Re: Speaking Fee Question

**"* M* <B*@verizon.net>**

I'm no tax expert but I agree with Graham.

A couple of years ago a friend of mine, Gwynne Ormsby, took a job as the 
horticultural therapist at a large, Quaker-run, not-for-profit senior and 
assisted living center. I was excited about this and said I'd donate a slide 
show and talk if she wanted. The facility is about an hour away from here. I 
arrived at the site for the event and the receptionist gave me a form to 
fill out, which asked for my name, title, address, and usual fee. I didn't 
know what it was for but filled it out.

The talk , "Cutting Gardens," was great fun. I had brought about two dozen 
stems of my garden flowers (poppies, hydrangeas, nasturtiums, etc.)  in 
individual little bottles in addition to the slide show, and people 
expressed the greatest nostalgia about the flowers and people in their lives 
who once grew them. A few people fell asleep during the slide show portion 
but Gwynne had warned me that this would happen.

A week or so after the event I received a donation receipt letter for use in 
my taxes, in the amount that I had stated on the form. And I continued to 
receive newsletters and such for a long time afterward. This organization 
receives many tax-deductible donations and I am sure their procedure is 
approved by their lawyers.

I am giving an evening talk at a public library some distance from here, 
maybe two hours' drive, and am getting $200, travel expenses, and overnight 
accommodation at a nearby hotel. My fees range from $175 to $500 plus 
freebies to organizations I support. Combined, it's maybe half a dozen talks 
a year.

Betty Mackey
www.mackeybooks.com

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Graham Rice" <garden@tiscali.co.uk>

> Charge nothing.
>
> This is rare advice from me, but I'd suggest telling them that your
> fee is usually $50/$100/$200 - whatever - but that as it's your local
> branch you'll do it for them (and for no one else) for nothing as a
> gesture of goodwill. I use our local library a lot, they're very
> helpful, I like to support local non-profit ventures of all kinds -
> so I'll be doing a talk for them this spring at no charge. If you
> have books, postcards, plants or anything to sell take them along -
> with an info sheet about yourself to hand out which may help getting
> other local bookings.
>
> It's been suggested to me that the most tax effective way to go about
> this is to charge them your usual fee - then donate it all back and
> take the tax break. Does anyone know if this is OK?
>
> Graham
>
> Website: http://GrahamRice.com
> Blog: http://TransatlanticPlantsman.com
> AHS Encyclopedia of Perennials: http://AHSPerennials.com
>
>

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