Complaint Review: American Red Cross

It sounds to me, in this particular case, like someone at the store somehow figured out what the codes were for that gift card, and spent the value of the card before the person bought it to give to the recipient.

Since the store was in another state, have you tried calling the store and asking them to resolve the problem.

NOTE ... i have no connection with Amazon other than that of being a mostly satisfied customer

John

I was supposed to be helped by the Red Cross.

Instead, I took the piece of paper that showed they were trying to get my house condemned by the health department of the wrong county! I think they were trying to get it declared a blight under the International building Inspectors Code so the county could take it away from me and not have to pay me a penny. That's AGAINST the Fiftih Amendment of the U.S. Constitution but we are talking INTERNATIONAL code here.

So much for all the great PR and ad campaigns showing the REd Cross valiantly coming to HELP people.

If I had had to depend on the Red Cross of Central Texas, I would be living under a damned bridge by now and fighting with the hundreds of illegal immigrants in our city to get a crust of moldy, stale bread and watered down garbage that someone thinks is soup at one of the "soup kitchens" here.

Red Cross of Central Texas finds you a place to stay? NOT UNLESS IT IS A SHELTER!

Red Cross of Central Texas helps you find something to eat while your kitchen is out of service because of the disaster. Hardly damned likely as well!

JUST WHO IS IT WHO BENEFITS FROM THESE ENORMOUS CHARITY DRIVES THAT ARE ALMOST BIBLICAL IN PROPORTION WHEN THEY ASK YOU TO GIVE--AND THEY KNOW ALL THE RIGHT EMOTIONAL BUTTONS TO PUSH WHEN THEY ASK!!!!?????

For years I gave to them. I remember in elementary school giving all of the money I had put aside in a little cardboard box with a Red Cross on it so they could help starving people injured and left homeless in disasters.

Well, now I am nearly homeless as a the result of a disaster and THEY SURE AS HELL DID NOT HELP ME!

Is EVERYTHING a fraud nowdays? Have the yuppies so infested the social conscience of this society that all they want to do is profiteer and THE HELL WITH PERSONS IN NEED?

I have to ask that question.

I am also so very ,very sorry to see that I am not the only person in need who was NOT helped. I was hoping it was a mistake, an oversight, that I had somehow inadvertently fallen through the cracks of the system.

FEMA said they would make a determination within 7-10 days whether or not they would help me. I am writing my elected representatives to make sure they don't drop the ball as badly as the Red Cross did.

Jeanne,
I am sorry to hear about how the Red Cross is not living up to their expecations. The basis and purpose of the organization must be getting lost somewhere. That is a shame because of their potential to do good works.

I haven't had dealings with them in years, like I said, they did help me when I was in the USAF. A couple of times financially and by sending messages. I also know that there has been a lot of pressure put on them over the years because of salaries and accounting problems.

I hope all of you keep up the pressure. It is still my hope that the Red Cross can be there to help even though it doesn't look good.

By your (and others like you) experience and speaking out I hope that it can pressure them into become more reponsive to those in need.

It really would be a shame to toss everything out with the bath water but sometimes it helps to start fresh. The experience, the investment of equipment, the administrative structure and the overall reputation of their name.
Thanks,

I am sure someone is being helped by the Red Cross otherwise the news media would not be following them around showing their "good deeds".
After the hurricane, the Red Cross was all over Punta Gorda where they coud be SEEN by the national news media. It was a great photo op for them. You did not see them all over Lee County because the natioanl media was not all over here.

We are all under stress here in SW Florida all along the path of Charley and I AM thankful that I still have my house and my job. It is just upsetting that they told me on the phone that if I came down that I could get one of these "food cards", I did not get what I needed, I missed a day of work which lost me even more money, I ended up spending part of my car payment money to feed our family and meanwhile people that normally buck the welfare system are able to "buck" those of us who REALLY need help out of it.

I did send a letter to the Local Red Cross but I doubt I will get a response and I also sent it to a few of our local media but I doubt they will do anything because they are too busy raising money for the Red Cross right now. I doubt they would want to investigate.

As I share my story with other people I keep hearing more and more bad things which makes me wonder how much "good" this organization does. The stories I am hearing are fist hand accounts, not those "friend of a friend" stories and they convince me that while the Rec Cross may be raising money to help victims of disaster, they are just as busy "harassing" those they have helped in the past for a "payback" as well as "harassing" those who have donated in the past to keep donating.

As a disaster victim here in Lee County Florida, I can say that I was not helped by the Red Cross and I would LOVE to see a full accounting of where the money goes that has been raised here locally when all is said and done.

I do not belong to any church but if I had money to donate, it woule be to one of the local churces as they have helped more around here as far as I am concerned.

I am sure someone is being helped by the Red Cross otherwise the news media would not be following them around showing their "good deeds".
After the hurricane, the Red Cross was all over Punta Gorda where they coud be SEEN by the national news media. It was a great photo op for them. You did not see them all over Lee County because the natioanl media was not all over here.

We are all under stress here in SW Florida all along the path of Charley and I AM thankful that I still have my house and my job. It is just upsetting that they told me on the phone that if I came down that I could get one of these "food cards", I did not get what I needed, I missed a day of work which lost me even more money, I ended up spending part of my car payment money to feed our family and meanwhile people that normally buck the welfare system are able to "buck" those of us who REALLY need help out of it.

I did send a letter to the Local Red Cross but I doubt I will get a response and I also sent it to a few of our local media but I doubt they will do anything because they are too busy raising money for the Red Cross right now. I doubt they would want to investigate.

As I share my story with other people I keep hearing more and more bad things which makes me wonder how much "good" this organization does. The stories I am hearing are fist hand accounts, not those "friend of a friend" stories and they convince me that while the Rec Cross may be raising money to help victims of disaster, they are just as busy "harassing" those they have helped in the past for a "payback" as well as "harassing" those who have donated in the past to keep donating.

As a disaster victim here in Lee County Florida, I can say that I was not helped by the Red Cross and I would LOVE to see a full accounting of where the money goes that has been raised here locally when all is said and done.

I do not belong to any church but if I had money to donate, it woule be to one of the local churces as they have helped more around here as far as I am concerned.

I am sure someone is being helped by the Red Cross otherwise the news media would not be following them around showing their "good deeds".
After the hurricane, the Red Cross was all over Punta Gorda where they coud be SEEN by the national news media. It was a great photo op for them. You did not see them all over Lee County because the natioanl media was not all over here.

We are all under stress here in SW Florida all along the path of Charley and I AM thankful that I still have my house and my job. It is just upsetting that they told me on the phone that if I came down that I could get one of these "food cards", I did not get what I needed, I missed a day of work which lost me even more money, I ended up spending part of my car payment money to feed our family and meanwhile people that normally buck the welfare system are able to "buck" those of us who REALLY need help out of it.

I did send a letter to the Local Red Cross but I doubt I will get a response and I also sent it to a few of our local media but I doubt they will do anything because they are too busy raising money for the Red Cross right now. I doubt they would want to investigate.

As I share my story with other people I keep hearing more and more bad things which makes me wonder how much "good" this organization does. The stories I am hearing are fist hand accounts, not those "friend of a friend" stories and they convince me that while the Rec Cross may be raising money to help victims of disaster, they are just as busy "harassing" those they have helped in the past for a "payback" as well as "harassing" those who have donated in the past to keep donating.

As a disaster victim here in Lee County Florida, I can say that I was not helped by the Red Cross and I would LOVE to see a full accounting of where the money goes that has been raised here locally when all is said and done.

I do not belong to any church but if I had money to donate, it woule be to one of the local churces as they have helped more around here as far as I am concerned.

I am sure someone is being helped by the Red Cross otherwise the news media would not be following them around showing their "good deeds".
After the hurricane, the Red Cross was all over Punta Gorda where they coud be SEEN by the national news media. It was a great photo op for them. You did not see them all over Lee County because the natioanl media was not all over here.

We are all under stress here in SW Florida all along the path of Charley and I AM thankful that I still have my house and my job. It is just upsetting that they told me on the phone that if I came down that I could get one of these "food cards", I did not get what I needed, I missed a day of work which lost me even more money, I ended up spending part of my car payment money to feed our family and meanwhile people that normally buck the welfare system are able to "buck" those of us who REALLY need help out of it.

I did send a letter to the Local Red Cross but I doubt I will get a response and I also sent it to a few of our local media but I doubt they will do anything because they are too busy raising money for the Red Cross right now. I doubt they would want to investigate.

As I share my story with other people I keep hearing more and more bad things which makes me wonder how much "good" this organization does. The stories I am hearing are fist hand accounts, not those "friend of a friend" stories and they convince me that while the Rec Cross may be raising money to help victims of disaster, they are just as busy "harassing" those they have helped in the past for a "payback" as well as "harassing" those who have donated in the past to keep donating.

As a disaster victim here in Lee County Florida, I can say that I was not helped by the Red Cross and I would LOVE to see a full accounting of where the money goes that has been raised here locally when all is said and done.

I do not belong to any church but if I had money to donate, it woule be to one of the local churces as they have helped more around here as far as I am concerned.

Jeanne,
I am sorry about your experience with the Red Cross. I am not affiliated with them in any way shape or form... I was able to use some of their services while I was in the USAF and they helped me.

The boorish and rude behavior you experienced was unexcuseable and very unfortunate! If the woman handling the paperwork was familiar with the group then she should have found a way to let someone else handle their paperwork.

It is unfortunate, but the rude and the loud people are usually served at the expence of the calm and quiet. Even as a parent I know that the loudest and most difficult of my kids gets the attention because I am counting on the other child to help me with the situation. It isn't fair and I try to get better with dealing with it.

Now, to point, any organization which is dealing with an emergency and wants to help people is going toing to put helping before process. This can be taken advantage of by people who have no morals.

Right after a disaster aid is needed. A minimum amount of requirements means that people who might have lost everything don't have to show copies of bank statements and lists of assets. This can be abused, but I think that we need to focus on the abusers.

I do know about the high salaries and all the rest about Red Cross. Each time something like that happens it can be used as a means of cutting loopholes that Red Cross employees use to take advantage (making them as terrible as the people who cheat aid).

Please keep watching and don't toss this organization out with the bath water. They really do a lot of good.

I live just south of Punta Gorda where Hurricane Charley touched land. We were lucky and still had our home when it was over. It is damaged but livable until the insurance comes through (we hope).

On August 23 2004 I called the Lee County Chapter of the American Red Cross and told the women that I needed help getting some groceries. We lost everything in our fridge and 2 freezers and spent the last of our funds on hurricane supplies and items to patch the damage so the house would not be damaged further.

The women told me if I went to the disaster relief location that I could get a disposable credit card which I could take to any grocery store to purchase food such as eggs, milk, cheese and whatnot.

On August 24, I drove the 20 miles to the location on Daniels Pkwy in Fort Myers. When I walked in, there was probably 40 people in the room. There were no signs telling you where to go or sign in. After asking a few people I found the desk I needed to be at but no one was there so I waited.

While I was waiting a group of 7 women walked in and shoved right in front of me... when the Red Cross Woman showed up, she started to give me the sign in sheet first because she muct have known I was there before them but one of the women grabbed it from me and told me "we was here forst, YOU are at the end of the line". This woman also seemed to know the Red Cross woman because they were chatting like they had known each other for years and she never spoke up to tell her "friend" that I was there before he group. I kept my mouth shut because I was the minority in the room.

After I finally got to sign in I stood against a wall waiting for my "turn" and for over an hour I got to listen to a group of about 20 people joke bout how they have been sending family members here and other places every day to get "help" and I got to hear about how they had received hundreds of dollars in help from the Red Cross and local charities and whatnot and they were all laughing about how easy it was to cheat the system! This was all being said in front of the Red Cross workers loud enough for them to hear too.

After over an hour of this I was just steaming and did not want to listen anymore so I walked up to the desk and said to the woman there: "before I sit here for 2 more hours listening to these people talk about how they can cheat everyone out of hurricane relief, what do I need to have with me to make sure I don't have to come back again"?
She asked me: "well, what is it you need"? I said to her: "I only need food for a family of 4 for my fridge, we lost everything before the power came back on. I was told I could get a card to spend at the grocery here".

She then said to me: "Oh, you don't have to wait for that, I can take care of you right now". She filled out a form and gave ot to me and told me to drive to the other side of town to the Salvation Army. So I do that, fill out another form and sit for another 2 hours to get 2 bags full of canned goods! I even gave them some of the stuff back that we did not need such as water and paper towels telling them to save them for someone who needs them and they actually got an attitude with me! They told me: "lady, we have so much they are telling the employees to take it home"!

After all this time and gas I spent, I said "to hell with it and went to the grocery and used my car payment money on food for my family. I will never donate to the Red Cross again! I know they still have those food cards to give because I know a few that got them today. They are supposed to be here to help us during this time of need and all they have managed to do for me was make me more upset and frustrated about our situation. I am calling the bank in the morning and praying they will give me some time to make the car payment as I hae never been late before.

From now on I will donate to local churches instead even though they did not help me they helped others in worse shape than me without all the hassles and degridation!

The Rip-off Report placed a great deal of pressure on Dr. Bernadine Healy, CEO, American Red Cross, to account for the fund collected for the victims of the tragedy of 9/11/01. She recognized the sense in our demands and attempted to comply.



As a result of a vote of "No Confidence," last Friday, Dr. Healy was removed from her post for her formulation of the Liberty Fund, that segregates funds collected from the tragedy. Dr. Healy emphasized that she was determined these funds would not be commingled. However, she will remain in her position until the end of the year.



The fate of the $547 million Liberty Fund, which was instituted by Dr. Healy for accountability purposes, is dubious. It is likely the interim president, Harold Decker, will capitulate to the "lumped funds" concept demanded by the majority of the American Red Cross' executives, which means that accountability less likely, the promise of financial aid to the victims of 9/11/01 will likely be broken, and the largest charity will be a fat cat. We're watching you, Harold. You better make this charity more charitable!