Tag Archives: non profit

Non-Profit Owner Admits Tamarac Gift Cards Used To Promote Private Food Drive: “Are We Supposed To Waste Them?”

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Nataneisha Jahmel Richards wanted to know why her non-profit organization, The Great Commission Center And Outreach, was mentioned in a recent REDBROWARD story. On Thursday, REDBROWARD reported how the Broward County Office of the Inspector General (OIG) wanted to review documents related to a November 2021 turkey drive hosted by Tamarac Commissioner Marlon Bolton. As REDBROWARD revealed last December, Tamarac city officials pressured a non-profit to issue checks for expenses related to the turkey drive.

The Parks And Recreation Foundation Of Tamarac (PAROT) initially refused to participate in Bolton’s event. But the non-profit succumbed to pressure from Commission staffers and Parks and Recreation Department employees.

On October 28, 2021, Eliane Benjamin, administrator for the Tamarac City Commission, asked Parks and Rec Department head Greg Warner if he could “kind assist” with getting a $500 check issued to The Great Commission Center And Outreach organization. Benjamin said owner Peter Richards would pick up the check.

On November 2, 2021 PAROT wrote a $500 check to The Great Commission Center And Outreach. A note on the check reads, “Commissioner Bolton’s Turkeys.”

Later, REDBROWARD exposed how supermarket gift cards purchased from Marlon Bolton’s Tamarac event were used at a private food drive in Plantation.

These gift cards, emblazoned with the name of Commissioner Marlon Bolton, appeared in photographs promoting a private “turkey and pie giveaway” at Car Accident Referral Services (C.A.R.S.) in Plantation. The Tapatia Supermarket gift cards were used in social media posts by Nataneisha “Jahmel” Richards, the president of The Great Commission Center And Outreach non-profit organization of Tamarac.

Ms. Richards posted numerous photos and videos before and after the event. One photograph and one video clearly shows the Tapatia Supermarket gift cards with a sticker which reads, “Courtesy of Commissioner Marlon Bolton District 1.”

Other photographs and videos show Jahmel and Peter Richards volunteering at the Plantation event.

On Friday morning, Nataneisha Jahmel Richards called REDBROWARD.

“LET THEM GO TO WASTE?”

Ms. Richards wanted to know why REDBROWARD thought it newsworthy to mention The Great Commission Outreach and Center and the gift cards. Richards admitted to using the gift cards to promote the private food drive in Plantation but stated it was not her event.

When asked why she used the Bolton gift cards to promote the private food drive, Richards said,” Are we supposed to let them go to waste?

Richards could not comprehend why using Tamarac funds for a Plantation food drive was an issue.

When asked if Marlon Bolton authorized the use of the gift cards at the private food drive in Plantation, Richards hung up the telephone.

Perhaps she will answer that question for the Broward OIG?

Charity Navigator Says Independent Consultant Got Young At Art Review Wrong

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Fourth In A Multi-Part Investigation

After enduring months of intimidation from Broward County officials, it’s no surprise Louise Stevens’ “independent review” of the Young At Art (YAA) children’s museum ended with a mistake-filled performance at a County Commission workshop. On May 5, 2015, Stevens reported her findings to Broward County Commissioners.  As REDBROWARD previously reported, Stevens disregarded her tried and true methods of independent review after a Broward County Libraries business administrator threatened her reputation.

Multiple sources confirm that Jeff Tottenhoff, a Broward Libraries business administrator, delivered a threat to Louise Stevens: issue a negative report about Young At Art or your reputation would be ruined.

Sources confirm Stevens told the YAA board about the threat. When reached by REDBROWARD, Stevens had no comment.

However another source confirmed the early morning meeting took place at the Salad Bowl, an eatery located near the main library in downtown Fort Lauderdale.

When contacted by REDBROWARD, Tottenhoff admitted he met Stevens at the Salad Bowl for breakfast. He said he “just wanted to meet” Stevens. Tottenhoff said any claims that he threatened Stevens’ career and reputation were “patently false.”

Despite the denials, Stevens short-circuited her investigative process. On May 5, Stevens appeared before the County Commission to discuss her final report. In a total deviation from Stevens’ normal operating procedures, the 104 page report was completed without input from YAA.

CHARITY NAVIGATOR MESS

At the May 5th workshop, County Commissioner Mark Bogen asked Stevens about YAA’s fundraising capabilities. Commissioners were concerned about the museum’s ability to repay County loans. Bogen asked, “Louise, it says here, it says efficiency at raising funds is one of the worst–who says that?” Stevens stated she used the tools from the highly-respected Charity Navigator website.

According to its website, the non-profit Charity Navigator, “works to guide intelligent giving. [W]e aim to advance a more efficient and responsive philanthropic marketplace, in which givers and the charities they support work in tandem to overcome our nation’s and the world’s most persistent challenges.” Charity Navigator has been endorsed by numerous non-profits and news organizations like TIME, Forbes and Bill O’Reilly of FOX News.

In response to Commissioner Bogen, Stevens stated:

When you apply the measurement tools, the rubric, if you will, that Charity Navigator puts out–[YAA] come in at zero. And it’s a-it’s a–it’s a straightforward statistical evaluation that anyone can do. And it is literally the cost that they show on their Form 990 to the amount of funds raised. And it comes–straight off of the Form 990.

Bogen asked, “Okay. So it’s correct?”

“Yes.” said Louise Stevens.

CHARITY NAVIGATOR SAYS CONSULTANT DEAD WRONG

YAA officials were shocked when Stevens claimed their Charity Navigator score was zero stars. YAA supporters were shocked when they applied the YAA numbers to the Charity Navigator formula; So shocked, they contacted officials at Charity Navigator.

REDBROWARD obtained emails from Tim Gamory, the acting Chief Operating Officer of Charity Navigator. Gamory wrote, “”Based on our current methodology, Young At Art would have a 4 star rating overall. Perfect Accountability and Transparency Score.”

In a response to Stevens’ final report, Young At Art claimed to find more errors.

So how did Louise Stevens get her facts so wrong?

According to Broward County Administrator Bertha Henry, Louise Stevens had been creating a “fictionalized” report all along.

NEXT: BERTHA HENRY IN CYA MODE OVER YAA REVIEW