Posted on 09/18/2010 2:28:13 PM PDT by JoeProBono
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Larry Jones, a traveling preacher from Oklahoma, gave 20 cents to a hungry child on the streets in Haiti in 1979 and felt more could be done to help starving children.
Over the next 30 years, Jones and his family embraced that ideal. They created Feed the Children, one of the world's largest charities, and it became known for Jones' heart-wrenching televised pleas for donations as a hungry child with sad eyes sat by his side.
But now Jones has been fired from his own charity and is in a legal fight to get his job back from the $1 billion organization that's striving to push forward amid lawsuits, a state attorney general's investigation and watchdog groups warning people not to give it money. All of this comes as competition among nonprofits is fierce for dwindling donations in a tough economy.
Jones said he's heartbroken to see the charity he built moving along without him, especially when so many people are in need of Feed the Children's assistance.
"America is in a mess right now. It's a tough time for just about everybody. This is a time we should really be reaching out to people," he said.
The charity fired Jones in November 2009 after learning he secretly had "bugging" devices installed in executives' offices. Its board claims he also accepted tens of thousands of dollars in kickbacks from charity vendors, operated the organization with little or no oversight and misspent charity funds, including giving him and his wife secret raises.
Jones, who earned about $235,000 as president, has acknowledged placing listening devices in agency offices. But he contends he didn't do anything wrong and that he was fired out of "personal malice and spite" by a board of directors eager to expand their power......
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
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“How much went to help children”
20 cents
Charities are encouraged to post those percentages on their websites.
Kind of funny seeing boxes of supplies behind him. Those should be shipped out somewhere, right?
It is not reasonable for the director of a charity to get $235,000 a year.
I would not donate to any charity that paid those sort of salaries.
If they are not independently wealthy people, I don’t mind if they are paid a reasonable wage, somewhere near the average income for their state, perhaps 10-20% more if they have dependents or must travel a lot.
Otherwise they should donate their time.
He probably did more good with the original 20 cents. Charities start with lofty goals but then the employees become top heavy and entrenched and need bigger salaries and if they actually solve the problem then they are out of a job.
My charity goes to people in need, people I know personally who are in need and if they make no progress in their own well-being, my charity stops.
Looks like there's some serious money involved in this dispute.
For far less than $235,000 you can make this child happy and well fed.
“Larry Jones, a traveling preacher from Oklahoma, gave 20 cents to a hungry child on the streets in Haiti in 1979...”
And Haiti is a worse basket case than it was in 1979 even factoring out the recent earthquake they had. It’s going to take more than money to repair that country and every other nation with Africans or those of African descent.
The whole cause strikes me as curious. Starving kids? Never seen one around here.
The more pathos in the commercial, the less I am likely to respond. I don’t like such blatant manipulation and emotional blackmail. If they can’t make their case with simple straightforward facts I have to assume there are other agendas in play.
I thought that with Jim Bakker and I thought that with this guy.
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