Cleaning for a reason

me too
I had all the paperwork sent in from my oncologist and they told me they would be in touch with me, but they never were. I sent several emails and never heard back. I do remember of several ladies on this board, however, receiving their services. Linda

joannstar said:

Same with me
I got all my paperwork turned in, was accepted and then never got a call. The last thing I needed was to follow up with them, so I never received service either.
JoAnn

Boy, does this sound familiar!
When I was doing chemo, I tried and tried to take advantage of this service. So many friends told me "I must take advantage of this wonderful service!" Well--all I can say is, "Good luck!" The organization said I needed to check every week on the computer--that they only can take 50 requests--so I did--for several weeks. And, every week they were full and said to try again. I didn't have the energy to keep trying!!!

Another one of those things that sounds wonderful in theory, but in reality--not so much.

Hugs, Renee

Didn't even try Cleaning for
Didn't even try Cleaning for a Reason since I live so far away from anywhere. Just want to say hi and how are you? xoxoxoxo Lynn

skipper54 said:

Checked it out BUT
we don't have anyone in the area participating so didn't get the help. Our local breast care alliance does help with some things though. I just decided not to pursue it 'cause at that point I was pretty discouraged that no one was willing to step up and provide this service for women in our area.

Skipper54 -- exact response that I received ..
which I thought was odd, living in Southern California. Disappointed to say the least.

Vicki Sam

Heatherbelle said:

I just emailed them...
Libby i replied on the facebook thread about this. You know me, I cant keep my mouth shut very well when I'm bothered by something. I contacted the company, and included a link to this thread, so that they can see what we all have to say. It does seem like they are touting themselves as being such helpers & doing such a great thing, but none of us -from all over the country -have gotten their services. Participating cleaning companies do NOT get paid by Cleaning for a Reason for their services, AND they have to PAY a fee to Cleaning for a Reason to be a participating service. So it's a win/win situation for them, but the people who should be benefitting, us, aren't getting any help from them! Right before I was diagnosed, two of my friends started up a cleaning company. When I applied for cleaning help & was denied because there aren't any participating companies in my area, my friends contacted Cleaning for a Reason about participating & were told about the fees & how they work. Like someone else said, I've had countless people email me or tell me "You should check into this place, it's such a wonderful thing they do" -I always tell them exactly what I've put on here. I feel they are using the premise of helping cancer patients to make themselves look good -and that makes me mad!
*hugs*
Heather
ps -i really hope someone from there takes action & reads these threads. A reputable company/organization accepts criticism as well as praise & if they really are helping out alot of people & we're all just an exception to the rule then I think they should offer an explanation.

During my treatment I tried connecting to that company many times (at least 25) through the computer, and failed everytime. I gave up. There were not there for me at all. I still can't clean well. Saving money up so I can hire a service How dissapointing.

pinkflutterby said:

Well Terry the false hope is
Well Terry the false hope is distrubing to many of us. You collect our personal information and then are unable to help. Perhaps "cleaning for a reason" should stop getting our personal information until such a time as you are organized enough to really help some of us! Stop solicitating that you want to help when you cannot help. Out of all the ladies on here NONE of us ever received help. There might have been one of our pink sisters on facebook who actually received help, but she is now one of our guardian angels and it cannot be confirmed.

I say, shame on cleaning for a reason!!! Your orginazation needs to stop until you are really able to help!!!

False Hope
Thank you for your comment.

It isn't a matter of being organized it is a matter of having enough maid service partners available to help. We recognize that we will never be able to help all who apply because the demand is overwhelming, but we will continue helping as many as we can. Two things to remember about us.
1. We have to have a maid service who has agreed to partner with us in an area where a cancer patient applys. If we don't have a partner in that area, we won't be able to help.
2. If we have a partner in the area, they have to have an opening or we won't be able to help. Our 1,000 partners stay full which means they are giving away two free cleanings every month. So, obviously we are helping a lot of women. I doubt the 2,000 women who are being helped every month would agree with your comment.
3. We don't solicit for business. When an organization calls and request's brochures or that they may put a link to our website on their website, we decline because we stay full. On the other hand, we can't police all the people around the country who do these things without our permission.
Finally, we are about to launch a CMS system that will accommodate your request. This system will not allow a woman to apply if there isn't availability in their area.
We listen to comments and we respond if we have the ability to do so. We are in the business of making a positive difference in this world and we work tirelessly trying to accomplish that purpose.
Again, thank you for your constructive criticism.
Terry

It wasn't
available in my part of CT.
Char

Heatherbelle said:

I just emailed them...
Libby i replied on the facebook thread about this. You know me, I cant keep my mouth shut very well when I'm bothered by something. I contacted the company, and included a link to this thread, so that they can see what we all have to say. It does seem like they are touting themselves as being such helpers & doing such a great thing, but none of us -from all over the country -have gotten their services. Participating cleaning companies do NOT get paid by Cleaning for a Reason for their services, AND they have to PAY a fee to Cleaning for a Reason to be a participating service. So it's a win/win situation for them, but the people who should be benefitting, us, aren't getting any help from them! Right before I was diagnosed, two of my friends started up a cleaning company. When I applied for cleaning help & was denied because there aren't any participating companies in my area, my friends contacted Cleaning for a Reason about participating & were told about the fees & how they work. Like someone else said, I've had countless people email me or tell me "You should check into this place, it's such a wonderful thing they do" -I always tell them exactly what I've put on here. I feel they are using the premise of helping cancer patients to make themselves look good -and that makes me mad!
*hugs*
Heather
ps -i really hope someone from there takes action & reads these threads. A reputable company/organization accepts criticism as well as praise & if they really are helping out alot of people & we're all just an exception to the rule then I think they should offer an explanation.

That's what I like about you Heather
Dear Heather,

That's what I like about you. You tell it like it is. The fact that so many of our sisters have not received the services of the Cleaning for a Reason makes me wonder if they are legitimate.

Lots of Hugs,
Janelle

Cleaning For a Reason
After reading all of the comments on this thread I felt sad and a little frustrated at the perception some have unfortunately had. I would like to just take a second to add my experiences with Cleaning For a Reason.

I own a very small cleaning service in Vancouver, WA and we are a Cleaning For a Reason partner. We have been a parner since joining fall of 2010 after meeting the founder & other volunteers and partners (companies that donate cleaning) at the ISSA international convention held in Orlando. I can tell you first hand that the organization is in no way a scam. They are a very well respected & very well organized organization. I have met many company owners that participate & provide free cleanings every month. I think most of the frustration seems to be that because we have so much more need than the enrolled service partners can provide, it frustrates people and seems that perhaps it is not even a legitimate organization.

My company is pretty typical of those that participate. We have just 3 employees that work in our residential cleaning department, and just a handful of other part time employees that clean the small number of commercial buildings & churches we clean. In other words, we are a very modestly sized company with a very small profit margin. In a company where every single dollar matters and where we struggle to find any extra money grow our business, we choose to participate at our own expense because we care. What goes around comes around and we know that if everyone does the best they can to show kindness and lend a hand when others need it most, it makes the entire world, including our own world a better place. Our employees love to participate, knowing that they are bringing a smile to some relief to other women who are going through a very difficult time and find little energy to deal with such daily task.

However frustrating the shortage of service is please understand a few things. This organization was started by someone just like you and I. An ordinary woman that owned local cleaning service that saw a way she could lend her organizing abilities and her companies resources to help other women who really needed it. This organization is really very young and though it has hundreds of companies who participate, it will take a long time to build it to the size that it will need to be to meet all of the need that exist. When I read some of the angry post it hurt because I thought, after all I personally have sacrificed to provide free service for others, it seems that if you can't do "it all" than it will not be good enough. I don't believe that. We all have to do what we can and it will help, especially those many women who have been able to be helped. Just so you all know, many of the company partners I have met are small to medium sized cleaning companies, some are so small they even operate out of their home offices. For our companies size and financial resources we are only able to service 2 women at a time. I know there is so much more need, but we feel we can at least do what we are able to and others will hopefully follow our example.

As for the charge that companies participate only to seem to be philanthropist and brag on their websites, I really don't think that is the case. It cost us directly about 75% or more of the cost we would charge just in the payroll, taxes, material, and vehicle expense we cover to be able to provide services for free. My suspision is that that couple hundred or more a month we donate would probably pay for a lot of advertising if we really were looking at it from that angle. Really, how many people even look at my website to see we participate? I don't know, but it isn't much. Yes, we do want to be good community partners and we do want to engage ourselves and our employees in the cause, but it's not for show, and it does make a difference in a lot of lives. Incidentally, many of the people that work at the Cleaning for a Reason office are volunteers and they have very few paid staff, and let me tell you, when I do talk to them you can tell they are hopping as fast as they can. Us partners pay a very modest monthly fee to support the foundation and it goes directly to the basics.

I am doing what I can to spread the word to other cleaning service owners so hopefully more will learn about the foundation and choose to participate. I know the Cleaning For a Reason founder spends a lot of her time in supporting and encouraging more companies to join up and make a difference. All of us women can spread the word to other companies of this great opportunity they have to support the women in their community. Definately not a scam, but do we need more partners to help all of the beautiful women who are waiting for service, YES we do! Spread the word to the companies in your area ladies.