A growing fundraising trend is forcing us to ask an uncomfortable question: what happens when giving becomes something we do because we might get something back?
The Wheel, the Hype, and the Soul of Tzedaka
Luxury watches. Designer handbags. Exclusive trips. Knicks Finals tickets. Increasingly, charitable campaigns are being built around highly desirable prizes, spinning wheels, and the promise of "great odds."
The causes are real. The organizations are often doing important work. But the question is not only whether these campaigns raise money. The question is: what are they teaching?
The excitement is carefully engineered. "Almost sold out." "Low numbers still available." "Great odds." The language may be effective, but it also mirrors the language and psychology of gambling.
And this is no longer just about adults. Teens and young adults see these campaigns, share them, enter them, and in some cases pool money together hoping to win a prize they can resell for profit. When young people begin calculating the return on investment of a tzedaka campaign, we should pause.
This concern is even greater at a time when gambling has become more accessible than ever. Sports betting apps have brought gambling onto phones, into bedrooms, dorm rooms, and yeshiva hallways. Our community is not immune.
Into that environment, we are introducing spinning wheels, variable rewards, urgency tactics, and prize-driven giving — and telling ourselves it is different because the money goes to charity.
But tzedaka is not meant to be a transaction. Tzedaka comes from tzedek — justice, righteousness, obligation. We give because someone needs. We give because Hashem entrusted us with the ability to help. We give because it is right.
Our community has built an extraordinary culture of giving. People show up for one another in ways that are humbling and inspiring. That culture was built by generations who gave quietly, consistently, and without expectation of personal return.
Fundraisers must raise money. Organizations have real needs. This article is not a criticism of any particular organization or fundraiser. It is an invitation to reflect on the long-term messages we send about giving, community, and responsibility.
If the spinning wheel becomes how our children first experience tzedaka, we risk redefining giving as something we do only when there is something to get. And if, in the process, we normalize the psychology of gambling for a generation already vulnerable to it, the cost may be far greater than any prize.
No ticket, watch, trip, or luxury item is worth weakening the soul of tzedaka. Our inheritance is worth protecting. The values we pass on matter as much as the dollars we raise.
— Awareness, a Project Connect Series · www.projectconnect18.com · info@projectconnect18.com