VIDEO: About twenty minutes after the official start to the free gift card distribution, Fidelity was out of the 1,000 free $50 gift cards.
With the lines stretching nearly halfway down Courtney Road, the company was quickly out of the $50 cards and decided to distribute several hundred more $25 gift cards.
“We gave out probably close to 1,500 cards,” said a Fidelity Payment Processing representative at about 8 PM.
The cards, distributed to any Lakewood resident with at least one child on a first-come-first-basis, is redeemable at a number of Lakewood stores up until Pesach.
[TLS. (Cellphone clip)]
truly, wow!
{with all the money these peopel spent on there machines a $50 buck rebate is pretty awesome!}
I am impressed that the video was tastefully done showing no faces of recipients.
I am impressed also by the good intentions of the tzedoko.
Very impressive. What a nice way to help out.
Al Kiddush Hashem
VERY IMPRESSIVE
lines were smooth quick & efficient just another days work for the Fidelity team Kol Hakovod to them
went yesterday it was done respectfully no pushing shoving no picture taking no forms to fill out really really very impressive
I hate to say this, but this is not the way to do it. because you feel that there is an opportunity to gain marketing exposure, you can’t make people line up to get $50 gift cards at your expense. if you feel like giving out $50k to Tzedaka, go to Kosher village or NPGS and tell them that you are sponsoring …, this is cheap advertising at the expense of those that need.
Thank you to fidelity for this most helpful gift. Mi k’amcha yisroel!
whether it is לשמה or not, is not the issue. What they did was VERY nice. and they should be gebentshed.
“Former Bklyn Res” -> you go give tezedka, whethere PR or not. dont complain.
In re to comment #7:
You mention that this is “cheap advertising”.
$50,000 is not cheap at all.
It is easy for you to sit and knock it… but at the end of the day Fidelity gave out $50,000 to members of our community. There is nothing wrong with them getting a little exposure on the side. How come no one complains when they hang up a “sponsored by” sign on a shul or yeshiva? Would you then also say that they should of done it anonymously?
A big yasher koach to Fidelity for stepping up and helping so many people.
Mimenu yilmidu v’chein y’asu!
Dear former brooklyn resident I’m glad they don’t think like you & they gave it out hopefully many will learn from them & do the same Thank You fidelity for my kaarah bought in judaica plaza
Truly ‘no good deed goes unpunished’. Why is it that no one in this town can do something nice without people passing judgement about why it isn’t nice enough?
Many people need extra help yom tov time but are still not recipients of Tomchei shabbos or any other tzeddakah. This could be because normally they have plenty of money but YT makes things very tight, or because they are too proud to take tzeddaka like that or for any number of other reasons.
This was an opportunity for people to go and get a gift simply by showing up, that would somewhat help ease the difficulty of making YT. It was super nice that any individual could get a gift without having to be vetted by an organization. Kol Hakavod.
To former Brooklyn resident
they obviously can do it & I for one surely hope that they will do it again soon (i.e.: no where is this called tzedaka )
Dear brooklynite did you get there to late did they not give you one what’s all the bitter rhetoric for a positive thing
At point does one distinguish himself as seeking assistance or being a schnorrer? Do you really think it is bakovodik to take like that? No one negates the fact that people need but where does one draw the line between fending for oneself or just looking for handouts? Does yegia kapecha mean anything???
its says on the cards kimcha dipischa
#12
# 16 there was no criteria of how much money you can make in order to get the cards kimcha dpischa doesn’t have to be shnorring
What wonderful people they are at Fidelity! To give such a large sum of money, what a great zchus in and of itself, and that no one will disagree with, incl Fmr Bklyn Res, that I am certain. But shame on you all for jumping to conclusions regarding Former Bklyn Res!! I personally know him, and he gives tens of thousands of dollars each year to tzedakah, in his own quiet way, with no one knowing about it, and the recipient does not know where it came from!! The greatest form of Tzedakah! What a Madreigah! He too has a business, and will not use it in conjunction with giving tzedakah, and that is where he is coming from. This indeed was a tremendous kiddush hashem, and no one is taking away from the charitable act. However, Kimcha DePishcha is definitely used as a word that refers to charitable money that is given before Pesach to help individuals that desperately need it (now don’t get all semantic on me and pull that apart.. “uh, well we all desperately need it etc..” you know what i mean..go argue with everyone that uses it these days.. tzedakah is what it is used for, and we know what that means) What Frmr Bklyn Res was saying that there are more tasteful ways to do Kimcha Depischa aka tzedakah, not only having ppl wait in a “bread line”, that’s all.