If you’re a loyal Carnival cruiser, or even if you’ve only sailed on Carnival a few times, there’s a solid chance that you follow John Heald on Facebook.
To say that Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald’s public page on Facebook is a popular one would be an understatement. Heald has nearly 600,000 followers, and many of them are highly engaged with his page.
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Heald typically posts several times daily, and it isn’t unusual for his posts to draw thousands of comments within just a few hours. In fact, a poll Heald posted 11 hours before I wrote this already had about 73,500 replies.
For this reason, Heald’s page is often used by others to make their opinions known, share cruising tips and stories, and sometimes to attempt to raise money.
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Fundraising is a no-go on Heald's page
Heald recently shared a message that he received from a cruiser (whose name he kept anonymous). They were disappointed that a post attempting to raise money for a loyal Carnival cruiser’s final expenses wasn’t allowed to be posted on his page. As the message said:
“I have been feeling increasing despair and sadness at the absence of even basic human decency expressed from you John. You keep removing the Go Fund Me page for our brother’s funeral expenses. ---- loved Carnival and cruised twice, three times a year until covid. He was struck down with covid. He had long covid. He never recovered. He passed on October 19th. He had cruised with Carnival over 20 times.”
Heald shared that he had replied privately to this cruiser and even made a donation from his own pocket to help the family.
On the other hand, he also made it clear that he cannot allow GoFundMe pages to be promoted on his Facebook page. It isn’t that he’s unsympathetic – quite the opposite is certainly true. But it’s not what his page is there for.
The purpose of Heald’s public page is to share updates about Carnival cruising, gather opinions from loyal passengers, and to create a community with a big, shared interest. It is not the right forum for people to try to raise money for their causes, as worthy as they may be.
Cruisers resoundingly support Heald's decision
Most of the hundreds of comments on Heald’s post were in agreement with his decision.
“With all respect and my condolences, there are many other more appropriate venues for GoFundMe posts,” wrote Susan Henderson Brock.
Fellow commenter Deborah Starkey Street said, “I’m so sorry for their loss, but I agree with the rules Carnival follows. This is not the place to ask for money.”
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Some simultaneously defended the grieving sibling while supporting Heald’s decision.
As commenter Amy DJust wrote, “I’m sure it was not meant as a personal attack on you but one of mere frustration as they try to figure out how to manage an unexpected funeral.”
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Others mentioned things such as how if Carnival allowed even one GoFundMe page, they would have to let whoever wants to post theirs as well.
In fact, after scrolling through over 200 comments on Heald’s post, I have yet to find one that is in favor of allowing fundraising links on Heald’s page or any similar public forum. While virtually all commenters expressed their sympathies, the message is loud and clear: Fundraising doesn’t belong on a widely followed, official cruise line executive’s social media pages.
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