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Public Calls for More Clarity in Charity Disaster Appeals Says New Survey from BBB’s Give.org
Arlington, VA (July 17, 2019) – Only 24% of individuals say charity disaster relief appeals are “very clear,” according to new research from BBB’s Give.org. The standards-based, charity-evaluation group today released a special Give.org Donor Trust Report: Disaster Relief Donor Expectations. The report, a survey of 2,100 adults in the United States and 68 national and local disaster relief charities, explores donor expectations related to disaster relief giving. This report also highlights the role news media plays igniting public concern and action, making the medium an important agent in promoting effective and trustworthy support.

“The empathy created in those moments after a disaster can elicit the best in our humanity,” said H. Art Taylor, president and CEO of BBB’s Give.org, “but as we enter the hurricane season, we must ensure that appeals for relief assistance also strengthen trust in the charitable community. Our donor survey shows that people want to know what specific disaster relief services they are supporting. We also see an opportunity for news media to build on their disaster relief influence by being clear about the services provided by featured charities.”

Report highlights include:
- When asked “Thinking about disaster-related appeals you have seen, do you believe that most of the appeals clearly explain what disaster response activities the charity will carry out?” individuals indicated: Very clear 24%, Somewhat clear 41%, Not clear 20%, Not sure 15%.
- The most significant influence on disaster relief givers is news media, with 43.2% of donors, and 56.6% of charities, reporting news media is the strongest influence on disaster giving decisions.
- When compared to older generations, younger donors were more likely to respond to celebrity (i.e., movie, tv star, famous athlete, etc.) fundraisers for disaster relief. The most frequent reason cited for having donated to a celebrity’s disaster relief fundraiser were: being a fan of the celebrity (46.2% of men and 30.3% of women) and trust in the celebrity’s ability to choose (29.0% of men and 25.4% of women). Also, most people (83%) who donated to a celebrity’s disaster relief fundraiser said they would have otherwise donated to other relief efforts.
- Only 14.8% of charities addressing disaster relief said crowdfunding sites help increase the total amount of funds donated to charities.
For a free copy of the report, go to Give.org/DonorTrust.

BBB’s Give.org urges donors to give thoughtfully by taking the time to look into charities before making a donation and to visit Give.org to verify if a charity meets the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.

About BBB Wise Giving Alliance:

BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB’s Give.org) is a standards-based charity evaluator that seeks to verify the trustworthiness of nationally-soliciting charities by completing rigorous evaluations based on 20 holistic standards that address charity governance, results reporting, finances, fundraising, appeal accuracy and other issues. National charity reports are produced by the BBB WGA and local charity reports are produced by local Better Business Bureaus – all reports are available at Give.org.

About BBB:

For more than 100 years, the Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands and charities they can trust. In 2018, people turned to BBB more than 173 million times for BBB Business Profiles on more than 5.4 million businesses and Charity Reports on 11,000 charities, all available for free at bbb.org.

MEDIA CONTACTS: For more information, journalists should contact Bennett Weiner (703-247-9323 or bweiner@give.org)
July 17, 2020
Remembering Veterans Organizations on Veterans Day
Veterans Day motivates many of us to contribute to organizations assisting veterans, active military service members, and/or their families. To help ensure that donors make wise giving decisions about these groups, we encourage readers to review the tips we issued last year that still hold true today: http://www.give.org/news-updates/news/2016/11/wise-giving-wednesday-45000-veterans-organizations/
- Among other things, our previous advisory cautioned contributors not to assume what the organization does based solely on its name. Activities among veterans organizations can vary widely. Look at the appeal or visit the organization’s website for a description of their program service activities.
- Also, be wary of telemarketing appeals that exert excessive pressure to make an on-the-spot gift decision. This could be a red flag that the solicitor does not want you to find out more before you give.
- And of course, we encourage donors to always check with Give.org to verify if a charity meets the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability which address, among other things, charity governance, finances, results reporting, and appeal accuracy.
While there are many well-run veterans and military service organizations that deserve our support now and throughout the year, this November we are also reminded about those that are poorly managed and engage in misleading practices.

VietNow is long-known to the BBB Wise Giving Alliance (the current report can be found here). In recent years, the national headquarters did not disclose any of the information requested by BBB WGA despite repeated written requests, some sent via-certified-mail. On November 6, 2017 the Illinois Attorney General announced a settlement led by Illinois, California, Michigan, and Ohio and joined by 20 other states to dissolve VietNow. The announcement indicated that the organization misled donors as to who was soliciting them and how their donations would actually be used. A similar announcement from the California Attorney General specified that “VietNow falsely told prospective donors that it has significant charitable programs. In reality, of the almost $4 million it raised in the last two years, nearly 90 percent of VietNow’s funds went directly to its for-profit professional fundraiser…Less than $10,000 was spent on charitable programs.” An order was made in Cook County, Illinois Circuit Court against VietNow that removes all 14 board members and bans its 4 controlling officers from any future fundraising, charity management or oversight of any charitable assets. Similar restrictions were made by the other states participating in the settlement. According to the Illinois Attorney General’s announcement, any remaining assets from VietNow will be distributed equally between two other national veterans’ charities, Fisher House Foundation and Operation Homefront.

Back in 2003, VietNow was at the center of a U.S. Supreme Court Case, Madigan v. Telemarketing Associates (U.S. Supreme Court Case No. 01-1806) in which the Illinois attorney general charged a telemarketing firm that was raising money for VietNow with civil fraud. Under its contracts with VietNow over the years, the firm received 85-95% of the funds it raised. Much of the state’s allegations were based on the fact that since potential donors were not told that only an incidental amount of contributions would actually go to the veterans group, the telemarketing firm was misleading potential donors. In order to support the Illinois attorney general’s position on this matter, the BBB Wise Giving Alliance filed a friend of the court brief (amicus brief) noting, among other things, that this charity did not meet a number of our standards and spent only 3% of the amounts raised on its program service activities.

To help donors find trustworthy charities, we offer the following list of 10 nationally-soliciting veterans organizations that are among the largest ones that are currently BBB Accredited Charites (i.e. meet all 20 BBB Charity Standards).
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: Hurricane Season and Disaster Relief
For the Northern Atlantic Ocean area, hurricane season goes from June until the end of November. For now, all eyes are on Tropical Storm Gordon. While the wind speed was just below hurricane force, the storm made landfall Tuesday night on the Mississippi and Alabama border. Flash flood warnings are in effect and some damage is anticipated.

To help those seeking to provide assistance to impacted areas, BBB Wise Giving Alliance encourage donors to review our disaster relief giving tips (here is a link to the Spanish version)

In addition to our tips, we encourage potential contributors to also review our charity reports on Give.org to verify if the subject charity meets the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.

Video of the Week

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide a video of Jaime Berman Matyas, President and CEO, Student Conservation Association (a BBB Accredited Charity) which works to conserve lands and empower young people of all backgrounds to plan, act and lead while they protect and restore America’s natural and cultural resources. The organization’s programs provide young people aged 15-25 with opportunities to serve in crew, intern and corps programs lasting anywhere from two weeks to twelve months in urban and backcountry areas in all 50 U.S. states.

Recent Reports

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: Charity Phone Appeals
Like any other form of fundraising, telephone appeals can help a charity or become a significant failure if not managed well. In general the most successful phone appeals take place when an organization calls previous donors to encourage them to increase their support or contacts individuals with a special connection such as calling alumni of a university to request a gift. In contrast, an organization can risk the potential of high fundraising costs and annoyed call recipients if it engages in conducting a large volume of cold calls – contacting people who have never donated and are not familiar with the organization.

To help donors handle phone appeals, I thought it would be helpful to share some of basic tips:
1. Ask the caller how much of your gift will get to the charity, especially if the caller states they are a professional solicitor.
2. Remember, some charity names may sound similar. Be sure you are not confusing the charity with another group.
3. If you are interested, ask the caller for the charity’s website address or request written information on their programs and finances to be sent to you.
4. Don’t succumb to pressure to make an immediate donation if you want more time to make a more thoughtful decision.
And, of course, check out the charity by visiting Give.org to verify if the charity meets the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.

On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series we are pleased to provide a video that features Stacy Haller, President and CEO, BrightFocus Foundation (a BBB Accredited Charity). BrightFocus is an organization that seeks to advance research and public information in three areas: Alzheimer’s disease, age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma.

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: BBB’s Give.org Responds to Coronavirus Concerns
One of the key factors that makes our charity reporting strong is the fact that the BBB Charity Standards are broad and cover a range of topics. With the news of the spread of coronavirus across the United States on everyone’s mind, we found that one of the topics, board meeting attendance, has been on the mind of several charities.

The Centers for Disease Control have issued advisories about air travel and recommendations to avoid crowds. Given this fact, charities are understandably concerned about their planned board meetings and asking board members to travel and gather in-person. We recently communicated with our national charity contacts, providing the following guidance regarding board member attendance.

BBB Charity Standard 3 calls for a minimum of three board meetings per fiscal year with an average of at least 50% attendance. It further calls for at least two of these meetings to be in-person and the rest can be by phone as long as official minutes are taken. While we encourage actual, physical face-to-face participation as much as possible because we believe it keeps board members most engaged, video meetings do count as in-person meetings for purposes of meeting this standard as long as participants can see each other. We began accepting video conferencing as an alternative in applying this standard several years ago.

Given the growing availability of video conferencing platforms, this has become a much more viable way to help keep board members engaged when they are otherwise unable to travel.

Video of the Week

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide a video featuring Glen Mangold, a board member for Gift of Adoption Fund (a BBB Accredited Charity), which provides grants for qualified parents to assist in their adoption costs.

Recent Reports

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to give.org/charity-inquiry if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: Donating to Address the Fires in Australia
As we hear news reports of the devastating fires in Australia that have destroyed about 18 million acres of land, many are quite moved to provide assistance for displaced families and wildlife, as well as for the brave firefighters that are battling the blazes. To help donors make informed giving decisions, BBB Wise Giving Alliance offers the following advice.

Investigate before you consider a crowdfunding donation. In the wake of a major disaster like the Australian fires, thousands of crowdfunding postings quickly appear, which can include scams or poorly conceived fundraising projects. Plus, not all crowdfunding sites operate alike. Some crowdfunding platforms do a better job of vetting postings and projects than others, and they typically also charge various processing fees that may reduce donation amounts. ● Also, review the crowdfunding site’s description of its terms and procedures. When crowdfunding platforms do employ safeguards against potential frauds, they generally announce that fact loudly to help encourage giving. Check to see who is behind the crowdfunding appeal and consider whether that person or group might legitimately represent the named charitable cause. Also, see if the posting is claiming to be helping a specific individual/family/group or whether it claims to be passing on funds to a designated charity or charities. If a charity is named, consider making a direct donation to that organization (after checking them out as explained below) rather than relying on a third party to carry out your giving intentions.

How funds will be used. Whether you donate to a crowdfunding request or directly to a charitable organization, vague descriptions of how the collected funds will be used should be a yellow caution light. For example, will the funds be used for firefighting activities, temporary housing for displaced families, food, medical expenses, reconstruction, or other relief activities? Could donations be used for long-term recovery programs, or not? Thoughtful requests for funding will identify genuine disaster needs and response abilities, and communicate clearly about intended donation uses and plans for funding distributions.

Don’t assume pictures are used with permission. Unfortunately, some crowdfunding postings may be using pictures of victims without the permission of their families. As a result, you can’t assume the poster has an official connection. Again, each site has different rules on what they allow. As a donor, it is up to you to approach with caution, especially after a disaster or tragedy.

Your contribution may not be deductible as a charitable gift. If a crowdfunding posting or a charitable appeal is claiming to be helping a specific named individual or family, donors in the U.S. generally cannot take a federal income tax deduction, even if the individual or family is in need. See IRS Publication 526, page 6, for more information on this subject. On the other hand, if you are giving to a charitable organization that is helping a group of needy individuals and you are not restricting your gift to a specific person, then you can generally take a deduction. Keep in mind, however, if the charity is not located in the U.S., in most cases a gift would not be deductible even though a charity is receiving the contribution.

Australian-based charities. If you are considering donating to an Australian-based charity, check out the registry of the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission. While the registration with this government agency does not mean the government is recommending or endorsing the charity, it does signify that the group has filed the appropriate paperwork with this agency. The following charities located in Australia are raising funds to provide various types of assistance to people or wildlife. While the following five entities were not evaluated by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance, the American affiliates of these charities are BBB accredited (i.e., meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.)

Australian Red Cross

Australian Salvation Army

Nature Conservancy Australia

St Vincent de Paul Society in Australia

World Wildlife Fund Australia

United States-based charities. There are a number of U.S. based charities that are accepting funding to address the Australian fires. See the respective website links to find out more. The following list includes groups that are BBB Accredited (i.e., meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.)

American Red Cross (a BBB Accredited Charity)

Direct Relief (a BBB Accredited Charity)

Global Giving (a BBB Accredited Charity)

International Fund for Animal Welfare (a BBB Accredited Charity)

Save the Children (a BBB Accredited Charity)

Canadian-based charities: If you are considering donating to a Canadian-based charity, there is a list of Registered Charities provided by the Government of Canada, which can be found here. While the registration with this government agency does not mean the government is recommending or endorsing the charity, it does signify that the group has filed the appropriate paperwork with this agency.

Salvation Army Canada (a BBB Accredited Charity)

Nature Conservancy Canada (a BBB Accredited Charity)

Helping Australian Firefighter Organizations. Some donors also may have an interest in contributing to help the firefighters themselves. There are local Australian fire service entities known as “brigades” that do accept donations to carry out their various services. If you wish to support such entities, visit an official Australian government link such as the following: NSW Rural Fire Service. Be cautious about appeals from those claiming to raise funds for Australian firefighters without any official connection to them.

Our strongest recommendation is to contribute to experienced organizations that meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability, particularly in the wake of disasters. Visit Give.org to access reports on these and other charities. Experienced relief organizations are more likely to provide quick and effective assistance. Newly established entities may be well intentioned but may not have the skills and infrastructure to provide immediate help.

Video of the Week

As part of our Building Trust Video series, we are pleased to provide a video interview of David Barringer, CEO, National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul (a BBB Accredited Charity) which seeks to help millions of people each year through home visits, housing assistance, disaster relief, job training, food pantries, clothing, care for the elderly, and other charitable activities.

Recent Reports

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to www.give.org/charity-inquiry if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President and CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: Helping Victims of the Earthquake and Tsunami in Indonesia
Sadly, another disaster has made the headlines. News reports indicate that over 1,300 people have lost their lives due to the double disasters of the devastating 7.5 earthquake and tsunami that struck Indonesia. And yesterday, the eruption of a nearby volcano, Mount Soputan, adds a third dangerous element to the circumstances. Rescue crews search for survivors in the rubble while others seek medical treatment, shelter, food and/or supplies. The devastation is heart wrenching to see and prompts many of us to help those in need by contributing to disaster relief organizations offering assistance.

We certainly encourage generosity to help the victims in Indonesia but also caution donors to avoid questionable appeals by keeping the following tips in mind:
- Does the disaster relief charity meet BBB Charity Standards? You can help verify a charity’s trustworthiness by viewing an evaluative report completed by BBB Wise Giving Alliance. See the list provided below of disaster relief charities that that are soliciting for relief assistance to help Indonesia and that also meet the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.
- Is the charity experienced in providing disaster relief? Experienced disaster relief charities are the best bet to help deliver aid quickly and effectively. New entrants may have difficulty in following through even if they have good intentions.
- Does the appeal make exaggerated financial claims such as “100% will be spent on relief?” Charities have fundraising and administrative expenses. Any charity claiming otherwise is potentially misleading the donating public. Even a credit card donation will have a processing fee.
- Can the charity get to the impacted area? Not all disaster relief organization will be positioned to provide relief quickly. See if the charity already has a presence in Indonesia.
- Should you send clothing and food? Local drives to collect clothing and food to send overseas are not practical. Disaster relief organizations are better equipped to obtain what is needed, distribute it and avoid duplication of effort.
For more tips, review Give.org’s Disaster Relief Donation Tips page.

The following is a list of BBB Accredited Charities (i.e., organizations that meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability) raising funds for disaster relief in Indonesia. This list will be updated as additional relief efforts come to BBB WGA’s attention.

Adventist Development and Relief Agency International

AmeriCares

CARE USA

Catholic Relief Services

Church World Service

Direct Relief

GlobalGiving

Global Impact

Heart to Heart International

Helping Hand for Relief and Development

Islamic Relief USA

Lutheran World Relief

Medical Teams International

Oxfam America

Project HOPE

Save the Children

UNICEF USA

United Methodist Committee on Relief

World Hope International

World Vision

Video of the Week

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide a video of Stephen Wells, Chief Executive Officer, Animal Legal Defense Fund (a BBB Accredited Charity) which seeks to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system. Through its litigation program, the organization files lawsuits to stop the abuse of companion animals, and animals abused in industries including factory farming and the entertainment business. ALDF also works with law enforcement and prosecutors to seek maximum penalties for animal abusers.

Finally, remember to let us know by going to www.give.org/charity-inquiry/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday – Building Trust Part 14 – Charity Budgeting
“A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.” This priceless quote from the late Yogi Berra, the witty, retired baseball professional who passed away on September 22, 2015, reminds us of the financial necessity of keeping track of our budgets. For charities, the last quarter of the fiscal year is the time that most organizations finalize their expenditure plans for the coming year.

A charity’s budget is more than just a table of expected expenditures; it represents a cornerstone of good stewardship. While a charity’s audited financial statements and IRS Form 990 usually get the lion’s share of public attention, these items are historical and tell us where the organization has been, not where it is going. In contrast, a budget shows how the charity intends to spend funds in the current or coming year and will reflect any changes in program priorities and/or new activities.

One of the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability (Standard 14) specifically calls for charities to have a board-approved budget for the current fiscal that includes certain information. Specifcally, this standard calls for the budget to identify the projected total amounts to be spent on program activities, fund raising and administration. Such an expense breakdown will help the board gain a better understanding of how the charity’s resources will be used. While a table of budgeted expenses in natural categories such as salaries, postage, travel, etc. provides essential detail, the recommended allocation totals helps complete the financial picture.

Also, budgets are not a once a year charity activity. Well-managed governing boards will periodically review the budget in relation to actual revenues and expenses and adjust activity, as needed, based on available resources and/or changes in activity plans.

On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide the following video that features Gail McGovern, President & CEO of the American Red Cross. With total revenues of about $3 billion, more than 450 chapters in all 50 states, over 25,000 paid staff members, 400,000 volunteers and responding to nearly 70,000 disasters large and small each year, the American Red Cross is one of the largest American charities in existence and one of the most recognized charity brands.

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: BBB Charity Standards & The Charity Impact Issue
As charity impact continues to be a subject of significant interest, I thought it would be helpful to clarify our position on this. First, the subject of charity impact (also called results reporting) has been discussed for decades. Fifteen years ago we commissioned a survey of over 2,000 adult Americans and found significant public interest in wanting to know about a charity’s success in achieving its purpose or mission. A more recent survey from The Chronicle of Philanthropy shows this interest continues today. When we last revised our BBB Charity Standards with the help of the charity community, we knew this issue needed to be addressed.

Standards 6 and 7 in the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability call for charities to adopt a governing board policy to conduct a performance or effectiveness assessment at least every two years and to produce a written report on this assessment for the board that explains the charity’s success or impact in fulfilling its mission, goals and objectives. While we applaud charities that make such reports public, our board emphasis in these standards reflects our continuing concern that a public distribution can sometimes be more promotional in tone.

These standards do not require charities to conduct expensive long-term or longitudinal studies, but can be achieved by much more modest means. As an example see the Charting Impact 5-question results-reporting format recommended in the 2011 collaborative project that BBB WGA had with Independent Sector and GuideStar.

In the past decade, as we have applied Standards 6 and 7, we have found that most soliciting charities have been able to meet these recommendations. We think we have played a part in helping charities improve their practices but we also recognize that many others have brought thoughtful attention to this subject as well. I will be writing more on this topic in the future and welcome you to contact me with your perspective, however, if you want to read more on this subject, here are two of our past blogs on this issue:
- http://give.org/news-updates/news/2015/02/can-charity-watchdogs-assess-a-charitys-effectiveness-or-impact/
- http://give.org/news-updates/news/2015/02/wise-giving-wednesday-building-trust-part-5/
On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series we are pleased to provide a video that features Michelle DeLaune, Chief Operating Officer of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (a BBB Accredited Charity). This organization works closely with families of missing children to help rescue and recover them and also seeks to help prevent child sexual exploitation.

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020
Wise Giving Wednesday: A Breach of Donor Trust
Yesterday I had the honor of representing the BBB Wise Giving Alliance at a press conference about charity fraud hosted by the Federal Trade Commission and state charity regulators. The unprecedented complaint was brought by the FTC and all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia against four cancer charities engaged in deceptive practices. The fact that three of the charities mentioned in the complaint (Cancer Fund of America, Cancer Support Services and Children’s Cancer Fund of America) chose not to disclose detailed information to BBB WGA after repeated written requests says much about their trustworthiness. Donors coming to our site would have seen a big red exclamation mark giving warning about the lack of transparency of these charities. The fourth charity mentioned in the complaint (Breast Cancer Society) did provide information and was found to not meet several of the BBB Charity Standards, and did not respond to additional questions about their fundraising activities and finances. I characterized the 147 page complaint as chock-full of allegations of deception. One deception involved inflating the value of their in-kind donations (which goes against Generally Accepted Accounting Principles). This enabled the charities to deceive donors into believing more money was going to programs than actually was. The second deception, involving Cancer Support Services, (an entity so closely related to Cancer Fund of America that we included both organizations in the same BBB WGA report), gave donors a false impression of low fundraising at Cancer Fund of America. Cancer Support Services performed fundraising activities on behalf of Cancer Fund of America, which allowed Cancer Fund of America to report lower-than-actual fundraising expenses. The third deception gave donors false impressions of the nature of the charities’ program activities. Appeals referenced services such as hospice care and the shipment of pain medication, oxygen and other life-saving items to cancer patients. The complaint alleges that none of these services were being provided. The final deception dealt with significant failures of governance and management. Each entity’s board included family and compensated members who provided little to no oversight. As a result the public’s trust was violated when the boards failed to provide basic controls such as CEO performance reviews, budget approval, and general financial oversight. What’s saddest of all is that this case can have a chilling effect on giving. I hope it won’t. As donors, we should not be dissuaded but we should investigate before we do. Let this sad case be a constant reminder. We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one. H. Art Taylor, President & CEO BBB Wise Giving Alliance
July 17, 2020