Be generous, but don't be gullible

Be generous, but don't be gullible: "Be generous, but don't be gullible
The state's annual profile of charities reveals a few that are, ahem, mostly playing 'Survivor'
Monday, December 05, 2005

O regon's annual report on charitable giving exposes a new low, and it's very low indeed.

We're talking zero.

For the first time, one of the nonprofits profiled by the state attorney general's office spent nothing -- nada, zero -- providing services. According to its own report submitted to the state of Oregon last year, Cancer Fund of America Support Services spent a year being kind, solicitous and compassionate mostly to itself.

The attorney general's office profiles charities, not because they're good or bad, but based on the number of public inquiries they generate. Those that do telemarketing generate the most questions, which is why the Dearborn, Mich.-based cancer charity is featured. Of the nearly $1.6 million it spent in 2003, the bulk -- about $1.3 million -- went to fund-raising. The $110,511 it spent on services mostly paid for printing and posting a cancer-prevention flier. Subtract that and the cost of the actual services the group delivered plummeted to zero."