Thursday, August 31, 2006
The death of Ellipse:
PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
The death of Ellipse – 20-year-old charity cannot keep its doors open – apathy and mismanagement kill a vital resource for people with HIV/AIDS in San Mateo County.
Ellipse Peninsula HIV/AIDS Services, an AIDS Service Organization (ASO) can no longer serve its clients or keep its doors open. Food is rotting on the shelves. Mice and their droppings are creating a health hazard in the organization's pantry.
The cause is apathy and inaction on the part of the Board of Directors.
I was not informed that as director Ms. Fitzgerald was taking "consulting fees" for counseling sessions with clients throughout discussions of money and spending, and was only told of this second-hand. It may have been agreed to by the board before I became a member, but it strikes me that this particular detail was not shared openly with me. I specifically asked about operating expenses and this was not revealed.
Though her position implies direct involvement, she works full-time at another position and is not at Ellipse's offices even one day a week. I do not see how someone can "direct" an organization if they are never there during the operating hours.
There was a time when the board could have handed over day-to-day operations in a responsible manner, but they chose to let the organization die instead. As board members they could not even be bothered to return phone calls or email. They rarely (if ever) set foot on the premises.
Ellipse has been serving food and offering counseling to people with HIV/AIDS for over twenty years, and its death takes a vital and needed resource away from San Mateo County.
The last board member, Phillip T. Alden, a local activist and volunteer, quit when it became clear the board was no longer interested in serving the needs of clients. Mr. Alden has worked to bring attention to this tragedy and to expose the irresponsibility of the other board members.
"The apathy of the board was bad enough, but they also sabotaged my efforts to bring the facility up to local health and safety codes. They disgust me," Mr. Alden stated.
More involved statement from Phillip Alden:
"I am bothered by the apathy of the people involved. They must have known they were preparing the organization to fail. This comes after they worked to save it from mismanagement by the previous executives. Why save an organization just to kill it? Ellipse has a unique asset that enables them to deliver food to people with HIV/AIDS in San Mateo County, and they let the structure of this asset degrade to the point of near-guaranteed collapse and failure.
"Where is the fiscal responsibility? Where is the accountability? Why bring an activist and journalist on board to witness your driving the organization into the ground? Why was I invited to watch something that should be criminal?"
PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
The death of Ellipse – 20-year-old charity cannot keep its doors open – apathy and mismanagement kill a vital resource for people with HIV/AIDS in San Mateo County.
Ellipse Peninsula HIV/AIDS Services, an AIDS Service Organization (ASO) can no longer serve its clients or keep its doors open. Food is rotting on the shelves. Mice and their droppings are creating a health hazard in the organization's pantry.
The cause is apathy and inaction on the part of the Board of Directors.
I was not informed that as director Ms. Fitzgerald was taking "consulting fees" for counseling sessions with clients throughout discussions of money and spending, and was only told of this second-hand. It may have been agreed to by the board before I became a member, but it strikes me that this particular detail was not shared openly with me. I specifically asked about operating expenses and this was not revealed.
Though her position implies direct involvement, she works full-time at another position and is not at Ellipse's offices even one day a week. I do not see how someone can "direct" an organization if they are never there during the operating hours.
There was a time when the board could have handed over day-to-day operations in a responsible manner, but they chose to let the organization die instead. As board members they could not even be bothered to return phone calls or email. They rarely (if ever) set foot on the premises.
Ellipse has been serving food and offering counseling to people with HIV/AIDS for over twenty years, and its death takes a vital and needed resource away from San Mateo County.
The last board member, Phillip T. Alden, a local activist and volunteer, quit when it became clear the board was no longer interested in serving the needs of clients. Mr. Alden has worked to bring attention to this tragedy and to expose the irresponsibility of the other board members.
"The apathy of the board was bad enough, but they also sabotaged my efforts to bring the facility up to local health and safety codes. They disgust me," Mr. Alden stated.
More involved statement from Phillip Alden:
"I am bothered by the apathy of the people involved. They must have known they were preparing the organization to fail. This comes after they worked to save it from mismanagement by the previous executives. Why save an organization just to kill it? Ellipse has a unique asset that enables them to deliver food to people with HIV/AIDS in San Mateo County, and they let the structure of this asset degrade to the point of near-guaranteed collapse and failure.
"Where is the fiscal responsibility? Where is the accountability? Why bring an activist and journalist on board to witness your driving the organization into the ground? Why was I invited to watch something that should be criminal?"
# posted by Phillip T. Alden @ 8:36 PM 
