The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008 - (Page 16)

AT DEADLINE PAUL CLOLERY, MARK HRYWNA AND MICHELE DONOHUE Travel Nightmare Investigation continuing as PoL shuts down travel section of eBay store acques Raphael was among more than 1,000 customers who thought they were getting a good deal on travel vouchers through the Points of Light Institute’s eBay store. The California man coughed up more than $2,100 in May for two first-class trips to New York and to Miami later this year. Raphael uses eBay all the time and said J he wouldn’t normally have purchased something of such value but saw that a legitimate organization was selling them. “Not only can we get scammed but I guess other people, even a big-shot organizations, can get scammed,” he said. The Points of Light Institute (PoL) closed that area of the eBay store during the weekend of July 5-6 after “significant financial and operational irregularities” came to light, leaving more than 1,000 customers in the lurch. Those with travel plans originating before July 15 were to be fulfilled, but those after July 15 were to be refunded. While he’s hopeful of getting a refund from Points of Light, Raphael said he already purchased nonrefundable hotel Finance, Operations and Development Pull Together for Success with Serenic Navigator reservations.“I’m not too happy about this whole thing but at this point, what am I going to do? If I found out about a lawsuit, certainly I would join,” Raphael said, adding that he’ll be out the money for hotel reservations unless he books his own flights, which he probably won’t do. “The only reason I did this was because it was so cheap. I never would’ve made it, but it was so cheap,” he said. An engaged couple from Austin, Texas had to scramble for plane tickets to Hawaii for their destination wedding at the end of July.The groom-to-be, who did not want to be identified, said his fiancé called him while at work crying inconsolably when she received an email about the situation. Each PoL reservation is for one to four people, so as many as 4,400 travelers could be impacted. Sources told The NonProfit Times that travel had been booked through May 2009 that could total more than $1 million. LAW ENFORCEMENT CALLED In a statement, the PoL, the recently rebranded merger of the Points of Light Foundation and Hands on Network, said “irregularities appear to be isolated to travel transactions at the eStore and based on financial and legal findings,we must suspend fulfilling ticket bookings, purchased through the eStore, for travel after July 15, 2008.” The goal is to refund customers within 30 days and begin refunds as soon as possible, Michelle Nunn, president and CEO of the PoL, told The NonProfit Times in an exclusive interview. But, that’s based on the capacity to verify and process and fulfill them. How much it all adds up to is still unclear, she said. “We’re still getting the information via our refund process,” Nunn said, adding that a second round of emails has gone out as part of direct, regular communication with those affected. Several donors and financial supporters have offered donations and financing to ensure Points of Light solves the problem and addresses it without “affecting the larger organization and ensuring no donated funds are directed toward it,” she said. Two senior managers learned of the irregularities through customer complaints, which they explored and ultimately verified through an independent contractor, and reported to Nunn on the evening of June 26, she said. Customers were notified of the situation late Friday, July 4, at which time the refund application process began. Because of the ongoing investigation, Nunn could not elaborate on the type of “irregularities.” She said the U.S.Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C., was contacted within 24 hours by the organization’s counsel, McKenna, Long & Aldridge, which is doing its own investigation. “It took us a number of days to wrap At Deadline, page 33 From the CFO to the Grants Administrator and from the 'HYHORSPHQW0DQDJHUWRWKH9ROXQWHHULQWKH¿HOGWKH6HUHQLF1DYLJD WRU ¿QDQFLDO DQG RSHUDWLRQDO VRIWZDUH VROXWLRQ VXSSRUWV DQG HQKDQFHV WKHXQLTXH ZRUNÀRZ SURFHVVHVRIQRQSUR¿W RUJDQL]DWLRQV 6HUHQLF 1DYLJDWRU JLYHV HDFK WHDP PHPEHU WKH VSHFL¿F IXQFWLRQDOLW\ WKH\ QHHG WR KHOS ~ ~ ~ ~ LQFUHDVH RSHUDWLRQDO HI¿FLHQF\ PDQDJH FDVK ÀRZ VHFXUH QHZ IXQGLQJ JHQHUDWH GHWDLOHG ¿QDQFLDO UHSRUWV %XLOWRQWKH0LFURVRIW'\QDPLFV1$9IRXQGDWLRQWKH6HUHQLF1DYLJDWRU SURGXFWVXLWHSURYLGHVWKHEURDGHVWUDQJHRIIXOO\LQWHJUDWHG¿QDQFLDO DQGRSHUDWLRQDOVRIWZDUHSURGXFWVLQWKHQRQSUR¿WLQGXVWU\ )RU\RXUIUHHFRS\RI³$3URIHVVLRQDO*XLGHWR6HOHFWLQJ1RW)RU3UR¿W6RIWZDUH´ E\$6$&RQVXOWDQW&DUOWRQ&ROOLQV please go to www.Serenic.com/guideRUFDOO Serenic Software 16 AUGUST 1, 2008 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.nptimes.com http://www.Serenic.com/guide http://www.Serenic.com/guide http://www.nptimes.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008

The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008 Demonstration Permits Frustrate Groups Green Universities Helping To Produce Greener Pastures Mr. Bill Doesn’t Say ‘NOOOO’ To Awareness Campaign Contents Who...When...Where...How...What? On Dangerous Ground Association Management Travel Nightmare The 2008 NPT Power & Influence Top 50 Leaderless Unusual Special Events On The Move Lost: The Donors Consistent Messaging New UK Standards Business Briefs National Movement Calendar NPT Jobs Resource Directory

The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.