[Jason]

Has anyone ever been? I saw some videos on Youtube showing parts of the circus. Looks like fun. Now I just a lady friend to go with to one.

[Ashlar2006]

Oh yeah , they were held on our school grounds when I was in Jr.high school . we used to get to seethem before the public . Great fun , though I have heard horror stories on how the animals were treated . Not sure how true they are . I'm a member of the ASPCA and have read alot up on it . They claim not to have found any wrong doing .

[cemab4y]

Last week here in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Mizpah Shrine circus was held. For four terrific days, the circus had performances, and they were excellent. I have seen a lot in my 53 years, but I never saw a bear ride a motorcycle. The circus had dancing goats, and acrobats, and jugglers,etc.

The Shrine circus here, raised about $200,000 for Mizpah shrine center operations. None of the money raised here, goes to the hospital program.

Many Shrine centers host circuses.

[Green-Moo]

Excuse my ignorance, but I thought that was the point of the Shriners Circus. If not the hospital, where do the funds raised go?

[mollyL]

I'm also speaking from ignorance, but it's my impression that the money from the Shriner's Circus goes to their hospital outreach , at least in Los Angeles, where they have a Shriner's hospital. They used to have a really good advertising campaign that stated that if you knew a child suffering a health crisis, that you should tell a Shriner about it, so he could see how the child could access the health care they needed at the Shriner's Hospital.

[Ashlar2006]

My sister-in-law works for Social Services and I have sent her to brothers in my lodge that are Shriners that have helped many of the children in her care . cemab4y , could answer this better than I can , but the Shrine's have operating costs . Take my OES chapter , we donate a lot of money to the shrine transportation fund for the transportation of the children to the hospitals .

[Jason]

I've talked to a few Shriners at my Lodge. They say a lot of the money raised goes towards their transportation fund. All their aircraft are staffed with medical personal, and it is a very costly flight.

[cemab4y]

The Shrine has many different types of fund raisers. Let us examine them. The Hospitals are financed through the hospital assessments. Each Shriner contributes $5 per year into a fund, which is used to purchase stocks, securities, and other interest-bearing accounts. The proceeds from this endowment fund is used to finance the hospitals. (Individuals and corporations may donate to hospital operations as well).

Individual Shrine centers have fund-raisers throughout the year, and the proceeds from grapefruit sales, circuses, and other types of fund raisers, are distributed according to the individual desires of the sponsoring Shrine centers.

The Mizpah Shrine in Fort Wayne Indiana, holds an annual circus. ALL of the proceeds from the circus goes towards operating the Mizpah Shrine, and none of the funds goes directly into the hospital program. Mizpah maintains some vehicles, which are used to transport children to the hospitals. The operating funds might be used to purchase airline tickets for a child and parents in an emergency.

Under current Federal law, when a fund-raiser is held, the sponsoring organization must clearly describe the charity, to which the funds are going to be directed to. There are 191 Shrine centers in North America. Some hold fund-raisers, in which all of the proceeds go directly to the hospitals. Some hold fund-raisers, in which a portion is sent to the hospitals, and the balance is spent locally. For Example, a Shrine center might used some of its locally-generated funds to purchase a motorized wheel chair for a child. The funds raised might be used to modify the home of a crippled child, to build wheelchair ramp,etc.

[sarah]

Originally Posted by cemab4y

Last week here in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Mizpah Shrine circus was held. For four terrific days, the circus had performances, and they were excellent. I have seen a lot in my 53 years, but I never saw a bear ride a motorcycle. The circus had dancing goats, and acrobats, and jugglers,etc.

The Shrine circus here, raised about $200,000 for Mizpah shrine center operations. None of the money raised here, goes to the hospital program.

Many Shrine centers host circuses.

Thats some real good amount I must say!!

[Darrel]

Our annual Shrine Circus raises the money for our Shrine Center's operating costs, including keeping the lights and water on, and also a percentage is given to each unit whose members work the circus (taking tickets, parking, etc.), for their operation. A portion of our operating budget is used to pay for the vans (insurance, upkeep, and so forth) that are used to transport patients to and from the hospitals. Each of our members pays an assessment that goes to the hospitals, along with funds raised during the annual paper sale (all of the paper sale funds go to the hospitals).