why should we have to go out of our way to make sure the charge is removed. They should go out of their way to see if we agree to it in the first place.

I like to choose where to send my charitable donations where I see they will do the most good for the actual cause. Most charities I donate to use less than 10% for advertising and administration.

I looked for the financials for said referenced charity, and really couldn't find out from their website what percentage of the funds donated goes towards actual charity work, and how much gets absorbed by administration. I looked on a couple of Charity tracking websites (similar to charityintelligence.ca) and they weren't listed.

So, that, for me, makes this a complete non-starter.

Now a couple of people have said "Well, it's just a dollar a day."

That said, let's look at the numbers.

One dollar, per day, per passenger. Doesn't seem like much, does it?

Ship name - passenger capacity:

Silver Cloud - 254

Silver Discoverer - 116

Silver Explorer - 144

Silver Galapagos - 100

Silver Muse - 596

Silver Shadow - 382

Silver Spirit - 608

Silver Whisper - 382

Silver Wind - 296

If the ships are all running at capacity, and nobody opted out, that would be $2,878.00 per day, or $1,050,470.00 per year.

Not peanuts.

I have sailed two times on Silversea.

While we contribute to several charities I do not like this approach.

I truly believe it is terrific for Silversea to have a charity that they support. I do believe that they should contribute to it via their profits and they can certainly adjust the cruise fare accordingly.

I do not think that they should automatically charge the guests for the charity once on board the ship and then make it feel uncomfortable by saying you can opt out.

I just don't get it.

By the way if they want to promote a charity how about sending a form to your room explaining the charity, mentioning that if you would like to contribute you can fill out the from, note how much you want to contribute, turn the form into the front desk or give it to your butler (include an envelope) and say they will match dollar for dollar what you contribute.

This might seem like small change but we do give to those charities that have special meaning to us. In terms of full disclosure, Cancer has hit very close to home but we have our own charities that we give to related to Cancer and we also have a few other charities that are meaningful to us. We don't give to each and every charity.

Again, I will continue to believe this is not the right approach.

Keith

They were not listed on the US IRS as a recognized charity when last I checked. Therefor I don't give.

They were not listed on the US IRS as a recognized charity when last I checked. Therefor I don't give.

I respect anyone's decision to give or not to give.

But the IRS is hardly a gold standard for judging charities. There are a number of 501©(3)s that are (IMHO) merely scams. If one examines their 990 forms one can see that in those cases the majority -- in some cases the vast majority -- of funds raised go to fundraising and administration and not to genuine charitable ends.

Simple. Opt ins are ethically sound. Opt outs are not, they promote inertia and catch people who miss the explanation and cannot be bothered or are embarrassed to visit reception and have it removed.

Appreciate this excellent above summary by Silver Spectre and the other follow-up comments. While this purpose might be good (are not all charity efforts serving some valid/desired goal?), this "sneaky" way of extracting the funds has not been one ofmy favorites. Good to see the "educational" effort happening here on these boards as to how each customer can protect and control how their money is spent (or taken without their up-front knowledge).

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean adventure that started in Barbados, here is the link for that live/blog. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, San Juan, etc.):

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

Now at 58,761 views for these postings.

Previously, I have opted out so this time the charge was never placed on my account; I didn't have to do anything.

Marc

We got the op out form. I filled it out and turned it in. Do not appreciate being opted in to anything involving giving money, worthy cause or not.

Like many things there are different views on this.

I still think it is odd that Silversea cannot just make a donation on their own.

If even 10% of the people feel uncomfortable about this it is 10% too many people.

It is just odd the way this is done IMHO.

Keith

Before selling it, I had a business that supplied services to large companies. Part of the cost of doing business was contributing to the charities that these companies supported. I understood that. I also understood that it would be extremely bad form for me to solicit donations from those that helped keep me in business and support my family.

For the above reasons, I cannot understand why businesses I support keep on pestering me for more money in addition to that which I give them for their goods and services. This practice is endemic, and Siversea is just one example. (Whole Foods, are you listening?)

Simple. Opt ins are ethically sound. Opt outs are not, they promote inertia and catch people who miss the explanation and cannot be bothered or are embarrassed to visit reception and have it removed.

 

 

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Totally agree. We do not disagree with the concept, more so the way it is collected.

We support a number of charities of our choice at home. At sea, we prefer to contribute to the crew welfare fund.

When I get that letter I take it down to registration and explain that I would *rather* make a contribution to the crew fund and I always get big smiles.

The owner's sister's charity doesn't seem to be all that popular with the crew, either. The letters are a requirement from the home office, not something the crew likes to do.

Previously, I have opted out so this time the charge was never placed on my account; I didn't have to do anything.

 

Marc

I wish that happened with us. We've had to opt out on every cruise.

I wish that happened with us. We've had to opt out on every cruise.

same here

I also had it on my account on both of my cruises...….I went to Guest Relations both times and had them remove it. I make donations here at home to specific charities and having it put on my account on a cruise? Personally, I think it is weird/funky that the cruise automatically adds it on and I will continue to opt out of it. Oh, I didn't find anything embarrassing about it. The gal at Guest Relations was very cordial about it and so was I.

For me it boils down to this...I don't like that they do this and I wish they did not, but it does not stop me from sailing them. I have sailed SS three times and all were wonderful and I hope to sail them again.

I have also sailed Crystal, Regent, Seabourn, Paul Gauguin and Windstar. They all have their many positives and few and minor negatives. I hope to sail any of them again as well. I will sail Viking for the first time in January 2019 and expect it will be great too.

Cruise Critic members are a very small percentage of Silversea cruisers, so I wonder how many actually opt out per cruise !

"One dollar, per day, per passenger. Doesn't seem like much, does it?

If the ships are all running at capacity, and nobody opted out, that would be $2,878.00 per day, or $1,050,470.00 per year.

Not peanuts." .

We always opt out - We decide which charity we will donate to. But we always make a donation to the Crew Welfare Fund - that certainly doesnt get enough exposure IMO.

I may as well chime in to add my two cents to the tally.

I always slog my way to reception to request that the charge be removed and pair it with my request to donate to the crew fund with the subconscious hope that it will make me appear to be less of a cheapskate. Frankly, I just find it distasteful for someone to take it upon themselves to donate my money without my consent. I am equally put off by requests at shops to donate to various charities, although in that case I'm at least being asked first. Like most, I do make numerous charitable contributions throughout the year and happily. I am also pleased when others recognize me by make charitable donations in my honor. Perhaps that is a tact Silversea could pursue? Raise prices by whatever the charge is ($1 a day or some such?) and then announce that a donation has been made to the foundation in honor of the company of valued guest so and so on this cruise.