Red Cross cash ‘wasted’ on stars

THE American Red Cross has come under fire over payments to publicists who recruited stars to add lustre to its image, even as funds ran short for victims of Hurricane Katrina. The controversy could not have come at a worse time for the charity: this Tuesday, it unveils a “celebrity cabinet” of personalities whose glamour will be exploited to attract money, volunteers and donations of blood.

Its critics are unhappy at what they call an inappropriate use of funds. “They’re hoping people will send them money on the basis of celebrity, as opposed to good works and effectiveness,” said Daniel Borochoff, president of the American Institute of Philanthropy, which monitors charities’ finances.

The Red Cross was reported last week to have paid consultants more than $500,000 (£285,000) in three years to recruit stars, pitch its name in Hollywood and promote its chief executive as the face of the charity.

A New York publicist receives $5,000 a month to lure celebrities and polish the charity’s image in Hollywood, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.

A company in California has been paid $114,000 to get the Red Cross included in story lines for film and television, and a Texas firm of image specialists won a contract for $127,000 to boost the profile of Marsha J Evans, the chief executive, a year before she left with a $780,000 severance package.

The Red Cross defends its spending, insisting monthly payments to the publicist Paul Freundlich have been cost-effective. “His efforts have made a huge impact on the American public in terms of increasing financial donations, volunteers and blood donations,” said Julie Thurmond Whitmer, head of the charity’s Washington office.

The row follows a censure by Congress for diverting contributions for the September 11 emergency to other uses and criticism last week from the Senate finance committee, which is investigating the charity’s slow response to Katrina.

Some of the media sniping seems disingenuous, however. How many news organisations would really have sent reporters to cover the Red Cross’s campaign to vaccinate 13m children in Kenya? They did when Jane Seymour, the actress, went along.

I think I'm going to follow your and Emmet Fitzhum's advice and donate to a Christian organization.

Of course when I gave to the Red Cross, that's what I thought I was doing.

Each person who gives to charity should exercise caution in choosing the recipient of his/her generosity. With the act of charity one should act responsibily as well by seeking full information about the choice of charitable organization to which we give. Particular attention should be paid to the percentage of the donations utilized for the purpose for which they were received ... i.e. percent used for overhead versus percent actually used for "charity" versus percent "retained" [to be misused in the future when no one is watching].
Claiming to be a Christian [or Jewish, or whatever] organization should be far down the list of criteria for choosing the recipient of one's charitable contributions. Many totally sham organizations will garb themselves in the raiment of something good ... and claim to be Christian [or Jewish or whatever] ... put a cross or a little fish symbol or a star of David, etc. on all their stuff ... Be aware that sometimes that is just part of the deceit ... it is just a marketing ploy.
Giving generously is no longer enough. Sadly, one must now make the effort to give responsibly ... to insure that the gift is used for the purpose for which it was given ... and not just to enrich an organization and/or its officers and/or be used for political purposes instead of charity.
Another example of egregious "charitable" misdeeds is the Humane Society of the U.S. [HSUS] ... one would think the donations they receive would be used to help animals. But, HSUS is a radical political group that raised millions of dollars from the unsuspecting during Hurricane Katrina. They do not operate a single animal shelter ... they use their funds for political purposes, lobbying, etc. They are a rabid "animal rights" group that seek to ban drinking of milk, etc. They are very much akin to PETA, just not quite as well recognized yet. They have been reported to use known terrorists to accomplish their goals.
Anyone with a computer can do a search for "charity watch" and turn up several watchdog groups, for example:
Charity Navigator Rating - Human Rights Watch
Charity Navigator, America's largest independent charity evaluator, provides free financial evaluations of America's charities.
www.charitynavigator.org
American Institute of Philanthropy - Charity Watchdog Helping ...
A nonprofit charity watchdog organization that helps donors make informed giving decisions.
www.charitywatch.org
Welcome to Give.org
BBB Wise Giving Alliance. The Alliance reports on nationally soliciting charitable organizations that are the subject of donor inquiries. ... Charity Reports. Charity Seal ... of the subjec...
www.give.org

There are many worthwhile groups doing wonderful things for people in need. I will again sing the praises of the Southern Baptists for the work they do. They were so well organized that they were "on the ground" immediately, were well prepared, knew what needed to be done ... and got right down to work ... helping people when they needed it most. I cannot sing their praises too highly. They are worthy of our support. There are other groups, no doubt who are just as worthy. I simply became aware of the Southern Baptists and was amazed by how quickly and well they responded. There was one heartwarming story [my paraphrase of the report I read] about a minister who was so overwhelmed by the total destruction surrounding him on the Gulf Coast ... who prayed Lord, we need help and we need to know what to do ... and the next moment he heard a knock at the door ... and the Southern Baptists had arrived.

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