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Here’s your GoFundMe scam of the day out of good ol’ Worcester, which was shared in the Webster, Dudley, Oxford, Thompson community forum….

Oh for fuck’s sake. Is there anything out there that these swamp nuggets don’t think should be paid for by strangers? You know who wants to go to Vegas? Me. But I can’t, because I’m an adult who understands that traveling across the country with my kids is not something I’m entitled to. For the record, I feel the same way about cheerleaders and Pop Warner kids panhandling outside of grocery stores and on street corners. Stop training kids to beg for things that aren’t necessities!!

As a general rule of thumb I don’t donate to anyone who has ever used a Snapchat filter,

Currently has a tittoo

Does bathroom selfies

Or posts pictures of their kids at the graveyard with some chick drinking a Mike’s Hard Lemonade.

This thing sounds like a HUGE scam. He was “picked” to go to Vegas for a “showcase” on acting and modeling (he’s 7). Translation – some scam company goes around telling thousands of gullible idiots their kids are gonna be movie stars, and if they can get 20-30 takers in the bunch to shell over $7K then they make cash money. Obviously this kid is in high demand, since the company is willing to contribute nothing towards him getting there.

Secondly, you’re a single Mom who can’t pay the bills, but you claim to have spent over $4,000 already for this trip? Oh, and if they don’t come up with the other $3,000, then the $4K she already spent goes “down the drain.” It’s just gone forever with no explanation. The prestigious modeling and acting showcase company keeps it as a retainer in case you want to get scammed next year.

Thirdly, she doesn’t list the company, the date or location of the “showcase,” or link to anything to validate this. You just have to take her word for it, so we decided to do some research for her. Here’s the link to their Facebook page event, and here’s what a talent manager who has attended these conventions before says about iPOP:

YOU WANT THE TRUTH? My name is Wendy Alane Wright and I am a Talent Manager at WAW Entertainment in Los Angeles (www.wawentertainment.com)  I attended iPOP and there were 700 kids there to see. I signed one AMAZING child from it. I am working closely with her and her parents to build her acting career. iPOP itself is a very legit event. Yes, they do put actors and models in the room with legit Talent Agents and Managers. I can personally vouch for that. In the managers and agents rooms where we all gather between events there are some HEAVY HITTERS in there. If you have the money and it causes you NO Hardship…then go for it!  MY ISSUE WITH iPOP is IT IS VERY, VERY, VERY EXPENSIVE and that is why  I typically do NOT RECOMMEND IT. 

There are other ways to meet the exact same agents and only pay $1000- $1500 for a showcase and BELOW I WILL TELL YOU ABOUT THEM. I don’t believe ANYONE on this earth should be paying $5,000 – $15,000 to meet agents. No one. That is my personal opinion. As a Talent Manager in Los Angeles who signs actors every year, I know for a fact you don’t need to do iPOP, IMTA or any other expensive showcase like that to meet legit Talent Agents, Modeling Agents, and Talent Managers.  (although I have found some FANTASTIC clients at these events.)

Every single day actors and models get into this business without ever spending that kinds of money. I would say…be very concerned of showcase systems that have BIG Hype, Lavish expensive Hotels because that  means you are paying for lot of frivolity that has nothing to do with a one on one meeting with an Industry Pro.  You don’t need any of that to get discovered and signed to a great agency.  So settle in, relax and let me explain what you can do instead. I have several suggestions

Oh look, we were right. It’s for rich kids whose parents have money to burn, not for single Moms from Worcester who’ve been conned into thinking this is their ticket to stardom. As it turns out this is not the most effective way for your kid to become a model, if you’re predisposed to ruining your crotch fruit’s childhood by getting them into modeling.

Fourthly, “I’m not the type of person to ask for any kind of help”? Yea, the GoFundMe machine seems to indicate that this is a lie. Because she started another GoFundMe for this in the summer.

Oh, and here’s the best part of the scam – iPop gets these people to be salesmen for their company too:

So yea, if you’re interested in paying a bunch of money to have your business appear in an ad in a Las Vegas showcase that preys on gullible parents, feel free to write a check to iPop.

The bottom line is that GoFundMe was supposed to exist so that people could raise money for stuff like medical emergencies, and other legitimate fundraisers for people who are really in need. But it’s also given Worcester gutterslugs the ability to Internet panhandle for free trips to Vegas, because no one has any shame any more. And that’s too bad because shame keeps us humble. Either way, hopefully Desirae reads this, realizes she’s been fooled, and signs her kid up for basketball instead.