The Rescue Squad subscribes to the Donor Bill of Rights.   

The Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad (BCCRS), one of the nation's most advanced and best trained rescue squads, strives to be a good steward of your contributions.   Our volunteers visit you once a year for our Annual Fund Drive, which raises over half of our annual operating budget.  (Residents of apartment and condominiums receive a mailing instead.)  We do not use paid solicitors to go door-to-door or employ telemarketers for our Annual Fund Drive.

The Rescue Squad is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity.  You can request our financial statement by sending an email to info@bccrs.org.  We also subscribe to the Donor Bill of Rights to help ensure transparency and accountability in fundraising and nonprofit management.  The Rescue Squad thanks you for your generous support.

The Donor Bill of Rights

Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To ensure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the nonprofit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:

I. To be informed of the organization's mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.

II. To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization's governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.

III. To have access to the organization's most recent financial statements.

IV. To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.

V. To receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition.

VI. To be assured that information about their donation is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.

VII. To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.

VIII. To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization or hired solicitors.

IX. To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.

X. To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers.

The Donor Bill of Rights was created by the American Association of Fund Raising Counsel (AAFRC), Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP), the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). It has been endorsed by numerous organizations.  For more information, visit www.afpnet.org.  (Clicking on this link will open a new window in your browser and take you to a third-party site.)

Now in its 68th year, BCCRS is a community-supported non-profit organization that provides free emergency medical, ambulance, rescue, and fire services to the Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Maryland area, as well as upper Northwest Washington, D.C. With 150 active volunteers--men and women who respond to more than 10,000 emergency calls per year--BCCRS has evolved into one of the nation's most advanced rescue squads, providing compassionate, life-saving services to the community. BCCRS does not receive a regular appropriated budget from any government. Instead, BCCRS raises almost all of its $1.9 million operating budget from individual donors, foundations, and businesses, as well as occasional state and federal grants. Contributions to BCCRS are tax-deductible as allowable by law.

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July 23, 2008

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