MIAMI, April 30 /PRNewswire/ -- The Disabled Veteran's Life Memorial Foundation is on the hot seat due to recent allegations lodged in court against Lois Pope, co-founder and chairman of the Disabled Veteran's Life Memorial Foundation. As recently reported in various regional and national newspapers, including the Palm Beach Post and the New York Post, it is becoming apparent that the charitable donations raised by this organization are not being utilized for its goals of creating a memorial honoring disabled veterans.
The renderings for a monument to the more than 3 million disabled American veterans are complete.
The 2-acre parcel in the nation's capital where the memorial is to be erected, stands ready. Prominent names stand behind the project, including Palm Beach philanthropist Lois Pope, high profile attorney Bob Montgomery and actor Gary Sinise, who portrayed a double amputee Vietnam veteran in the film Forrest Gump. Unfortunately, the DVLMF the non-profit organization raising the $65 million to build the monument is swamped with over $2 million in debt.
Ferrell Communications LLC, a law, investigation and security firm, summarized its observations and opinions regarding the performance of the DVLMF, a tax-exempt organization. The results were alarming, with only approximately 6% of the money raised by the Foundation actually being spent on the memorial design and construction. When Lois Pope received this report, her son Paul Pope, immediately advised her to disassociate herself from the Foundation.
He warned her that continuing her involvement with the Foundation could destroy the legacy she so feverishly worked to build. However, she asked him to destroy the report. Paul warned his mother that the act of willfully ignoring bad news, which should impel a board member into action, may be interpreted as a serious dereliction of duty and misconduct.
Moreover, Paul wrote his mother, "Do you want to be their Ken Lay?" Warning his mother that this could be a scandal the likes of the infamous Enron back in 2001.
As Paul warned, watchdog groups have now focused on the finances of the Foundation.
Sandra Miniutti, spokeswoman for Charity Navigator, a watchdog group stated, "Their finances are out of whack, and it appears they are not adhering to their mission." Charity Navigator gave the Foundation the lowest ranking: zero out of four stars.
According to watchdog standards, nonprofit organizations should spend no more than 10 cents on the dollar on fund-raising, with 75 cents going to program costs and the rest toward administration.
According to its most recent tax return, the foundation is spending 88 cents on the dollar to raise money.
Stephen Adler, chief executive of Charity Brands Marketing, a New York City company that matches nonprofits with corporate sponsors stated, "The numbers tell the story, and that's not an acceptable number for a nonprofit."
Lois Pope, widow of the National Enquirer founder, has helped keep the Foundation afloat by donating money out of her personal foundation.
According to her tax return, Lois pumped $3.5 million into the charity since 2001, with a substantial donation in 2002, when revenues reached $4.7 million.
The Foundation's financials present two areas of tax related concern: (1) loss of public Foundation status because the contributions of the Pope family are too large in relation to contributions from the general public and governmental institutions; and (2) loss of tax exempt status because too much of the money is being expended for fundraising and other expenses unrelated to the direct charitable purpose of the Foundation.
The Foundation is also relying on legislation that US Representative Dennis Moore, Democrat from Kansas, introduced to direct the US Treasury to mint 350,000 commemorative silver dollars with a $10 surcharge, raising $3.5 million to build the memorial.
Even if the bill wins approval, the coin would not be issued until 2010, the target date for the memorial completion.
President Clinton signed a bill into law creating the memorial in 2000, but the authorization expires in October. A bill to extend the memorial's charter until 2015 is pending in committee.
The track record for the foundation is terrible and doesn't seem to get any better over the years. In 2005, the Foundation raised $5.6 million, but spent $4.
9 million on fund-raising. Paul Pope contends in court documents that the foundation is a mismanaged "sham and travesty." He maintains that most of the $14.
4 million raised, since its inception in 1998, has been spent on lavish parties, salaries and fund-raising trinkets.
Tax returns for the Foundation over an eight year period show revenues of $14.4 million and expenses of nearly $14.
7 million.
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