1. How do I know who to contact if I need help or if someone I know needs help?
2. How can we apply for help from RESCU?
3. Why should I donate my money if there is no specific recipient?
4. Who maintains control of the funds?
5. What criteria determine eligibility?
6. Who decides the recipients of the funds and how much they receive?
7. In addition to help with my medical financial burden, what else does RESCU do to help?
8. I know RESCU helps entertainers, but can any other Ren Faire workers apply?
9. Does everyone get the same treatment regardless of what they do at the Faire?
10. How can I help?
11. What is a RESCU Advocate?
12. How can I volunteer?
13. Will my personal medical and financial information be kept confidential?
14. How much of the money raised by RESCU goes to expenses or salaries?
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Any Questions?
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1. How do I know who to contact if I need help or if someone I know needs help?
You can speak to any of your local RESCU Reps for your faire that will be listed on the bulletin boards; or visit www.RESCUfoundation.org or write to RESCU Foundation, 707 State Route 725 #123, Dayton, OH 45459, call 1-800-374-9215,
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2. How can we apply for help from RESCU?
Applying for help from RESCU is so simple. By law, all recipients of assistance must fill out a financial need form and submit copies of outstanding bills to be considered. The paperwork can be given to you by your local RESCU Rep, mailed to you, or emailed to you. Simply return the application to RESCU via any of the above contacts, with copies of bills and RESCU will contact you.
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3. Why should I donate my money if there is no specific recipient?
RESCU has grown immensely since its inception and is now able to assist those beyond the abilities of a single, local rally. We pool the donations from all of our faires across the country in order to help all of those in need whatever time of year. Without this reserve, those in need would be forced to wait for assistance until another rally could be organized.
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4. Who maintains control of the funds?
As a federally compliant 501c3 organization, RESCU Foundation has an Executive Board of Members, of which our Chairperson and Treasurer maintain and monitor all financial activity of the non-profit foundation.
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5. What criteria determine eligibility?
To receive assistance, one must be, or have been associated with a Renaissance Festival worker (crafter, entertainer, gamer, employee, and any other participant) or other themed event, and must have medical debt.
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6. Who decides the recipients of the funds and how much they receive?
The Disbursement Committee, consisting of three Board Members, receives the completed medical financial aid form and copies of bills. They then discuss the outstanding bill amounts and decide what amount can be given at this time. Some people with ongoing, acute illnesses or injuries may be given more than one disbursement.
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7. In addition to help with my medical financial burden, what else does RESCU do to help?
RESCU does offer financial assistance, but also offers emotional support, counseling, and a chance to have an Advocate work with you on your case. We are working to establish a Doctor’s Network and RN Program to help alleviate the stress of finding affordable healthcare on the road. We are compiling data for a directory of free or reduced care clinics in the surrounding areas of each faire (and greatly need any suggestions you may have). We strive to provide our community with information on preventative healthcare.
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8. I know RESCU helps entertainers, but can any other Ren Faire workers apply?
Absolutely! RESCU offers its assistance to ANY PARTICIPANT of a Renaissance Festival anywhere in the country.
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9. Does everyone get the same treatment regardless of what they do at the Faire?
YES!!! We do not discriminate based on what anyone does at the faire, whether or not they do faires full-time, or how long they have been a participant. We are here to help those in need only.
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10. How can I help?
There are many ways to help. Sign up for www.GoodSearch.com, which allows you to surf the internet as usual and RESCU gets a donation! Or you can donate money, items for auction or your time. Donating time may be as little as helping out at a rally or bake sale, or you can volunteer to help with a number of small jobs that need to be done at any time. RESCU also has many ideas and goals with not enough people available to see them into fruition as quickly as we would like. If you have time and a vision to offer, you can help us execute the next steps for growth. You can also talk to a RESCU member about being an Advocate, of whom we are in desperate need.
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11. What is a RESCU Advocate?
An Advocate is someone who is assigned your case, if requested on your medical need form. This person can perform many duties such as help negotiate down medical bills with doctors, hospitals and financial institutions; help with confusing medical correspondence; help in establishing payment plans; assist with applying for financial assistance from hospitals or other organizations and much more.
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12. How can I volunteer?
Please talk to any RESCU member about any help you may have to offer. You can hang flyers, collect rally items for our auctions, research locally or online for free and reduced care clinics near faires for our directory, network to local doctors…there are soooo many things we need help with at each faire. What are your skills? What ideas do you have? Do you know someone with professional skills that could assist RESCU? Do you have a job that offers matching grants? YOU can help!!!
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13. Will my personal medical and financial information be kept confidential?
For your privacy and protection, all information will be held in confidence in strict accordance with the HIPAA mandates and privacy laws.
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14. How much of the money raised by RESCU goes to expenses or salaries?
Every single person involved in any way with the RESCU Foundation is a volunteer. There are no salaries. Our 2006 financial report shows that our expenses were .018%, in 2005 the expenses were .056%, and in 2004 it was .011%. The rest of the money raised was given back to the community.
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