People asking for money , but this lady took the cake

Toomuchstuff

Toomuchstuff

Member
Location
Wisconsin
I'm used to people asking for spare change , but this lady had GUTS ! She met me by my car in Walmart's parking lot. She was about my age (I think Mexican ,some words were hard to understand ) and .........get this .......... she wanted me to take her in the store and buy her 3 gifts for her grandkids ! She showed me "the card" she had for them , but she didn't have gifts. She was babbling about the church not helping her , God , believing in miracles Blah blah blah. This had to be a scam,even though a little voice in my head keeps saying , what if it's true ? I'll admit, I do give change to people who ask ,but this lady took the cake ! It had to be a scam,don't ya think ?
 

Yes. Definately a bit fishy smelling to me. I am assuming you said no. But I am sure you were not the first she hit up, and not the last. The only thing I would probably have done is go back in or call the store to report her to management.
 
Whether it was a scam or not I wouldn't have spent as much time as you did listening/interacting with her. I would have walked away or gotten in the car and locked the door. There are places she can go if she needs help.

Her being Mexican is irrelevant. And yes, I would have reported her. Security should chase peddlers off the property.
 

People will come up with some doozies! This man outside a store asked me for money and I asked the clerk about him when I went inside. Turns out he got full disability payments which are not much but about three times what I get. Glad I didn't give him anything.
 
I stopped giving to these folks after I saw a gal at her usual corner holding her ‘sign’ and God Blessing everyone. We were at a red light and a little old lady two cars behind me rolled down her window and offered the gal a sandwich and bananna in a clear plastic bag. The gal took it, saw what was inside, threw it on the ground, went back to her corner, lit a cigarette, picked up her sign and continued begging.
 
Sorry I wasn't there to help her. Didn't sound like a scam to me !

I would gladly have gone into the store and helped her to select appropriate gifts for the kids.

What were the rest of you thinking? Sheeesh !
 
I'm with Falcon on this one.

There are so many scams that we tend to overlook people who have legitimate needs. We talk about the true meaning of Christmas, but maybe it's as simple as helping a grandmother in need.

I think at some point it behooves us to do what we can for others, and so what if it's a scam? Everyday life in this country has turned into one big universal scam, so why not choose a scam we would feel good about if it turned out to be real?

I'm not aware of any charity that buys Christmas gifts for people's grandchildren. i know there are programs like Toys for Tots nearly everywhere, but not every Christmas gift for children needs to be delivered by the Marines.
 
I agree with Smiling Jane and Falcon on this one. I wouldn't have went in the store with her but I would have given her the $ for gifts, if I had it on me, which I usually do. I don't always give $ to people who ask for it though, I usually go by my gut feeling.
 
I agree with Iodine "I usually go by my gut feeling."

I try to size up the situation and if it feels right I try to help, if it doesn't I firmly say "No, thank you!" and keep moving. It's just another one of the many areas of my life where I muddle along doing the best I can. If I make a mistake and snub a person in need then that is shame on me. I hope that the next person that comes along will see things differently and offer some help. If I make a mistake and fall for a little scam then that's shame on them. When I do help someone it makes me feel good to know that I tried to do the right thing, maybe it's a win-win for both of us.
 
The last time I helped out someone in a parking lot I was worried I was going to get robbed before I got out of there. They didn't want just the $20 I was giving them when they first gave me their hard luck story, they wanted to negotiate for what else I had in my roll of bills... and they were persistent. Instead of the usually "feel good" feeling after doing something nice for someone I felt like a dang fool. And by negotiate, they wanted more money of course, they told me they didn't want to have to do anything illegal, and they repeatedly insist I come over to their truck where they had tools they wanted to sell me. You never know sometimes...
 
I would not have gone in the store with her at all. Who knows what could happen. She could have had someone waiting to hit you, rob you and hi jack your car or jump in your car and take you for a ride. I am a target anyway with a cane and a weak left side. I would rather buy someone in front of me their groceries if they look like they are having a hard time paying for it. Theres a McDonald's in our Walmart and a couple of times I have paid for food for people that were having a hard time coming up with enough money to cover their breakfast. No big deal. I regularly give to Star of Hope here in Houston that feed and house the homeless.
 
I worry about people asking for money in person at stores and on the street. You do not know if they might be dangerous when responding to them. I agree with Toomuchstuff.

We had a man approach my husband at a gas station and started asking questions to start a conversation and then asked for money. My husband gave him a few dollars to get away from him. I was worried and had my phone in hand to call for help if needed.
 
When a person asks you to go in the store with them and purchase something, I think they are probably legit. I suppose it could be they hope you'll decide to give them money just to be done with it. You would find that out soon enough if you just headed for the store. That's what I'd probably do if I had time. See if what they wanted to buy made sense.
 
NancyNGA said:
When a person asks you to go in the store with them and purchase something, I think they are probably legit. I suppose it could be they hope you'll decide to give the money just to be done with it. You would find that out soon enough if you just headed for the store. That's what I'd probably do if I had time. See if what they wanted to buy made sense.
Click to expand...


I agree with you, Nancy....I think that's what I would have done. A store is a safe place unless they want me to get in a car with them and drive to a store...then NO.

Im just assuming we're in the parking lot of a major store and we'll just walk back in together.
 
Possibilities: (1) She wanted to get you away from your car so a companion nearby could steal it without interference or (2) She would actually shop spending as much as you would spend then when you left, exchange the "gifts" for cash. It's a tough world folks!
 
A few yrs ago one of our local news stations conducted an experiment. They planted 3 people who posed for about 4 hrs as beggars/people asking for money.

1 woman with a child in a store parking lot (they got permission from manager)
1 man in downtown area near lots of office buildings
1 man with a dog in an area where there are lots of restaurants/delis

Each person had a prepared script to answer questions if they needed to.

The grand total (for all 3 combined) was $170, which was donated to a charity.
 
applecruncher said:
A few yrs ago one of our local news stations conducted an experiment. They planted 3 people who posed for about 4 hrs as beggars/people asking for money.......
The grand total (for all 3 combined) was $170, which was donated to a charity.
Click to expand...

Pretty good! That's an average rate of $14 an hour spread over the group.
 
I agree with your response and would have done the same...
There are social programs that could have directed her to places that would assist with her grandchildren gifts.
To many trying to take advantage of someone's generosity.
I also feel it could been a setup for some type of car theft,etc.
 
AZ Jim said:
Possibilities: (1) She wanted to get you away from your car so a companion nearby could steal it without interference or (2) She would actually shop spending as much as you would spend then when you left, exchange the "gifts" for cash. It's a tough world folks!
Click to expand...

That is an excellent point that I had not considered!
 
There might not have even been any grandchildren. That may sound cold, but it's odd that she was so....prepared with a story and cards addressed to the kids. In a parking lot.

About 12 yrs ago I became aware that a young lady who was doing temp work in our office was on the verge of getting her electric turned off for non-payment. It was close to Christmas and she had a child. Suffice to say I obtained enough information about her (address, etc.) that allowed me to contact the electric company, pay the bill electronically, and she never knew I was her benefactor. (It was a gift. I didn't want her to be embarrassed or feel she needed to pay me back.)
 
applecruncher said:
There might not have even been any grandchildren. That may sound cold, but it's odd that she was so....prepared with a story and cards addressed to the kids. In a parking lot.

About 12 yrs ago I became aware that a young lady who was doing temp work in our office was on the verge of getting her electric turned off for non-payment. It was close to Christmas and she had a child. Suffice to say I obtained enough information about her (address, etc.) that allowed me to contact the electric company, pay the bill electronically, and she never knew I was her benefactor. (It was a gift. I didn't want her to be embarrassed or feel she needed to pay me back.)
Click to expand...
That was really neat of you, AC! That's the way I wish you could do charities. Anonymously, and 100% going to the benefactors.
 
This is one of those times when retired with nothing to do would have been interesting to watch, how many bought something and what did she do with what was bought.

Really interesting would be if she wanted the receipt.

Without buying the 3 gifts, giving her a ride home and being introduced to the grand kids, what is intended as a generous gesture at this time of year may be as you suspect a scam.
 
Call me Grinch and skeptical but it stinks like scam to me...I tend to wonder if she wasn't watched...available cash,credit card...interestingly she "showed up" at her car,woman by herself...
 

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