Wise Giving Wednesday: New Report on Wounded Warrior Project

Last year, we posted a blog about Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) explaining that, in the face of various public allegations and the departure of senior WWP executives, we had to reopen our evaluation on this organization.  Today, we are pleased to post our revised report  on the charity. The report concludes that WWP meets all 20 of the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability . In completing this new evaluation, BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB WGA) considered, among other things, the manner in which WWP manages certain aspects of its programs, finances, governance and fundraising.  We received detailed information from WWP about the matters raised in media reports, obtained answers to numerous questions, and reviewed extensive materials and exhibits. On two occasions, our team held in-person meetings with WWP staff members and also had discussions with its Board Chair and a representative of the firm that conducted an independent third party review of WWP operations. Let’s be clear, last year was one that WWP would like to erase.  In the midst of crisis, it’s easy to shut down communications with third parties and hope things blow over.  Over the years, we have encountered charities in the spotlight that became less transparent and made it difficult to verify if they met standards.  In contrast, WWP cooperated fully by providing details and clarifications that led to the conclusions shown in the report we issued, which offers a lesson.  If a charity is open, willing to share more information about its circumstances, and make any needed adjustments, what was a challenging situation can end in a positive result. The new leadership at WWP will face challenges regaining the public trust but being open and transparent is a great start toward that end.

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On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide a video featuring Linda Boucard, Director of Public Relations, Fonkoze USA (a BBB Accredited Charity) which serves as a microfinance and poverty alleviation organization in Haiti and has over 65,000 loan recipients and provides other financial services.

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. Finally, remember to let us know by going to http://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