Cancer charity fraud

#27
#27
Thunder Good-Oil said:
A lot of "legit" charities use creative accounting. The "efficient" ones spend a lot on their Program Services and not much on Fundraising. So instead of printing brochures for fundraising, they'll print brochures full of useful information about their cause, and conveniently have the address so you can mail in a donation - probably a self addressed return envelope too. They do the same thing with employee costs. The Executive Directors will typically spend the majority of their time fundraising, but they'll say they're spending all of their time running the program and educating. Cancer Fund was just too far over the top to get away with it.

There are some that are well run and efficient. I don't think the Salvation Army enriches their top executives as much as you'd expect considering how big they are. The local leadership is certainly not in it for the salaries.

In the early 1990s William Aramony was the CEO of the United Way (google him). He was running a scam and was convicted of fraud. The local United Way chapter then acted like they were totally independent and tried to distance the local United Way of Greater Knoxville from the national organization that they were joined at the hip with. I hated the way they'd be in bed with local business leaders and shake down employees every year with their pledge cards. I was lucky that I worked in a couple of places that stood up to them and wouldn't allow them to apply their high pressure tactics to the employees.

The Love Kitchen has been a very good charity. I hope that with Ellen Turner's passing and Helen Ashe in her middle 80s that their outstanding work carries on for years to come.

Unfortunately it takes money for just about any organization to be effective. The Boys and Girls Clubs do a great service... but their Executive Director would be considered highly compensated and rich relative to all but maybe 1% of the population.

I'm sure that Bill Gates' foundation has many highly compensated managers. However, for what that group does, it's worth it.
Click to expand...

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is a fantastic organization.

Also, I donate money and time to several non-profits including a yearly donation to Doctors Without Borders and several local events with Living Lands and Waters, a group that travels America's waterways cleaning up debris/garbage.
 
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#28
#28
I doubt that the Foothill's Land Conservancy does anything improper. As I mentioned, the Love Kitchen has a great track record so far. Remote Area Medical seems to be a very good outfit. The Interfaith Health Clinic on Broadway is a worthy cause. Ladies of Charity/Catholic Charities. FISH. There are a lot of good ones - generally they will have a volunteer Board of Directors filled with unrelated people that aren't simply there to enhance their résumé. Plus they rotate off of the BoD after a few years.

Unfortunately the tax exempt status of not-for-profit charities (and churches) is a magnate for scammers.
 
#29
#29
One thing that the United Way of Greater Knoxville, Community Shares, and Second Harvest Food Bank of East TN all do well is to thoroughly screen their member charities. Second Harvest really just monitors how their groups distribute the food and other items, but UW and Community Shares both screen how legit their member charities are operating. Most of their members are safe to make donations to. Second Harvest has to occasionally kick out bad groups.
 
#30
#30
Remote Area medical has almost no overhead or paid employees. incredible charity that helps poor Americans and others. Great place to give time or money.
 
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