Is Pampered Chef a Supporter of Planned Parenthood Programs?

[MeesMom3]

Ok, this is a first. I had a meeting with a ladies group from my church tonight. I attended as a guest speaker and spoke about the HWC campaign and talked about my HWC team. I had about a 20 minute presentation. After I was finished, I asked for any questions from the group. One lady threw her hand up as if she was saying, "please answer my question first". So I called on her of course. She then slammed her hand on her catalog, and said

" I want to know how much of this money is going to PLANNED PARENTHOOD PROGRAMS!!"

I was in complete shock. I told her this wasn't a fundraiser for a planned parenthood program and she INSISTED that the Pampered Chef is a big contributer to planned parenthood programs and that she had a friend who had a wonderful PC business and ended up quitting because she found out that the company was a supporter of PP programs. Now keep in mind that I belong to the Catholic faith.........very pro-life, very anti artificial birth control. So this statement was a jaw dropper throughout the entire room.
I didn't know what to do. I have never heard of anything like this before. Can someone please enlighten me?

Needless to say, I only had a handful of people join my team and a few bought small items, but that was it! I tried to make her understand that my efforts had nothing to do with the PP program, but I don't know if she believed me.

Now I know this is a very contraversial (sp?) topic so I'm not here to discuss the pros and cons of the PP programs, I just want to know if anyone else has run into this before or has even heard of this.

 

[MeesMom3]

whoops! In the subject line, it should read touchY!!! Sorry guys....left out the 'Y"

 

[apriljc]

I think my jaw would have hit the floor after hearing that comment. I think you haneled the situation well, I don't know what I would have said. I wonder what was going through the minds of fellow guests? At least you got a couple of orders.

 

[GourmetGirl]

I think what she is referring to is that Warren Buffett used to donate company money to PP, but after buying Pampered Chef, there was a huge uproar over it and now any money donated to PP by Warren Buffett is a personal donation, not a company donation; therefore, none of the money from Pampered Chef is given to PP! Hope that helps!

 

[pamperedlinda]

There's some info out here somewhere on this. But, in a nutshell, the way I understand it is that there was a really big tiff over this topic when Warren Buffet & Berkshire Hathaway purchased The Pampered Chef. Evidently Berkshire Hathaway used to be a contributor to PP which made a lot of people upset and many consultants did leave. From what I understand Berkshire Hathaway is no longer a contributor to PP, but Warreen Buffet still supports them with his own money - not in The Pampered Chef's name.

Okay, so that's how I understand it. I was not a consultant when all of this happened so hopefully some of those who have been around for a while will add their input too.

Oh, and might I say that that woman was way out of line....sounds like you handled yourself gracefully under a difficult situation.....kudos to you!

 

[MeesMom3]

I have never heard anything about this. I was so embarrassed tonight.

 

[DebbieJ]

I've heard the same story that Linda and April told.

 

[MeesMom3]

I have never heard anything about this. I was so embarrassed tonight.

 

[pamperedlinda]

Here's one of the older threads with some info you might want to read:

http://chefsuccess.com/showthread.php?t=1324&highlight=parenthood

 

[smarteez2]

You handled it way better than I would have!!Knowing me I would have burst out laughing and been like "What??" and probably would have stood there like a deer caught in headlights, Kudos to you!!

 

[Paula R. Lewis]

OK, I went into the post mentioned above, and this is a copy of the actual letter Doris sent to all Consultants in the summer of 2003. When you read it, you will no doubt see, once again, just what a classy lady she is!!

I hope you will find it helpful!
Paula Lewis
Future Director,
Poland, Ohio




Here is the email sent to consultants on July 3, 2003 regarding this subject:



We are pleased to provide you with the following letter from Doris Christopher. You are welcome to share this letter with others. This information is being communicated to you, our sales field, in the following manner. A hard copy of this letter will be mailed to you next week.

* 4:45p.m. - ExecuFlash - Exec. Directors and above
* 5:15p.m. - E-mail blast - Director levels
* 5:45p.m. - E-mail blast - All Consultants U.S. and Canada
All times listed above are Central Standard Time.


Dear Kitchen Consultants:


I have shared with you my pride in being a part of the Berkshire Hathaway family of businesses. I knew that this was the kind of family where The Pampered Chef would thrive and grow for years to come. I have also shared with you my feelings of respect for Warren Buffett.


Today, I am even more proud to call Warren my mentor, leader and friend.


This week I went to Warren with a heavy heart. I told him that many of our Kitchen Consultants were concerned and troubled with Berkshire Hathaway's donation policies -
specifically the contributions to pro-choice organizations and to the Buffett Foundation. I knew that I could speak with Warren frankly and that he would want to hear of the issues impacting your business.


It troubled him deeply that charitable donations from Berkshire Hathaway were causing you difficulty. He listened to me carefully and with great compassion. He understands that as his family of Berkshire companies expands, it becomes more diverse, and there are opinions and concerns that need to be taken into consideration. Warren Buffett made a landmark decision regarding the long-standing corporate giving policies of Berkshire Hathaway. His decision was this:


Effective immediately, Berkshire Hathaway will cease all corporate contributions of any kind to any non-profit organization. This means there will be no donations from Berkshire Hathaway to the Buffett Foundation. Let me be clear, there will be no possibility of any Pampered Chef profits being donated to any cause other than those we initiate, including our three current charitable giving programs:
Round-Up from the Heart, Help Whip Cancer and the Family Resiliency Program.


Warren Buffett made his landmark decision after hearing what was in my heart and in yours. I believe that Kitchen Consultants, hosts and customers are a diverse group of individuals with different opinions and beliefs. Our business is built on trust and on personal relationships. Warren understands our business and wants you to be successful in every way, able to do business with people of all backgrounds and beliefs.


I admire Warren Buffett for his heart and his insight. He is a wise leader!


Thank you for all you do to make this company strong.



Doris K. Christopher
Founder and Chairman
__________________

 

[Chef Kearns]

Frankly, I never understood the big deal! I mean come on! Any one who has ever bought a Ford now supports the Gay Right movement. A movement I do not support. You would really have to research who really owns a company and where they put their money to successfully boycott all companies that put their money in places they see fit. The same people who stopped buying PC were probably still popping open their cans of Coca-Cola (which Warren owes as well) brand products thereby still contributing to PP.

I don't know I think I'm in a pissy mood right now, but sometimes I think people just sit around and what for an issue to get into an uproar about (like me now). Planned Parenthood is a good organization. Abortions are such a small percentage of what they do. Anyhoo...I don't want to open up that can of worms.

 

[DebbieJ]

It's so true....

I know that breastfeeding moms want to boycott Nestle for their formula freebies in third world countries, but you would REALLY have to research and pay attention to totally boycott them.

 

[The_Kitchen_Guy]

There are already several threads dedicated to this, in fact, it's even on snopes.com because this issue has taken on a life of its own. The sad part is that mis-informed people, like the lady, get all huffy and indignant on a subject they actually know little about.This is precisiely why I never blindly forward any email that is ever sent to me, until I know whether or not the topic is correct or a legend. (Snopes Dot Com is your friend!)Here it is, almost FOUR YEARS after this issue first came up and was resolved, but some bonehead is still railing about it. She's a member of a group I refer to as the "Perpetually Offended" which is a group of people that wake up every morning, looking for something to get indignant about.In your case, you're blindsided because you don't have the cultural literacy to know the history - which is not your fault. You'd think, after four years, this issue would have run its course, but then, some people are still fighting the Civil War, too. I could say it's up to your recruiter or director to tell you these things, but chances are, they don't know about it, either. It is an old issue, too.You know, we should build a list of bear traps that new folks are liable to step into, and post it as a sticky, or at least a link to it.

 

[quiverfull7]

KG... that is a fantastic idea... I know I had never heard this story and am SO thankful to be prepared just in case it rears it's ugly head... We work hard to be very educated about our products and our company's mission... It would be great to be informed so we can defend it as well.

 

[Teresa Lynn]

Syephanie,
I still have my copies If you want I can make a copy and send it to you and you can give them to her for an explanation.

 

[reba515]

KG... that is a fantastic idea... I know I had never heard this story and am SO thankful to be prepared just in case it rears it's ugly head... We work hard to be very educated about our products and our company's mission... It would be great to be informed so we can defend it as well.

that is a fantastic idea! I had no idea about this PP thing.
So what else can be thrown at us ?

 

[Teresa Lynn]

that's the only sleleton in our closet

 

[MeesMom3]

Syephanie,
I still have my copies If you want I can make a copy and send it to you and you can give them to her for an explanation.

Teresa,

That would be great. I'll PM you later to give you my information. This issue is really difficult for me. This isn't some lady I met at a show that I can just forget about. This woman attends my church! And everyone that was there attends my church. So it puts me in a bit of an awkward situation.

 

[Teresa Lynn]

I understand I lost a very good customer over it in the beginning and yes she boycotted DQ, Target etc she is the sweetest dearest friend and a devout Christian. Once we rec'd the letter I gave her my copy to read and she was satisfied and orders alot again.
Teresa

 

[janetupnorth]

I too have heard this before I was a consultant. I think it was only because I researched PC well again to make sure who I was choosing to represent matched my morals/ethics. I came across this story, but also the response to it.

It's just bad when people play "telephone" or only hear half the story and take the person's word for it.

 

[janetupnorth]

May I suggest you copy the letter and give it to the whole group in attendance so they know?

 

[pamperedgirl3]

Good luck getting this resolved. I think it was very disrespectful of you for her to ask that in front of everyone. If she had a problem with that, then she should have come up to you later & talked to you about it. She obviously turned a few people against your fundraiser spouting off on something she didn't know much about. Hopefully you can get this resolved & have a successful fundraiser!

 

[pampermeplease]

yuppersYes please feel free to post things like this for us newbies...i probably would have went off on the lady myself for other things she probably supports and doesn't know it. I'd say the issue was handled well and professionally when 'that particular lady' obviously was looking for a fight. Kudos to you.

And thanks for the heads up on THIS issue!!

 

[DebbieSAChef]

I agree

Good luck getting this resolved. I think it was very disrespectful of you for her to ask that in front of everyone. If she had a problem with that, then she should have come up to you later & talked to you about it. She obviously turned a few people against your fundraiser spouting off on something she didn't know much about. Hopefully you can get this resolved & have a successful fundraiser!

I agree that the way this lady handled the situation was rude, disrespectful and very unchristian like. It's a shame. Even the bible persuades us to seek those out who we have offense with and talk to them privately about the matter to get it resolved. I am so sorry, it would have bothered me too.

Anyway I wouldn't join PC until this matter was clear. I really respected the PC consultants who sent in letters and asked that this matter be resolved.
I know there are many businesses (local grocery store, someone mentioned Ford, Walmart, Target, etc....) and if we spent our time boycotting everyone we would be very hungry and naked! LOL

But if I was going to really promote PC and stand by the products I needed to also stand by the company and it's moral/ethic standards. So I chose to wait until the Lord resolved it. He did and He opened the door for me to do this. I am so happy that Doris took the initiative and went to Warren himself to discuss the matter on behalf of her consultants. I respect her for that. I also respect Warren, not what he gives his money to, but for feeling the need to change his policies regarding PC profit giving.

I also agree you should mail out this letter or just hand out these letters along with a personal letter from you explaining the matter and how it was resolved. Also tell everyone that you were blindsighted by this comment but made sure to investigate this matter and to your joy found the company to be worthy of their hard earned money. And be sure to mention this matter was over years ago!!!

Debbie

 

[DebbieSAChef]

Can of worms!!

Frankly, I never understood the big deal! I mean come on! Any one who has ever bought a Ford now supports the Gay Right movement. A movement I do not support. You would really have to research who really owns a company and where they put their money to successfully boycott all companies that put their money in places they see fit. The same people who stopped buying PC were probably still popping open their cans of Coca-Cola (which Warren owes as well) brand products thereby still contributing to PP.

I don't know I think I'm in a pissy mood right now, but sometimes I think people just sit around and what for an issue to get into an uproar about (like me now). Planned Parenthood is a good organization. Abortions are such a small percentage of what they do. Anyhoo...I don't want to open up that can of worms.

Can of worms!!



I dare you to open it!! LOL Just kidding I won't go there, this time!!

Debbie