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thedrifter
02-04-07, 11:29 AM
Borrowed from hubby fontman

Fake veterans organization soliciting monies
From: P.O.W. Network - Chuck and Mary Schantag [mailto:info@pownetwork.org]
Sent: Sunday, February 04, 2007 9:40 AM
To: Recipient list suppressed

From the Office of the Director of Public Relations
Post Office Box 2351, Indianapolis, IN 46206-2351

ATTENTION --- EXTREMELY IMPORTANT

Notify your members that there is a FAKE so-called Veterans Organization operating out of Beech Grove, Indiana that has a primary goal of soliciting money through telephone calls with the spiel they're giving telephone cards to our military men and women.

This outfit calls itself INDIANA VETERANS RELIEF FUND.

They are using a storefront address at 157 Bethel, Suite B, Beech Grove, IN 46107. Telephone (317) 783-1974.

Indiana Veterans Relief Fund is operating under a blanket organization called Common Ground Charities, Inc. A Michael Q. Risley, Jr. is listed as Director of Fund Raising and a Tanya Risley is shown to be the Office Manager.

I visited the location and talked with Ms. Risley. The rented office space is essentially a telephone "Boiler Room." I viewed about a half-dozen people sitting at small work areas facing three walls wearing headphones and mikes making telephone calls. The front office room and rear telephone room are unkempt and dirty with no trappings of a veterans' organization. No Flags, no wall pictures, no sign of any patriotism. I confronted Ms. Risley with some pointed questions. "How many telephone calling cards have been issued to American troops?" (She said they gave some to departing troops at Camp Atterbury but couldn't tell me when or how many.) "How much money has been solicited since this operating began last year?" (She told me the figures have not been compiled and are not available.)

Ms. Risley informed me they are legal. I told her there is a difference of being legal on paper and morally correct in practice! (I am convinced this outfit is only interested in lining their own pockets with cash from proud Americans whom think they're helping our military and our men and woman in uniform.)

The Indiana Consumer Protection section of the Attorney Generals Office appears to be not interested in this situation after talking with them at length. IF WE CAN'T SHUT THIS OUTFIT DOWN WE CAN AT LEAST GET THE WORD OUT:

VETERANS' & CONSUMER'S BEWARE!

Donald F. Myers, USMC Retired
Department of Indiana, Marine Corps League
Director of Public Relations

Contact point Indianapolis Marine Corps League Office: (317) 546 7228 (or write Marine Corps League, POB 2351, Indianapolis, IN 46206-2351 (Attn: Director of PR D. F. Myers)

Ellie

10thzodiac
02-04-07, 01:24 PM
Anytime I'm solicited by charities, mosts I either tell them I'm broke or I just made a contribution. The only charity that I presently give to is, "The Veterans of Foreign Wars."

Too many charities take your money and it winds up in some fund administrators wine glass someplace and them thanking God for all these charitable people.

When I was in business, I was inundated with [bogus] police & fire department solicitations.

My son (who has my old business) while I was there got a bogus call from the "Illinois Policemen's Benevolent Fund" (they do not solicit by phone). My son recognized the phone number because he has multiple phones numbers listed that they had been calling earlier that day. He said dad, "Watch this !" He put the phone on speaker and said, "hello, in a little old ladies voice, they asked [him] her for a donation, my son in the little old ladies voice said back, "I don't know, I'll have to ask my son first, he's a policeman." http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/tsmileys2/18.gif End of story.

These tele-scam-artists would tie up my service business lines maliciously if you got ignorant with them. Its a b-itch having your beeper going on an off with them maliciously harassing you while you're trying to work and take legit customer calls at the same time.

I live in an un-incorporated area and once when I was in business I got a call from the corporated area, (same town name) that area is infamous for the mafia. I was solicited by a tough sounding mob type for a donation to the towns police departments youth soccer team. To brush him off, I said I wasn't the owner, just the dispatcher. I then call the Chief of Police and asked him if this call was legit, he said no, and he has received other complaints also. This mafioso type called back again and wanted to speak to the owner, I told him to quit calling and the Chief of Police said he was bogus. This MF started calling me all the names he could think of. I called the Illinois Secretary of State consumers fraud and they called him. The Secretary of State called me back and said he cussed them out too. They said they knew who he was and were already looking at his tax returns. http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/tsmileys2/01.gif

The only charities I have ever really given too, are the [Marine's] Navy Relief and the VFW (Poppy Day). Last year the girl at the village hall [Poppy Day] asked me how much change I wanted back. I said none.

10thz http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/tsmileys2/22.gif