United Way – agency corruption
This writer is a big supporter of the concept of United Way – with skepticism for the actual practice. The concept is simple – there are many social service agencies in all communities that compete for the limited local dollars available. The idea of the United Way was to eliminate all of the individual fund raising efforts and to ‘unite’ in one effort. The United Way Board distributes the money according need and worthiness. That is just smart. From each according to his ability – to each according to his need.
We have been a long time United Way supporter , always donating at least a ‘fair share,’ and usually more. We were the Chairman of the United Way Campaign for my company in 1986 – we raised over $100,000! for the local effort. We were and continue to be proud to support the United Way.
But we have also learned of the pitfalls. And there are gross and egregious mismanagement of funds by agencies that receive donations from the well intentioned United Way. We have been community activists for many years, learning in the back room negotiations of well intentioned- and some not so well intentioned – community leaders. We will give two egregious examples here:
The local YMCA receives about $200,000 from the local United Way. They do all of the wonderful things YMCA’s are supposed to do – basketball, swimming, before and after school programs – many good things. This local YMCA has a massage program. For many years they employed two male masseurs, and for $100 added to your regular membership a man could get one massage a week. That is less than two dollars a massage. The YMCA Board was studying the budget and found that they were losing $28,000 per year on the massage program – some of us protested. Others dismissed the protest, saying that not all Y programs would make money. And, they added, the rich white men who got the massages were big contributors to the YMCA – the implication was that they had paid their way. We continued to protest. We suggested that we were using United Way money to subsidize massages for “rich fat white men.” We were apparently not very politically correct because some of those folks got real mad at us. The protesters won the argument – the massage rates were raised to a ‘break even point.’ The United Way no longer subsidized the fat rich white men – sorry – we cannot resist the imagery.
The second example continues to this day. The local community mental health center receives about $300,000 per year from the United Way. It is a large agency and performs a necessary service for the community. Here is the problem. They report their financial situation to the United Way – along with salaries for their Executives. But they do not report as compensation the huge bonuses that are granted to the executives every year. Again, the United Way is subsidizing rich white men!
What to do, what to do?
The local United Way has a variety of committees to investigate agencies and they look for the right stuff. They just do not take their investigations far enough. If these agencies want free money then there should be more accountability. Another problem in small communities – the people who sit on the United Way Board play golf on Wednesday afternoons with the Board Members and Executives of the agencies that they support. Some sit on the United Way Board and Agency Boards. The appearance of impropriety cannot be denied.
Finding the methods that rich white men have discovered to skim money from social service agencies is tricky business – but the United Way had better get with it. Many people, like this writer, know these things happen. We generally do not say anything because of the greater good – the harm a scandal would cause is generally seen as greater than the good that would come of it.
The world is changing – today we have some well-to-do Black folks sitting at the Board tables, learning to enjoy the fruit that has always been there for rich white men to pick. People learn – you scratch my back – I’ll scratch yours. Mountain Gorillas have know this for thousands of years.
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Comment by Pablo Ramirez III on 7 August 2010:
Hi,
You guys are out of your minds. Just because someone is white does not make them bad. You are so twisted that you can’t see the error in you own logic. You guys are radical twisted poor souls, you can’t have an intellectual debate with someone because you will lose so you resort to calling those who oppose you as racist. You are truly sad individuals, I wrote this as a result of reading your United Way-(agency corruption) article. I don’t even know why I wasted my time.
Comment by Ohg Rea Tone on 8 August 2010:
Someone is calling names again. It seems that Pablo Ramirez III cannot address the issue of corruption in United Way Agencies.
Comment by olstile on 2 November 2010:
I’d give my dog my entire paycheck before I’d give United Way one dime of my money. It is a corrupt organization staffed with welfare queens living high off the hog with embezzled donations.
Comment by Jart Britches on 5 December 2010:
Why is it that black people continue to scream “racism” whenever they perceive a problem. Not all the problems on this earth are because of racism. And the blacks that yell “racist”, are more racist than the people they accuse. I pity these people as they have learned that they yelling racist gets them what they want. A very sad mental state to be in. It’s sad to see that the biggest racists are black people like the one who calls everyone a racist except himself. Grow up dumbasses!
Comment by Ohg Rea Tone on 5 December 2010:
Jart Britches: What in the world are you talking about? Do you think a black person wrote this post?
Comment by Joe on 13 August 2011:
I agree, they don’t care when you call and report fraud. The YWCA is another mega family killer machine. They give money and free lawyers to crazy lying women so they can promote their billion dollor industry of ripping off men from their kids. Shame on any that gives to any organizations or credits any that states they are a five rated non-profit organization. Bunch of lies from people taking and making money.
Comment by JPo on 20 September 2011:
“From each according to his ability – to each according to his need” is a quote from Karl Marx. Hardly something I want to have associated with a “charity.” It essentially sums up communist idealism.
Comment by Rich on 4 March 2012:
Let me tell you I come from one of the very most successful areas of the country, a middle class background, I am fully aware of my psychological makeup, which I am extremely fortunate to come from a background creating success. I’m use to the healthiest context, creating success, and I’m use to the highest level of honesty and integrity.. I relocated and took the offer of the helping hand of the united way WHICH led me right into.. well I cooperated with medical abuse, falsification of medical records, and a prosecutor with absolute immunity using mental illness which.. to build a legal case.. I have NO HISTORY and diagnosed no mental illness exists.. $200,000 wiped up, teetering on the verge of help to homelessness.. SOME HELPING HAND.. I would NEVER believe.. went from entrusted servants of congress to nothin more than funding the 2 party CRIMINAL RING every week or two.. a HUGE special interest disease healthcare economy AND the MOST POWERFUL special interests and out of control CORRUPTION.. that’s a helping hand of the united way and it happens MUCH MORE often than not.. I’ll most likely be one of the lucky ones to very narrowly miss all that help of nothing more than.. and IF I DO END UP HOMELESS.. you are going to see one of the most OUSTANDING EXAMPLES of experience I’ve gained for .. since the exact date of 3/20/2004.. you’d be out of your mind to pull a stunt as this with the background I come from YET it’s a full incorporated norm.. it’s THOROUGHLY CORRUPT.. and that’s the helping hand of the United Way.. help alright to lead right into the 2 party criminal ring corruption.. most likely though.. there’s still a good chance i’ll create success AND avoid.. what a disease healthcare economy, the more the better.. I have ABSOLUTELY NO INTEREST IN ANY MANNER of powerful special interests and my psychological makeup.. i have a great background compared to all this help.. and thankfully most likely I will walk away from all this help.. AND the prez of the united way $400,000 A YEAR PLUS all those fringe benefits.. what do you think I understand now.. the united way leads into government which destroys lives.. and i will most likely very narrowly miss all the benefits of all this HELP.. Absolutely not.. although i once believed the helping hand AND help.. no way after this experience
Comment by Rich on 30 June 2012:
Correction.. falsified medical records.. career success, medical special interests irrelevant.. clearly a psychiatrist state ran states no mental illness exists on me..
It’s absolutely amazing how your led in, to what should have been the healthiest context and exactly towards the intended purpose.. the law states career success when in reality you’re lead in to 100% corruption of special interests 100% out of control..
This would NEVER occur where I come from with a 40 year history, way too much accountability.. I’d trust the United way up there..
The United way down here is lacking any sort discretion.. they know special interests are out of control, that corruption is completely out of control and they don’t care..
I made one contact to the local united way office AND their main corp. site and they don’t care either..
After this experience, I wouldn’t give the united way a single penny
Comment by Rich on 12 July 2012:
Ulterior motives from the intended purpose.. career NOT medical special interests.. I’ve heard these kind of scernerios and the expertise serves absolutely NO purpose, infact almost always it’s a very detremental outcome..
Obviously all of it is corruption, so we will take the entrusted servants of congress updated to absolutely spectular medical special interests agenda is how incredibly corrupt it is, I have a great big ZERO trusty in either entrusted servant parties.. it WELL beyond bought out.
Obviously incorporated as this kind of norm, I NOW realize this experience has been 100% when I believed the intended purpose, it WELL beyond the capacity.. I don’t want to EVER hear the helping hand of the united way OR help OR ulterior motives.. I will most likely be one of the fortunate ones to pull out of this NARROWLY missing homelessness, I’ve taken a HUGE hit.. the fact STILL remains the same career success NOT medicating away success.. it is 100% the most serious form of abuse and ulterior motives I know of.. YES the help to the incorporated norm of falsified medical records.. I hope ANYONE who thinks of giving one single penny very much reconsider finding a avenue that truly will REALLY help, my belief of the united way has been change 180.. Now I recognize how common corruption really is.. anywhere where politicizing and powerful special interests incorporating as profit much more often than not.. quite a bit different incorporated norm as genuine help.. no apoligies, no corrections, but I’ll guarntee you i’ll never trust the charities, special interests, nor politics ever again.. it’s WAY TOO corrupt when in reality very easily it could have been based on the highest level of honesty, integrity and GENUINE help.. it is WELL beyond the capacity for ANYONE to listen and communication effectively, truly a thoroughly corrupt incorpated norm.. never again, in this incorporated norm where there is zero accountability, I NEVER give the helping hand ONE SINGLE PENNY..
Comment by Tracey L. Thompson on 24 July 2012:
email me…island415girl at yahoo.com
1.I want to learn…Can I find out how much the Ymca here were I live SanFrancisco Lane street..is getting and what they do with there Money?
Who would I ask?
2.I called the NAACP here in SanFrancsico and told Dr.Brown who is head of NAACP our Public Housing Black Community is being Discriminated and BUllied from everybody. Dr. Brown tells me to go see the Head of Housing Authority..IF Housing Authority dont hear our Needs..Dont you think it will look very back for a Black Organization if we the Black Community file a Complaint with them?
Ok please answer my question..Im very much in Need of anwswer.
Email Me ok Thank YOU
Comment by sandra on 21 September 2012:
everyone wants to give someone the 211 number. this is a big waste of everything. all they do is give u dumb numbers like mental health board, emergency room and welfare agencies. To me this shows how dumb the other people are who are working either for this agency or with them
Comment by TraceyThompson on 15 April 2013:
ok so I been going threw alot here at Public Housing Relocation.
Yes,I was upset with YMCA but they Apologize to me. They are stepping up. I was just saying the NAACP here is not very much of help and was on Board of Public Housing. Im finding many lots of violation with whats going on and Intent to push the Mostly of black and Very Low income out of San Francisco.
Give me another month and I will tell you all the DIRT that is going on. Im waiting to see if this family get there public housing back.That “ONE STRIKE YOUR OUT” Bill Clinton pass but also state public housing is free to evict who they want. If you knew the story of this family that was evicted. Im using My Superduper Brain for them.
I really need to write a book on this “Community, Funds and Power”.
and My experience Im went threw at work. That book if ever I stop feeling under mentally Distress. “a Girl who will Not Be Bully by the GOvernment”…Yes thats me.i was special education but Im still knowing all the GOOD BAD and the UGLY in this REAL LIFE.
I tell you one thing you need to have BRAINs and GUTTs for all the Bullshit that goes on. Also family and friend who will Disagree.