The founder of USA Harvest is due in court later this month to answer to charges of stealing money from the charity for personal gain. Stan Curtis of Louisville faces charges of mail fraud, money laundering and filing false income tax returns.
It's cases like this that angers Tammy Delaney who is with Elizabethtown-based Feeding America: Kentucky's Heartland.
"We're in the business to keep our name clean and help people and do the right thing with our funds," remarks Delaney. "When that sort of thing happens, it can cause confusion and it can cause people to want to hang on to their dollars versus giving it sometimes. That's just hard to overcome for non-profits in general."
Feeding America: Kentucky's Heartland provides food assistance in 42 Kentucky counties.
It's the time of year when many are giving donations to the less fortunate, and Delaney encourages donors to research non-profits to make sure they are reputable.
"We're part of a national affiliation, a reputable affiliation that's been around for a long time," explains Delaney. "I would just recommend to any donor before they give to any non-profit to study the non-profit organization."
Delaney recommends this websiteas a good resource for examining charitable groups.
