Suggested donations are for people with means, and many of our guests do not have means. When you ask for a suggested donation, a binary is created between those with financial means vs. those without. This results in guests without means being forced to disclose that they are unable to pay the suggested donation. In comparison, under The Participation Model, all guests can contribute in any way offering more privacy to an individual's financial situation, should they want that. 

Suggested donations do not acknowledge the full spectrum of poverty and its relationship to food insecurity. Check out the video below from Brad Reubendale to learn more on this topic.

Pictured: SAME Denver's transparent budget

Optional Video: Why Participation Model vs. Pay-What-You-Can

Check out the next video to learn more about why exactly we choose to focus on participation in our model.