Report: Little Given Back by 6 Veterans Charities

Military.com ^ | June 7, 2013 | Bryant Jordan

[DJ Taylor]

Six national vet groups are among a list of the top 50 worst charities in the U.S., according to The Tampa Bay Times.

The Tampa Bay Times compiled the rankings for an investigative reporting project published on Thursday. The charities were put on the list because only a small portion of their donations were used toward those in need. Charities provided as little as 2 percent back to the earnings they collected in some cases.

The vast majority of the roughly $1 billion contributed by Americans went to the corporations in the business of making the phone calls and collecting donations.

[DJ Taylor]

For some time now, I've been suspicious of some of those TV ads begging for money for wounded veterans and depicting these veterans as destitute victims abandoned by their government when I know it isn't like that at all.

[Mercat]

I agree. It’s like the suffering puppies and third world children. I find the ads offensive.

[Pollster1]

http://www.charitynavigator.org/

I don’t take their rankings as the final story, but I do check all charities with Charity Navigator before donating. Several scams have names that are only a little different from a real charity.

[econjack]

I always tell a phone solicitor:

Send me an audited financial statement of last year's operations and I consider donating.

They all say they will, but I've never heard from any of them and most never call back.

[Williams]

This is the oldest story in the world, and I can give you some advice from a friend who made calls, never contribute to those very compelling calls you get from supposed police and fireman funds. Boiler room scam artists. They set up a “charity” with one cop, then they contribute the bare legal limit and keep the rest. If it’s to buy police bullet proof vests, they might buy one.

[Vigilanteman]

My basic policy is to say "NO" to any solicitation by phone, regardless of the source and regardless of the worthiness of the cause. I simply tell them that it is the policy of this household. No negotiation. They are welcome to mail me with information on reviewing their financial statements, but most decline to do so.

Some even go so far as to say "mailing is expensive and costs what could be used to help xxxxx cause." To which I reply "It is nowhere near as expensive as hiring people to work the phones."

I've found the VFW and the American Legion to both be reputable veteran's organizations who can tell you who else is good and whom to avoid.

[Bruce Kurtz]

Anybody know how to find out what groups have the lowest overhead, and gives the most to the veterans? Just donated $50 to wounded warriors this past Tues, I have no clue how much actually gets to the wounded warriors.

[Mrs. P]

Me too. If they call me, they get nothing. One exception to that is our local VFW.

[ruesrose]

If you want to make sure where your money goes when donating to help veterans, donate to the Fisher House Foundation
They make it possible for the veterans and active duty military to have their loved ones near by, free of charge, while they are hospitalized.

[smokingfrog]

The veterans charities named in the report are the National Veterans Service Fund of Darien, Conn.; Vietnow National Headquarters of Rockford, Ill.; The Veterans Fund of Treverton, Penn. ; Veterans Assistance Foundation of Tomah, Wis.; Circle of Friends for American Veterans of Falls Church, Va. ; and Our American Veterans of Fort Valley, Ga.

[smokingfrog]

Please reconsider giving money to WWP. There are other alternatives.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2959552/posts

[ruesrose]

When you donate to the
Fisher House Foundation, Inc.
111 Rockville Pike, Suite 420
Rockville, MD 20850-5168
95% of your donation is for their program which provides FREE housing for the families of hospitalized veterans and active duty personnel. Only 3% is for administration costs and 2% for fundraising.

You can also donate your frequent flyer hours to them to provide needed transportation for the families.

[csmusaret]

Here is the story....http://www.tampabay.com/americas-worst-charities/

[headstamp 2]

Fisher House is truly a good one to give to.

[Puppage]

Several scams have names that are only a little different from a real charity.

IMHO, child molesters are the only thing lower than charity scammers.

[SkyDancer]

Wounded Warriors is the worst.

[pgkdan]

The veterans charities named in the report are:

1. the National Veterans Service Fund of Darien, Conn.
2. Vietnow National Headquarters of Rockford, Ill.
3. The Veterans Fund of Treverton, Penn.
4. Veterans Assistance Foundation of Tomah, Wis.
5. Circle of Friends for American Veterans of Falls Church, Va.
6. Our American Veterans of Fort Valley, Ga.

[dread78645]

Anybody know how to find out what groups have the lowest overhead, and gives the most to the veterans? Just donated $50 to wounded warriors this past Tues, I have no clue how much actually gets to the wounded warriors.

Charity Navigator

[NVDave]

Not much.

They’re an up-and-coming scam group, sad to say.

I found this out when they made their anti-gun pronouncements, which I found really odd for a veterans’ organization.

Then I started digging... and I found a professional grifter was the guy who founded WWP. The deeper I dug, the more I became incensed at what they were doing.

[therightliveswithus]

That’s really a shame