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CNN Live At Daybreak

Was Red Cross Clear on Intended Donor Money Use?

Aired November 07, 2001 - 06:51   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: For more on this, let's bring in Stacy Palmer. She is editor of the "Chronicle of Philanthropy." She joins us from Washington.

Stacy, good morning, good to have you with us.

STACY PALMER, EDITOR, "CHRONICLE OF PHILANTHROPY": Good morning.

KAGAN: Do you see anything defensible in Dr. Healy's statement that half this money had to put aside looking at the future?

PALMER: It's a big question as to whether this money really was intended by donors to go for future needs. Clearly the...

KAGAN: You really -- you think that's a question? Don't you think when Americans opened their hearts and their wallets after September 11 they clearly were saying this is money from my pocketbook that I want to go to help the people who were victimized by September 11?

PALMER: I think many indeed were and that's why we saw donations rush in so quickly after September 11. A lot was collected in the first three days right after the event and clearly those people wanted to help in whatever way they could. But it's the definition of what is the best way to help and should we be preparing for future crisis and how much should the Red Cross have said right away about the fact that they were preparing for the future not just for the victims. And a lot of people do feel that they weren't very forthcoming about what was going to happen with the money and that's why right now a lot of donors are very angry and so are a lot of members of Congress.

KAGAN: So is what went wrong here the message on how the Red Cross communicated what it intended to do with this money?

PALMER: Absolutely, they should have been much clearer. A number of people say that they felt deceived and they didn't feel that there was enough information. The Red Cross, on the other hand, says it always had said that it would go to other kinds of needs and didn't say that so now there's a debate over how much was said and what exactly was said.

KAGAN: So, yes, the donors out there or some donors out there who are angry, you understand the business side of the charity business, and does Dr. Healy have a point in that you do have to plan for the future if some other great crisis took place and the Red Cross had cleared out all of this money for the current victims that they would find themselves in a -- in a tough situation?

PALMER: Absolutely. I think we all agree that there needs to be some preparation for the future, but where is that money to come from is really what the question is and did donors expect that that's what would happen with these particular donations and should...

KAGAN: Go ahead.

PALMER: ... the intent of the donor be followed?

KAGAN: All right, let's look ahead. There's probably a lot of folks out there who still would like to help the victims but they don't want their money to go to a place where it's not going to go with their clear intention. So if you're a donor looking to give money, what should you look for to make sure that your money and your dollars go to the place that you intend?

PALMER: You need to ask a lot of questions and make sure that the charity that you're supporting actually does intend to help victims, if that's what you're interested in. And any legitimate charity should answer those questions in a very forthcoming way so feel free to ask hard questions and be sure you're comfortable that the money is going where you intended it to go.

KAGAN: Another problem out there, I would imagine that so much money has gone to the victims of September 11 that a lot of other charities, a lot of good charities are hurting because the dollars that might have gone to them have now headed towards New York City.

PALMER: Absolutely, many charities say they're having a very tough time raising money, and this is the biggest time of the year for raising funds for charities so they're very worried about the coming months and whether they'll be able to survive.

KAGAN: So not to take away from the tragedy and the needs in New York City, but might you encourage people out there looking at the end of the year, as you said, this is a big -- a big donor time, to go ahead and look down your check list of other funds and causes that you think about and maybe your charitable dollars would do and have more of an affect going into other places besides the victims of New York City and Washington, D.C.?

PALMER: Yes, it's important to decide what's your values (INAUDIBLE) most important use of your donations, but it's very important to look at home and to see what kinds of things are happening in your own community that you can support.

KAGAN: And once again, no matter who you're contributing to, ask questions because that's the only way you're going to know if the dollars you give go where you intend.

PALMER: Very much so, that's very important.

KAGAN: Very good -- Stacy Palmer. Is there -- is there a Web site for your organization or someplace that people can check on if they have questions about a charity?

PALMER: Absolutely, it's philanthropy.com, and we're happy to help you out.

KAGAN: Very easy to remember, philanthropy.com. Stacy Palmer with the "Chronicle of Philanthropy," thanks for joining us this morning.

PALMER: Thank you.

KAGAN: Good to have you with us.

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