Don’t Give To These Charities
According to a well researched article by 24/7 Wall Street , below are the worst charities in America.
Angel Food Ministries
Angel Food Ministries
Angel Food Ministries delivers groceries and financial support to those in need through a national network of churches. However, Gary Snyder, author of Nonprofits: On the Brink
Cancer Fund of America
Cancer Fund of America
According to the Cancer Fund of America, its mission is “To provide support and services to financially indigent patients; to disseminate information concerning the early detection and prevention of cancer; to provide commodities, and gifts-in-kind to hospices and other health care providers; to procure and distribute donated merchandise to various 501-(c)-(3) nonprofit community service organizations which aid the ill, needy, and infants.” The non-profit, however, only spends 17% of its budget on program services. Furthermore, it was accused by the Georgia Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs for making false and misleading claims in its mail solicitations. Cancer Fund also employs two sons of founder James Reynolds Sr. and a son-in law.
Operation Lookout: National Center for Missing Youth
Operation Lookout: National Center for Missing Youth
Operation Lookout National Center for Missing Youth is an “international child-search assistance center.” The organization reportedly spends a massive 82.9% of its budget on fundraising expenses, however, proving itself to be highly inefficient. A reason for its ineffectiveness is its reliance on expensive outside telemarketers to procure donations.
American Veterans Coalition
American Veterans Coalition
American Veterans Coalition, which is run by Robert Friend and his wife Shao Mei Wang, describes itself as being “dedicated to assisting the brave men and women who have done so much for their country.” Records show, however, that of the $1,579,521 the organization raised in 2007, only 21% went to program services, and of that less than 1% went directly to veterans and their families. Additionally, officials in both Arkansas and Kentucky have claimed that the organization violated the Consumer Protection Act by misleading donors about how their donations would be spent.
Children’s Wish Foundation International
Children’s Wish Foundation International
Children’s Wish Foundation International, which has as its top two executives husband and wife Arthur J. Stein and Linda Dozoretz, was established to grant wishes to children with life-threatening illnesses. According to Charity Navigator, however, only 46.4% of the charity’s revenue goes to program expenses. In comparison, 43.3% goes to fundraising expenses. It received zero stars from the group and an “F” from AIP.
Kids Wish Network
Kids Wish Network
Kids Wish Network was established in 1997 to grant wishes for children with life-threatening conditions. Since then, the organization has faced a high level of criticism for a number of reasons. The most prominent critique is that Kids Wish Network is inefficient, relying too much money on fundraisers while providing too little to their cause. Charity Navigator reports that only 48.5% of the charity’s revenue goes to program expenses. This is because of their their telemarketing costs. The charity is lead by Mark and Shelley Breiner, along with in-law Barbara Askin. AIP gives the group an “F.”
National Association of Chiefs of Police
National Association of Chiefs of Police
The National Association of Chiefs of Police is a not-for-profit organization which provides “educational and charitable activities for law enforcement officers.” According to the American Institute of Philanthropy, Donna M. Shepherd is Chief Executive Officer and her two sons Barry and Brent and former daughter-in-law Jamie, all have top positions. The organization also spends 12.3% of its revenue on administrative expenses, underscoring concerns about the family’s involvement. Additionally, there are a number of employees at the charity who are also related, although outside of the Shepherd clan. It was graded “F” by AIP.
Veterans Fund
Veterans Fund
The Veterans Fund describes itself as supporting “programs that assist thousands of … veterans with mental, physical, and emotional recovery, and that give them hope and encouragement.” The charity, which is run by Hugh Brooks and his wife Katie Clayton, however, has received an “F” rating from the American Institute of Philanthropy. The organization spends just over half of its revenue on program expenses, assigning the rest to administrative expenses (17.2%) and fundraising expenses (31.5%). After accounting for funds spend on educational messages, the amount actually spent on veteran program services is even less.
Arthritis Trust of America
Arthritis Trust of America
The Arthritis Trust of America works to inform people how to fight disease and funds research. The charity, however, is extremely inefficient. It is lead by Executive Director Perry Chapdelaine and a relative, Lucelyn Chapdelaine. Randolph Chapdelaine on its website as president. Under their control, however, the organization has received a zero-star rating from Charity Navigator, which notes that the group spends under half of their revenue on program expenses, while dividing the remaining funds on administrative and fundraising expenses. It also was rated “F” by AIP.
If you want to research your favorite charities, see The American Institute of Philanthropy or AIP.
Posted on 26. Nov, 2010 by Patricia in Living
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WHEN WHAT SEEMS ‘COSTLY’ IS ACTUALLY COST-EFFECTIVE…
Accounting rules require a nonprofit to clearly communicate when it allocates a portion of its budget to ‘programmatic’ efforts. OPERATION LOOKOUT® National Center for Missing Youth makes this distinction and has done so for many years. A duel ‘cost allocation’ is reported in the IRS 990 reports and annually audited Financial Statements (public documents), yet there are times when watchdog groups miss this valuable point and are responsible for passing forward part of a picture. Out of respect for our donors’ sacrificial dollars and volunteer support, we feel compelled to clarify.
OPERATION LOOKOUT has outsourced a ‘public service outreach message’ integrated with ‘dialing for dollars’ to outbound promotional calling centers for many years. Yet when a watchdog group or the media question, dispute, or over-look this ‘coupling’, the charity and call center can be misunderstood and unwittingly maligned calling the cost to be ‘excessive’ or ‘ineffective’. These judgments take on a cyber-life of their own leaving the general public in a quandary about the ‘effectual’ use of their contribution.
In 2010 according to the IRS 990 report and the CPA, 53% of every dollar raised overall goes to public outreach, including where to turn for help and asking for financial support; on top of that another 44% goes to investigative missing children casework, so combined you can see this outreach benefits Operation Lookout National Center for Missing Children and it is effective not ineffective.
The implication that OPERATION LOOKOUT is unable to make solid cost-efficient business decisions on its behalf is a misleading notion. Refuting statements, wherever such statements appear these days, takes away time and dollars from their intended use—finding a missing, abducted or runaway child. But, some things simply must be addressed for the sake of the charity’s future survival.
A supporter is welcome to respond over the phone or go online. ‘Public Outreach’ and ‘Resource Development’, combined, have greatly expanded the chance to find a child and provide child-search support. Whichever method is selected, because someone called and asked for tangible hands on help, countless caring citizens pinned up a poster with missing children images on it – increasing participation—always with an intention to find the kids.
Combining two tasks in one action is as frugal and noteworthy today for the organization as it was in 1984 when the charity was founded to provide assistance to desperate families —always free of charge. How to do it quickly and to the masses has been answered by outsourcing the duty to call centers.
OPERATION LOOKOUT®, its retired founders-Mike and Melody Gibson of Washington State, its dedicated staff and volunteers will continue to provide ‘free’ child-search services for desperate searching parents in the USA (and other countries) as long as the public works together with us. Any action taken to find a missing child continues to be needed, and gratitude is expressed to the many Americans taking action in hopes of a deserved parent and child reunion.
To become a Direct Giving Partner whereby none of the donation goes to the cost of a middleman, contact 1-800-LOOKOUT (566-5688) or visit at http://www.operationlookout.org; click on the secure PayPal DONATE NOW button—’because every missing child deserves the chance to be found.’