NASI: It just gets worse

AZ in the coffee room is the NASI representative. Below is a reponse which MUST be publicized before anyone takes $5000 or $13,000 to throw money at their singleness or their daughter's singleness. In a response which I believe I understand (the writing is still horrific), he states that yes in fact there are outstanding claims and furthermore that newly raised money can/will be/could be used for 1) Programming and 2) to pay outstanding claims back because in the original throw-money-at-it solution (from here on out NASI Round 1.

In other words, we have what I consider an open admission of a Ponzi program. There are strong defenders out there, but this is simply indefensible and even if "we" have to continue to say something for the sake of Emes. There are strong defenders of this near anonymous program and those who yell "what are you doing? as if a doing something is the be all and end all." Well, sometimes doing nothing is the best course of action. This social re-engineering and throw-money-at-it solutions are only going to drain needed resources and they won't strengthen the family or marriage. I don't like to waste my breathe, but I do believe that if you speak the truth, it eventually penetrates somewhere.

AZ's comments on NASI Round 1: (emphasis mine)

From NASI

re; the first program from a few years ago

The program when launched was subject to funds availability. That point aside, well over 125,000 was given out to shadchanim who made such shidduchim. That money was rasied by one individual . The program was B”H so successful tht we realized it couldn’t last forever. A decision was made to set a date for a few months in the future, after which we wouldn’t accept any new claims. Unfortanetly, what happened was that girls and boys families took advantage. When a qualifying shidduch got engaged, instead of giving standard shadchanus to the Shadchan, they gave 360 and said go to NASI they will give you. This was 1. Totally wrong as that wasn’t the intention of the program 2. Being that we were falling behind with raising the money, the shadchanim, were actually getting stiffed, not from parents and not from NASI. As such the program was stopped abruptly to all new claims.

At present all outstanding claims are still on file, if when we had the money we wuld pay it out. If we raise 2,000 tehn we have a decision to make, should we give to 2 of the outstanding claim, or should we do something like the BMG mailing which has been very effective in changing boys attitudes towards girls there own age or older. The R”Y advising the program have told us to keep our eye on the mission. If we come up with a lump sum (10k or something) we use some for present programs and pay back outstanding claims. If we don’t have that money we simply can’t pay. In the last few years in case you’ve noticed the economy isn’t great and fundraising hasn’t exactly been easy.

Yesterday a woman called with similar "taynos". After a brief discussion she had a much better understanding. She then suggested why didn’t we write a letter to all those people explain what I just wrote. And she is 1000% correct. Unfourtanetly we simply don’t have the manpower. I wish and beg that we had more people. This isn’t my day job, nor is it the day job of anyone (one other person) involved in the running (of the program). When I offered to send her the list and allow her to send out the letters in our name she politely declined. I’d make the same offer to any of you.