Caution Needed When Giving

It can be difficult to resist the urgent pleadings on behalf of charities that ostensibly help firefighters or police officers injured in the line of duty. That’s what telemarketers count on, a catchy title and cause to go with good salesmanship on the other end of the telephone.

But a lawsuit filed last month in Orange County Superior Court shows the need for caution. For someone wanting to help police or fire agencies, it’s a good idea to call the departments and find out if indeed they have contracted with a fund-raising group. Then it’s smart to find out how much of the funds that come in actually goes back out to charity.

Michael Kowalski was executive director of an organization based in Santa Ana called the Foundation for Disabled Firefighters.

Kowalski said in his lawsuit challenging his dismissal by the group that it raised $1.9 million last year but spent only $2,000 on charitable programs. He said he wants his job back and an audit of the funds. The current president of the foundation, who is one of the defendants in the civil court action, said he’s trying to change the organization and was concerned that before he came aboard it did not distribute enough of its revenue.

If Kowalski’s math turns out to be correct, only a tiny fraction of the funds raised went to the Foundation for Disabled Firefighters. Another note of caution comes from the current president, who says that until he assumed his current duties two years ago, the group had no firefighters on its staff or board.

Also worth noting is a regulatory action against the telemarketing firms hired by the foundation to dial the phones and pitch for money, North American Charitable Services.

The Federal Trade Commission has charged North American with falsely telling potential donors it’s associated with police and fire departments.

North American’s lawyer insisted the group always operated ethically. The FTC says other groups represented by North American included the Regular American Veterans, Handicapped Children’s Services of America and Adolescent AIDS Foundation.

The FTC did not file charges against the Foundation for Disabled Firefighters. However, fire departments in the county have told residents on several occasions that they are not affiliated with the group.

People solicited for a donation over the telephone from an organization they haven’t heard of should at a minimum ask to be mailed information on the group and a breakdown of its expenses in raising funds. Other questions to ask are how much was raised altogether and where the money went. Reputable groups have no problem providing the information.

Unfortunately there are people who set up shop to raise as much money as possible over the phone and give as little, if any, to groups they claim to represent. Even charitable impulses have to be tempered with caution.