City Orders VFW to Halt ‘Illegal’ Charity Appeals

A fund-raising campaign by the state Veterans of Foreign Wars has run afoul of the Los Angeles City Social Service Department, which accused the organization of “conducting illegal and unethical charitable telephone appeals” in the city.

George Delianedis, the department’s acting general manager, said Friday that the VFW was issued a cease-and-desist order this week after his agency investigated consumer complaints about solicitations made on behalf of the veterans’ organization by a private group.

Earlier Order Issued

It was the second time in five months that the VFW had been sent such an order.

Delianedis accused VFW officials of allowing a commercial promoter to use the group’s name even though the VFW is receiving only 10% of the money raised in the sale of American flags, trash bag liners and ballpoint pens--for as much as $19.95 for 50 trash bags and $15 for about two dozen ballpoint pens, consumers have told his agency, Delianedis said.

He said the city also found that the fund-raising drive was operating in the city without permission.

Delianedis said the private firm--Ed King and Associates of Hermosa Beach--sold the items without having filed proper documents with the city to detail who was soliciting the funds, how the money would be divided and where that money would be used. King could not be reached for comment.

“The whole thing is a matter of full disclosure,” said Delianedis, adding that some consumers thought that most of the money was going to the VFW.

He said he would forward any further complaints to the city attorney’s office.

Carl Zagar, a Sacramento spokesman for the VFW, said officials had not received the latest cease-and-desist order from the city, but he denied any wrongdoing. Zagar said the organization responded quickly after receiving the first notice and “had thought everything was cleared up.”

“For all the calls that are made,” Zagar said, “there are very few complaints.”

He said the VFW, which has 97,000 members statewide, uses the solicitation drive to send California veterans to various “Wheelchair Games” around the country. About $55,000 was raised recently to send 75 disabled veterans and their helpers to Washington, Zagar said.