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Building Future still in doubt |
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Big money for Merced, Monterey and Fresno too?
Nancy Carroll got the State Department of Social Services to commit $1,465,851 over three years, which included the cost of living increase for Fresno, Tulare and Kings counties, and also included $600,000 for Monterey and San Benito counties, and an additional $600,000 for Madera, Mariposa and Merced counties. Why was she terminated suddenly, without cause, one week after getting this huge amount of money for these Deaf communities? This one action which took Nancy Carroll, Rebecca Wade, Yu Tung Ho and community members from both Monterey and Merced working for months to make a reality almost tripled the budget of the agency. Through Nancy Carroll's hard work she had actually opened an office in Monterey and kept it funded through local foundations and grants from Monterey County since 1990 with no State DSS funds provided. These new funds enabled the Monterey office to obtain a consistent funding base in which to insure the availability of core services to the deaf community. Given these huge fund increases gave DHHSC more money then they have ever had and yet they have squandered it. The simple account graphic below shows how, through poor management, the agency's money has dwindled since Nancy Carroll left as Director. Nancy Carroll and her staff wrote 7 Requests for Proposals and Grants her final three months at the agency. The one described specifically in this section was approximately 200 pages long and took her away from her family many long nights at the agency, working late with co-workers to bring better services to all deaf people. This while she had two small children at home. We should reward our Deaf Community Leaders that serve us so diligently?
DHHSC - GAIN/(LOSS) IN RECENT YEARS |
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96/97 |
97/98 |
98/99 |
99/00 |
00/01 |
01/02 |
02/03 |
Revenue |
$480,647 |
$500,077 |
$687,698 |
$998,195 |
$1,225,133 |
$1,563,730 |
$1,468,839 |
Expense |
$479,861 |
$488,886 |
$662,042 |
$959,355 |
$1,184,472 |
$1,452,276 |
$1,484,668 |
Over/Under |
$ 786 |
$11,191 |
$25,656 |
$38,840 |
$40,661 |
$111,454 |
($15,829) |
Under the fiscal year 01/02 the figure in blue shows the agency ending the year with a healthy surplus of funds. The uninformed person would look at this and say wow the agency is doing much better without Nancy Carroll. The truth is however that a man who was blessed through the Deafened Adult Program wrote a contribution into his will with the help and great appreciation of Nancy Carroll. This man passed away shortly after Nancy's termination and the agency received $100.000 as a result of his generosity for the help he got through the Deafened Adult Program ran by Rebecca Wade. Rather than putting the money into a interest producing account and waiting for the funds to increase, the DHHSC Board and Director invested it into a building that we believe was beyond their means to pay for since it needed extensive remodeling. Our group has been portrayed as unreasonable for asking to have a thorough accounting of the expenses regarding the building and it's renovation costs. The Board and Director refused to give out that information and few in the Deaf community know that the money committed has already topped 1/2 million dollars. In our opinion they will be fundraising continually for the next ten or fifteen years unless someone else dies and is generous enough to bail them out with a large donation.
The last column show that for the first time in the history of VACC/DHHSC the agency ended the year in losing $15,829. Long term debt is not considered in this calculation such as the loan on the building. As documented on the annual financial statements (which you can receive a copy of just by going to DHHSC and asking for one) you can see some of the reasons for these losses. Though the interpreting dept. should be one of the biggest sources of revenue because of gross mismanagement they took in $448,598 and paid out for expenses $446,189 leaving them with a profit for the entire year of $2,409. No business can operate with those kinds of expenses and survive.
Though The State Department of Social Services has extended the money for Monterey, San Benito and Merced, Madera and Mariposa counties twice, they apparently didn't spell out to the agency how that money was to be spent. Because of this loophole Rosemary and the board have authorized that money to be spent in many different ways. Visalia was already funded by DSS funding along with Fresno. No additional funds were received to open an outreach office in Visalia. They have access to the office in Fresno and two DHHSC Board members represent Visalia and Tulare's Deaf communities. The geographical distance between Fresno and Monterey is quite obviously an obstacle to Monterey's ability to be involved on the DHHSC Board. The same is true of the Deaf of Merced when the DHHSC Board refuses to change to Saturday meetings it prevents them from becoming full partners in the business of the agency.
1-31-05 J