The Pensacola Humane Society is broke. False
In 2020, PHS received a $1.2 million bequest. The money was put in securities, and occasionally dividends have been used to help with operations. The board was reluctant to sell any securities to cover the operating expenses.
The lack of funds in the operations checking account led to bills not being paid, needed vaccines and medical services not being purchased, and equipment, such as washers and dryers, not being repaired. An emergency line of credit was established that was secured by the endowment to pay outstanding bills. Staff used their personal credit cards to buy supplies.
The board was hoping for a big fundraiser for its 80th anniversary to help with operating expenses.
The problem was interim executive director Manda Moore Joseph, who board president Gerald Adcox described as “rogue” and was fired for not filing weekly reports on operations. False
Until October 2022, Joseph was the Director of Development, raising funds for PHS. The board wasn’t happy with its executive director, Jan Castillo, and approached Joseph to be interim without any additional pay. She was asked to present a compensation plan for performing both roles. She was not given a job description that included she had to give weekly reports. It’s unknown if Castillo was providing those reports.
The organization’s financial problems had started long before she took over the directorship. Joseph was unaware of the financial troubles of the organization and found emails from August where Castillo asked to have dividend funds moved over to the operating account. She found that restricted funds – donations for specific purposes – had been depleted. She told several board members of her concerns, several times.
An emergency board meeting was called for Dec. 8. Joseph presented the board with a list of restricted funds that had been depleted, totaling $93,586.46 – including $24,085 of county funds.
Restricted funds were misappropriated. Maybe
At the mandatory staff meeting held on Dec. 12, board members told staff and volunteers that no donations were restricted and could be used for day-to-day operations.
In the hope of buying much-needed vaccines, Joseph asked a friend, Travis Talley, to donate $5,000. The funds disappeared before the vaccines could be purchased because of drafts on the account. Talley intended the donation for vaccines, but vaccines weren’t purchased.
What has happened to other donations for specified purposes? Were donors told their wishes weren’t being followed?
PHS board follows best practices and is transparent. False
The website doesn’t list its board of directors, minutes of its meeting, financial statements or budget. Joseph told Inweekly that she was never given a budget. Staff and volunteers didn’t know who are the board members – they had to introduce themselves to the staff at the Dec. 12 mandatory meeting.
More coming. Stay tuned.