Charity Scams

         I just got a call from the “United Police Officers’ Association”. Actually, it was a telephone solicitor. Sounds impressive, though, huh? Since this was an auto-dial message, I simply hung up, rather than do what I will sometimes do if I have the time and there’s a real person on the other end. I have two strategies I really like. The first is to ask the caller to, “Please, wait a moment, since I’m at my computer, while I look up your charity on the Charity Navigator website." This last word is usually followed by the imaginary sound of crickets, since the line is now dead.

        The second and one I take really personally is to interrupt the person and explain that I am a retired public-school teacher and then ask them, “When was the last time a retired teacher called you asking for contributions?” Cue the crickets.

        In truth, no one in any public service job area should be in need of charity for medical expenses, on or off the job, since essentially all such departments provide Health insurance and Workman’s comp. insurance (required by law.)   If such a situation exists, it is a pathetic reflection on any organization involved. State for state, non-degreed police and firefighters almost universally retire earlier and with far better benefits that public-school teachers with master’s degrees. How dare they call asking for handouts?

        Of course, what is really going on with these and, disappointingly, a lot of other Law Enforcement and/or military related faux charities is that they are offered something for nothing. Companies who specialize in phone solicitation for hire get to use the official sounding name when calling and remit in many cases less than 15% of donated funds to the organization named. Of course, the organization’s share is simply the use of their name. It’s free money, except for those duped into contributing. Charity Navigator, Charity Watchdog  and other similar organizations regularly evaluate, and rate charities based on a well-defined set of fiscal guidelines. I heartily recommend one visit one such site before contributing. You’ll find that there are many legitimate service organizations (like St Jude’s) for example doing good work with contributed funds, but you might be surprised at what some others do. 

        

            To get you started toward a more critical approach to giving here’s a list to start with:

                           The 50 Worst Charities in America- How to Keep from Being Scammed.

       In the wake of tragedies large and small, they pop up like mushrooms after a rain. With tales of woe and heartbreaking images of children or helpless animals, they beg for assistance. They are the tragi-charities. Most are “one hit wonders” seeking to cash in on the tragedy of the day from floods and fires to missing children and more.

        The “pop-up charity” business is usually local, occasionally regional and only rarely national. Mostly they are the products of individual scammers who smell an opportunity to cash in using the name of a victim who may or may not even be real. They count on local press coverage and a quick website.  These ‘charities’ usually rake in a few thousand dollars and disappear.

The Professionals

Then there are the professional long-term operations, like the phone scammer I mentioned above.  They utilize direct mail or telemarketers to solicit millions of dollars in donations from unsuspecting individuals and businesses. Are you concerned you’ve already been scammed or just want to make sure you won’t be in the future? Here are some of the worst offenders:

1. Kids Wish Network (note – all the right words, Network, Kids, Wish). Unlike the three real children’s charities their name parodies (all legitimately good causes) this is probably the worst so called charity in America.

2. Cancer Fund of America (Cancer is a scary word and many phony or bad charities prey on that fact. Of these 50 bad examples 20% are “cancer” related, in name at least)

3. Children’s Wish Foundation International (another “children’s/wish scam)

4. American Breast Cancer Foundation

5. Firefighters Charitable Foundation (Thirteen of the worst 50 are LEO/First responder themed.  None of them remit more than 20% [most remit less] of collected revenues to any actual cause other than the company which makes the calls.)

6. Breast Cancer Relief Foundation

7. International Union of Police Associations, AFL-CIO

8. National Veterans Service Fund (Six of the "dirty 50" are veterans related. Exactly how, in most cases is a mystery)

9. American Association of State Troopers

10. Children’s Cancer Fund of America

11. Children’s Cancer Recovery Foundation

12. Youth Development Fund (Doesn’t this sound great? Now dissolved, but Charity Watch, like Charity Navigator a non-profit charity analyst, is aware of this charity soliciting donors using the following names: A Child's Dream, Children's Dream Network

13. Committee for Missing Children

14. Association for Firefighters and Paramedics

15. Project Cure (Bradenton, FL) No one is sure what the "cure" in question is and this scam funds zero research or victim assistance for any disease, but Project Cure is legendary for spending so much of what little comes in (various family members are on the payroll) that they have even defaulted in paying solicitors several times!

16. National Caregiving Foundation

17. Operation Lookout National Center for Missing Youth

18. United States Deputy Sheriffs’ Association

19. Viet Now National Headquarters

20. Police Protective Fund

21. National Cancer Coalition

22. Woman to Woman Breast Cancer Foundation

23. American Foundation for Disabled Children

24. The Veterans Fund

25. Heart Support of America

26. Veterans Assistance Foundation

27. Children’s Charity Fund

28. Wishing Well Foundation USA

29. Defeat Diabetes Foundation

30. Disabled Police Officers of America Inc.

31. National Police Defense Foundation

32. American Association of the Deaf & Blind

33. Reserve Police Officers Association

34. Optimal Medical Foundation

35. Disabled Police and Sheriffs Foundation

36. Disabled Police Officers Counseling Center

37. Children’s Leukemia Research Association

38. United Breast Cancer Foundation

39. Shiloh International Ministries

40. Circle of Friends for American Veterans

41. Find the Children

42. Survivors and Victims Empowered

43. Firefighters Assistance Fund

44. Caring for Our Children Foundation

45. National Narcotic Officers Associations Coalition

46. American Foundation for Children With AIDS

47. Our American Veterans

48. Roger Wyburn- Mason & Jack M Blount Foundation for Eradication of Rheumatoid Disease

49. Firefighters Burn Fund

50. Hope Cancer Fund

         This list was put together by the Tampa Bay Times and The Center for Investigative Reporting based on federal tax filings for the last 10 years and information collected by several of the previously mentioned charity watchdog groups.  Charities are broken up into five main categories: children, cancer, police/law enforcement, veterans, fire and other. These fifty charities account for more than $1.35 Billion in donations. Of that, $970 million went not to victims, but to the people who collected the money. The analysis below breaks down the sordid story further.

        The percentages spent by these “charities” on direct aid to victims range from 0% to a high of only 11.10%. Most of the organizations spent between 0.10% and 8.6% of what they collected in direct cash aid. This is a far cry from what well-meaning contributors intended for their contributions.

        The worst of the worst paid more than 90% of what they collected to solicitors. Thirty-three of the fifty paid between 70% and 89% to solicitors. Overhead costs consumed large chunks of what was remaining. Only the very small amount left may get to the people who actually need it!

        Sooo, the next time, try my “Please hold while I look you up,” or just lay the phone down and go on about your day.