But in its swift rise, it has also embraced aggressive styles of fund-raising, marketing and personnel management that have many current and former employees questioning whether it has drifted from its mission. Today, The New York Times released a damning report on the renowned . (Linnington said more than 72% of WWP spending currently goes toward programs.). The charity came under fire after an earlier CBS News investigation in January revealed large amounts of spending on administration, meetings, and travel. The Wounded Warrior Project spent more than $34 million on fund-raising in 2014, according to tax records. The easiest way to do this is to take the perspective of a savvy investor and research donation options to make sure you do the most good per dollar donated. You do not reflect the sentiments of the more than 80,000 wounded soldiers we have helped, focusing instead on a few malcontents. Mr. Odierno said the board took issue with cultural and policy findings as well as financial issues when deciding to replace the organizations top leaders. They just took me to a Red Sox game and on a weekend retreat.. "When TAPS contacted us a few years back to say the majority of active-duty deaths they were seeing were suicides and rare cancers that young people should not be getting, we started investigating and funding," Plenzler said in an email. But by then, Mr. Melia and Mr. Nardizzi were fighting over the charitys future, with Mr. Nardizzi pushing for more aggressive expansion than Mr. Melia, former employees said. A nger and dismay greeted the announcement last week that the Wounded Warrior Project, a nonprofit that helps wounded veterans, had fired its top staff. These organizations have always been known to spend very little on anything but the veterans and their families, and the general public will now be terribly suspicious and wary. Wounded Warrior Project's Chief Executive Officer Steven Nardizzi reported a salary of $473,000. GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Steve Nardizzi's entrepreneurial approach to charity work transformed the Wounded Warrior Project, which began as a shoestring effort to provide underwear and CD players to. His tweets and Facebook posts stopped. Mr. Nardizzi took over the organization, based in Jacksonville, Fla., in 2009. A week after the top executives of the Wounded Warrior Project were fired amid accusations of lavish spending, an influential senator on a committee that oversees nonprofit organizations is. That meant many were airlifted back to this country with such severe injuries they needed the most sophisticated medical and rehabilitative care the country had to offer. It also closed. All rights reserved. A report on spending scandal exposed by News4Jax and national media outlets in January blames the Wounded Warrior Project's board, former employees who spoke about the charity's spending practices . But Mr. Melias ex-wife, Julie Melia, who worked at the charity at the time, said in an interview that her former husband felt like the organization was stolen from him.. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. The Wounded Warrior Project no longer holds such events and already has increased the scrutiny on spending for travel and all expenses, he said, adding that he would be paid less than those before . I would fly to New York for less than a day to report to my supervisor.. Whats their motivation for telling us? Slightly more than half of the Kanes' donations directly benefitted veterans, according to CBS News. It has spent millions a year on travel, dinners, hotels and conferences that often seemed more lavish than appropriate, more than four dozen current and former employees said in interviews. Previous reporting from Tim Mak, then at the Daily Beast, had detailed similar claims, but the reports published in January pushed the issue to critical mass. Board members called a few former employees this week to thank them for coming forward. To fill seats, they often invited the same veterans. Kules added the charity did not spend $3 million on the Colorado conference, but he was not there and was unable to say what it did cost. Mr. Millette said the charity encouraged him to highlight its role in helping him recover from PTSD and traumatic brain injury. Once the allegations were brought to our attention, we moved quickly, said the chairman of the board, Anthony Odierno, a retired Army captain who was wounded in Iraq and was helped by the Wounded Warrior Project during its early years. In all those areas, Linnington said Wounded Warrior Project is making strides. Mr. Longoria said after he was fired, he fell into depression but was also relieved. Trace Adkins has been an advocate for Wounded Warrior, an organization that advocates for veterans. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. This year, WWP surpassed the 100,000 mark in terms of veterans they provide assistance to. Charity Navigator, which rates thousands of charities, based on how . WWP also put up strong numbers in financial health, with controlled spending on administrative expenses and a healthy reserve of capital, which speaks to the organization's ability to sustain itself over time. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, If that money goes away, its not clear these groups can make it on their own., After Complaints on Wounded Warrior Project, Pressure From Donors, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/12/us/after-complaints-on-wounded-warrior-project-pressure-from-donors.html. In September 2016, Forbes published a pre-emptive obituary to the organization: "The Gutting Of Wounded Warrior: How To Kill A Charity.". Ive Ive never left the hospital grounds. "We've changed that too, honestly," he said. This beacon provides an assessment of a charity's financial health (financial efficiency, sustainability, and trustworthiness) and its commitment to governance practices and policies. SVA leaders joined WWP at the White House in April for the latter organization's 12th annual warrior ride. Why do the misdeeds of one nonprofit cause mistrust of all nonprofits? After Jesse Longoria recovered from a roadside bomb blast that nearly killed him in Iraq, he got a job with the organization training veterans to help other veterans. Mr. Nardizzi and Mr. Giordano did not return repeated calls to their cellphones. Doing so is vital for our society today to address the various societal needs that our governments do not address, and thus helping our society flourish. This claim is false. Your article zoned in on some disgruntled former employees rather than the roughly 500 staff members who work tirelessly to honor and empower our wounded. How was the organization founded and by whom? John Melia, founder of the Wounded Warrior Project, addressing the Wounded and Injured Veterans Summit in Auburn, Ala., in 2006. "That report also made clear that the Wounded Warrior Project had made some positive steps to regain the public's trust. Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. You had the same few guys who loved going to free events.. Wounded Warrior Project execs ousted over spending scandal March 11, 2016 | 3:18am Two top execs at the Wounded Warrior Project one of the largest war veterans support organizations in. As this weeks Retro Report video explains, the biggest scandal in recent times involving the care of wounded American troops was actually worsened because medicine on the battlefront had made such remarkable advances. When the Wounded Warrior Project was hit in January with multiple accusations in the news media of lavish spending on travel, conferences and public relations, and a toxic corporate culture, Fred Kane, one of its major fund-raisers, was stunned by the organizations response. All rights reserved. Dr. Gleb Tsipursky is the President of Intentional Insights, an education nonprofit, and a tenure-track professor at Ohio State University. When Mr. Nardizzi took over, in the depths of the 2009 economic downturn, most charities had dialed back their fund-raising efforts, figuring that the nation was in no position to give. It operates as a nonprofit 501 (c) (3) organization. Kurnyta noted the organization had a near-perfect score in transparency: 97 out of 100. The eRumor's claim that the organization spends just 3.5% of its total income on grants for individuals and veteran organizations is . Veterans participate in a Soldier Ride on Jan. 8 in Marathon, Fla. WWP offers wounded warriors and their families lifesaving programs that help them manage PTSD, traumatic brain injury (TBI), combat stress, and other conditions and help them thrive in their next mission. With Linnington at the helm, he said, WWP inspires confidence and appears to be working diligently to meet the real needs of its veterans population. According to data provided by Plenzler, a 2018 study on the organization's reputation within the veterans service organization community found that 83% of participants considered WWP a respected part of the military and veterans nonprofit space, up from just 13% in 2017. During WWP's nadir and through its turnaround, its roster of wounded warriors and "family support members" has only grown -- a fact that speaks as much to the persistent and growing need as it does to the organization's success in the space. John Melia founded the Wounded Warrior Project in 2003 but left in 2009. He didnt want to leave, but it was obvious something was going to happen, Ms. Melia said. In an interview at the organizations four-story headquarters in a palm-lined office park in Jacksonville, Fla., Mr. Nardizzi, 45, said spending on fund-raising and other expenses not directly related to veterans programs has enabled the Wounded Warrior Project to grow faster and serve more people. As someone who lives with post-traumatic stress, Millette said he is aware of the wealth of good Wounded Warrior Project could do with its resources in that space. It seemed to me like it was a big lie., Wounded Warrior Project Spends Lavishly on Itself, Insiders Say, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/28/us/wounded-warrior-project-spends-lavishly-on-itself-ex-employees-say.html, William Chick, who was fired from the Wounded Warrior Project in 2012 after a dispute with his supervisor. Why don't you offer services to ALL veterans? He merely notes that "a lot of what was reported was incorrect," and that, in particular, the reported costs of travel and amenities at all-hands events were far overblown. He said he felt guilty about what he saw as widespread waste. WWP has also pressed forward in its role as a legislative advocate, recently mounting a campaign to expand an adaptive housing benefit available to veterans -- legislation named after longtime WWP staff member Ryan Kules. Ms. Humphrey, an Iraq veteran with PTSD, was fired in 2013. - Fox News wounded-warrior-projects-top-execs. The Wounded Warrior Project cuts a different profile. But he acknowledged that was likely a function of WWP's phenomenally rapid growth and expansion. On Tuesday, CBS News ran a story about the Wounded Warrior Project, claiming to have interviewed over 40 former employees who stated that spending was out of control at the organization. The Wounded Warrior Projects roots are more humble. In 2018, the organization gave away $13.6 million in grants to other organizations. We must also pressure nonprofits to be transparent about their activities and finances and measure the impact of their work. They needed to take responsibility, and they werent doing it.. Once a child came by the office to donate a piggy bank. In 2014 alone, the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) received more than $300 million in donations, yet it only spent roughly 60 percent of that on vets, CBS News reported. He said the charity swiftly fired anyone that leaders considered a bad cultural fit.. "Wounded Warrior Project was there when I needed them most," says another ad, featuring veteran Chris Wolff, his hand on the wheel of his chair as if poised for action. Linnington said the 2015-16 fiscal year will get posted in the spring . Market data provided by Factset. series about Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The video project was started with a grant from Christopher Buck. Charity Navigator's rating for WWP has fluctuated over the years: It dipped down to two stars in 2010 as the organization grew, then briefly rose to a full four stars in 2017, reflecting the delayed arrival of 2015 data. Do the sources know the information? Last week, a major donor to the Wounded Warrior Project veterans charity called for the nonprofits CEO to resign in light of allegations of lavish spending on staff meetings, CBS News reported. They also help WWP track how the needs of veterans are changing with time. The Wounded Warrior Fund,. Michel duCille/Washington Post, via Getty Images. Since its inception, the organization became the #1 veterans charity in the world. Compared with service members who served in Vietnam, troops sustaining combat wounds in Iraq and Afghanistan had roughly twice the chance of surviving. About 500 staff members attended the four-day conference in Colorado, which CBS News reported cost about $3 million. And sometimes those employees are veterans.. Some were injured or became. They began raising millions of dollars and broadening their services to include adaptive sports for disabled veterans, employment and benefits help, and retreats to teach veterans to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder. The same push for numbers hit a program that brings wounded veterans together for social events. And it has become a brand name, its logo emblazoned on sneakers, paper towel packs and television commercials that run dozens of times. It wasn't just about lavish all-hands gatherings, although those quickly became a thing of the past. Millette, the former WWP staff member who publicly blew the whistle on the organization, said his decision to speak out came at great personal cost. Anger and dismay greeted the announcement last week that the Wounded Warrior Project, a nonprofit that helps wounded veterans, had fired its top staff. Is Wounded Warrior Project a legitimate charity? 4. That's a pretty significant drop in a short period of time," he said. " In an email to big donors, a fundraiser for the organization . Dinners and alcoholjust total excess." Instead, meta-charities receive funding from donors who appreciate the services these organizations provide, allowing meta-charities to stay objective. "Their mission is to honor and empower wounded warriors, but what the public doesn't see is how they spend their money," he said. Millette, 41, who still lives in Jacksonville, Florida, where Wounded Warrior Project is headquartered, told Military.com he stands by all the claims he made about the organization -- $2,500 bar tabs and other prodigal spending at staff-only team-building events, a permissive "good old boys" atmosphere among leadership, and a tendency to push certain badly wounded veterans into the spotlight again and again for what appeared to be promotional purposes rather than for their benefit and well-being. The Walter Reed Story, https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/30/booming/and-this-was-called-care-the-walter-reed-story.html. I knew where the money was going to. But whether those fixes went far enough is, as the video demonstrates, still not clear. Grants to veterans'. The New York Times' recent investigation into the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) has sent rumbles throughout through the philanthropy community. Chief Financial Officer . Retro Report has a staff of 13 journalists and 10 contributors led by Kyra Darnton, a former 60 Minutes producer. The percentage of respondents who stated that WWP was effective at collaborating with other military and veteran nonprofits jumped from 63% to 85% from 2017 to 2018. "He rappelled down the side of a building at one of the all hands events. "Obviously, we're trying to regain trust with the warriors, first and foremost," Linnington told Military.com earlier this year. Millette said he witnessed lavish spending on staff, with big catered parties. Did you mean: wounded warrior scandal Wounded Warrior Project's top execs fired amid . And it did not appear to prioritize collaboration with other veterans' organizations, taking criticism for relatively small grants it made to support other groups and for passing up opportunities to join forces for advocacy and shared knowledge. He watched a young former Army captain who had lost an arm and a leg in Afghanistan offer CBS News awkwardly recited defenses of the group, the nations largest and fastest-growing charity for veterans. CBS News' investigation into the Wounded Warrior Project's spending on veterans has sparked heated debate online. Two top execs at the Wounded Warrior Project one of the largest war veterans support organizations in the nation were fired Thursday in a scandal over money spent on expensive corporate. The organization initially denied the accusations and demanded retractions, but then went silent. Kane said he has cut charitable ties with the Wounded Warrior Project, embarking on a new charge to effect change at the organization. Mr. Giordano tried to refute the news media accounts, Mr. Kane said, and explained that the executives silence had been recommended by a public relations firm as a way to defuse criticism. About 40 percent of the organizations donations in 2014 were spent on its overhead, or about $124 million, according to the charity-rating group Charity Navigator. If the same warrior attends six different events, you could record that as six warriors served, said Renee Humphrey, who oversaw alumni outreach in Southern California for about four years. People could spend money on the most ridiculous thing and no one batted an eye, said Connie Chapman, who was in charge of the charitys Seattle office for two years. "These are groups that just get together over a pizza and a soda, to talk about the issues that are affecting them and their families, and look for ways to support each other.". Wounded Warrior Project FAQs 1. It was a very coercive conversation.. More than 6 out of 10 (64.2%) WWP-registered Alumni say they. The organization began producing inspirational ads featuring wounded veterans fighting to recover. At least half a dozen former employees said they were let go after raising questions about ineffective programs or spending. Both bills passed in amended forms that did not significantly affect the charity, Mr. Nardizzi said. Graphite 80/20 Poly/Cotton Left Chest/Sleeve Design Screenprint "And secondly, with the American people who support our warriors.". The Fisher House Foundation runs 84 houses around the world, located near VA hospitals and military installations. According to Charity Watch, the Wounded Warrior Project is, in fact, rated C. To stop donating to it is a response that makes sense. What I'm worried about is, how can we be the most effective in meeting the needs of our warriors in whatever resources we have?". Recent reports from The New York Times and CBS alleged that the nonprofit has been misspending its donations on lavish conferences and unnecessary business trips for employees.. This helps prevent another common thinking error called scope neglect, in which our brains fail to ensure that our emotions correspond to the actual impact made by our donations. Under the Charity Watch rating system, Wounded Warrior Project has a modest C+, up from a C in 2015, said Daniel Borochoff, the accountability organization's president. Mr. Longoria said he was offered money in exchange for signing a nondisclosure agreement, but refused. Within months, Wounded Warrior Project's two top executives -- CEO Steve Nardizzi and COO Al Giordano -- had been fired, and the organization itself was the subject of a congressional inquiry. How many others are not scaling up to cure cancer, to help the environment, because there is a belief we shouldnt invest in those things? said Mr. Nardizzi, who was given $473,000 in compensation in 2014. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. The Wounded Warrior Project is a legitimate multimillion-dollar nonprofit organization with nationwide recognition that helps wounded, ill and injured veterans. The organization fired Mr. Chick later the same day for insubordination. Erick Millette, an Iraq veteran, said he quit after growing disillusioned about his work with a program called Warrior Speak, which involved veterans telling their stories of healing to audiences. In fact, they are one of the largest programs out there for wounded veterans. After Mr. Kanes email to other donors, he said he got a call from Mr. Giordano. Do you have a location near me? Its a fund-raising machine that is a grant-maker for a number of other veterans organizations, said Phillip Carter, a fellow at the Center for a New American Security, which also gets funding from the organization. The board of Wounded Warrior Project, a well-known veteran-support charity, parted ways with its chief executive and another top official after a board-commissioned review found the nonprofit. Charity Watch, an independent monitoring group, gave Wounded Warrior Project a D rating in 2011 and has not given it a grade higher than C since. Celebrity endorsements from the likes of Trace Adkins and Jimmy Buffett. Army Staff Sergeant Erick Millette, who returned from Iraq in 2006 with a bronze star and a purple heart, told CBS News at the time he admired the charitys work and took a job with the group in 2014 but quit after two years. I wasnt speaking anywhere unless I was collecting a check, said Mr. Millette, who worked for the program for about two years, until he left in 2014. 2. The crisis this week centers on nonprofit Wounded Warrior Project and its response to news reports critical of how the organization that helps wounded U.S. veterans spends the money it gets in . Among those who say WWP has regained their trust is Erick Millette, a medically retired Army staff sergeant who worked for the organization as a full-time public speaker and representative in the organization's "Warriors Speak" program from 2013 to 2015. Both ad campaigns depict a real part of the wounded veteran experience, and WWP staff acknowledge that donors respond more to portrayals of those with the greatest need. They were celebrating their biggest year yet: $225 million raised and a work force that had nearly doubled.