All-Star Summit Ring For Ransom

[123jump4!]

An agreement has been reached and my daughter will get her ring. With that being said, there was never an intention to leave and was always a plan to pay, just a dispute regarding the amount. I was simply disappointed that a gym owner would use a child's ring as weight to push around. Thanks for everyone's comments.

Yay! Good job sorting it out! I thought it was unfair of them to keep it over a dispute. Happy for you both. :)

 

[CheerBank]

Glad it all worked out and your daughter will get her ring.

 

[Just-a-Mom]

An agreement has been reached and my daughter will get her ring. With that being said, there was never an intention to leave and was always a plan to pay, just a dispute regarding the amount. I was simply disappointed that a gym owner would use a child's ring as weight to push around. Thanks for everyone's comments.

Just out of curiosity, for you and anyone else saying this wasn't fair... How should they go about collecting the money? I'm genuinely asking, because people get really mad at us (at the dance studio I work at) when we don't let kids participate in things, or withhold items for unpaid balances. I'd love to know of a different, effective, method. (And no, we are not going to sue someone over a $150 payment)

My question is, what other means would you suggest? I've found that sometimes the ONLY way to collect that money is to prevent the child from doing something. We ask, and ask, and ask. We add late fees. We call. We email. We ask in person. Nothing. But let me tell you, as soon as I say "Dancers with unpaid balances will not receive costumes when they come in," suddenly EVERYONE wants to come to the front desk to arrange payment.

I'm sorry people think it's unfair to drag the child in, but it IS the child's account. We had a mom that was soooooo mad when we told her that her daughter wouldn't be able to be in our recital. She kept saying, "So you're going to take this away from my CHILD?!" Well, no. YOU are taking this away from your child.

These are businesses. Not non-profit organizations created to donate cheer/dance to children.

 

[randomactsofcheer]

Just out of curiosity, for you and anyone else saying this wasn't fair... How should they go about collecting the money? I'm genuinely asking, because people get really mad at us (at the dance studio I work at) when we don't let kids participate in things, or withhold items for unpaid balances. I'd love to know of a different, effective, method. (And no, we are not going to sue someone over a $150 payment)

My question is, what other means would you suggest? I've found that sometimes the ONLY way to collect that money is to prevent the child from doing something. We ask, and ask, and ask. We add late fees. We call. We email. We ask in person. Nothing. But let me tell you, as soon as I say "Dancers with unpaid balances will not receive costumes when they come in," suddenly EVERYONE wants to come to the front desk to arrange payment.

I'm sorry people think it's unfair to drag the child in, but it IS the child's account. We had a mom that was soooooo mad when we told her that her daughter wouldn't be able to be in our recital. She kept saying, "So you're going to take this away from my CHILD?!" Well, no. YOU are taking this away from your child.

These are businesses. Not non-profit organizations created to donate cheer/dance to children.

I completely agree with you. Parents are usually told upfront what the cost of participation is. As someone who owned a business where half the income came from a program for children, this really peeves me. If you know before signing up that you cannot pay the fees, that is the time to work out a payment plan or inquire about a scholarship. If the program is unable or unwilling to work with you, don't sign your kid up for that activity and hope it will all work out! Just be honest with your child (and yourself) by telling him or her that the activity is not financially feasible. When it comes to clients already enrolled in a program, most businesses understand that unavoidable and unforeseeable financial problems happen in life. I was always willing to work with a parent who came to me immediately with extenuating circumstances by offering a discount, having the parent (or child, if they were older) do some odd jobs to help pay for tuition, or by arranging a payment plan. It was the parents who habitually paid tuition late, avoided contact with me, and waited until I was at the point of banning their child from participating that I told, "Sorry, you need to pay in full before your child can participate."

It is unfair to drag a child into a situation like this. But it is the parent that places the child in this situation, not the gym.

 

[Just-a-Mom]

I completely agree with you. Parents are usually told upfront what the cost of participation is. As someone who owned a business where half the income came from a program for children, this really peeves me. If you know before signing up that you cannot pay the fees, that is the time to work out a payment plan or inquire about a scholarship. If the program is unable or unwilling to work with you, don't sign your kid up for that activity and hope it will all work out! Just be honest with your child (and yourself) by telling him or her that the activity is not financially feasible. When it comes to clients already enrolled in a program, most businesses understand that unavoidable and unforeseeable financial problems happen in life. I was always willing to work with a parent who came to me immediately with extenuating circumstances by offering a discount, having the parent (or child, if they were older) do some odd jobs to help pay for tuition, or by arranging a payment plan. It was the parents who habitually paid tuition late, avoided contact with me, and waited until I was at the point of banning their child from participating that I told, "Sorry, you need to pay in full before your child can participate."

It is unfair to drag a child into a situation like this. But it is the parent that places the child in this situation, not the gym.

Yes! We will work with almost anyone. I have 2 moms that still owe for the spring session, and they both have moved onto different studios. But they keep in contact and are honoring their arrangements - so we have allowed them to participate in everything and gave them everything they were supposed to get.

Because they're upfront with us.

What I won't work with is someone who avoids my calls, drops their kids off in the parking lot and never comes in, etc.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

 

[Official OWECheer]

I'm surprised you actually got to go to the Summit still having a balance with the gym. The gym that my cp went to Summit with last season, wouldn't allow anyone owing a balance. They were replacing people who owed.

Wow.

 

[123jump4!]

@Just-a-Mom I agree with you if someone hasn't paid they shouldn't get costumes etc going forward. I think this case was a little different. It was a dispute over some money (although we don't know the full story). And if they let the kid go to Summit they should let her have the ring. Just my opinion! Tough one. Anyway I was happy to read it got sorted out.

 

[Pebbles49]

I hate to sound crass and callous , I work with young people and I noticed that we often have parents that duck, dodge, suddenly stop answering phone (sometimes caller ID is not a friend), changed phone numbers, etc... I often do not get a resolution until I pull LEVERAGE, which unfortunately, directly affect the child/children. I noticed when I pulled or take away from the child/children, suddenly phone calls are being returned, etc...If you put in writing and grown ups, who often read the contract and signed and initialed this contract, which specify repercussions and consequences, I don't appreciate being called insensitive and not caring about the child/children, when in fact, it is the parents who are hurting their own child/children.
Remember, people who own businesses or plan and organize activities, often have to pay other people or have a payroll they must meet and if the customers do not pay on time, we often pull from our own pockets and take food from our children's mouth and why should we care less for our own child/children!...js