Saturday, March 29, 2008
Of $28,000 raised, $10,000 has gone for funeral and survivor expenses.
YOUNGSTOWN — The president of the foundation that conducted a major fund-raising effort on behalf of surviving members of the Crawford family after the Jan. 23 East Side house fire that killed six people said the foundation is legitimate and the money raised is going for its intended purpose.
Tabitha Hunter, of McGuffey Road, president of the Progressing Foundation, testified Friday in Mahoning County Probate Court the foundation is registered with the IRS as a nonprofit organization.
Hunter spoke at a hearing scheduled by Probate Judge Mark A. Belinky to ascertain details of the fundraising and distribution and to ensure the donated money was going to the intended beneficiaries.
“In the chaos of this horrific tragedy, a lot of people are trying to do the right thing,” the judge said, adding that he has “no preconceived notions about what happened and whether there was any wrongdoing.”
The judge said, however, “We have a very, very generous community, and we need to assure the public that the money goes to its intended purpose” to pay for the funerals and help support the survivors.
Immediately after the arson at 1645 Stewart Ave. that killed six members of the Crawford family, Hunter said the foundation opened an account at National City Bank to accept donations for Retia Crawford, 19, and her brother, Julius Crawford, 17, who escaped from the burning house.
Because Julius is a minor, Hunter said her intent was for the money to go toward Retia’s relocation and living expenses and for Retia to share the donated money with Julius.
“I’m not just going to give it all to her at once. I’ll disburse it as I have been doing,” Hunter said of her intent for the funds.
When NCB officials said the bank was overwhelmed with the high volume of donor inquiries, Hunter said she transferred about $16,000 of the money to Chase Bank, where officials said they could handle the volume of inquiries and manage and invest the money for the beneficiaries.
The foundation has raised about $28,000 for the Crawford family and spent about $10,000, including $4,784 for a car for Retia, $1,500 for her living expenses, and $2,000 toward funeral expenses for those who perished in the blaze.
The remaining funds are in National City Bank and at Chase.
Because he had received questions about the fund-raising activities and about what he said were unexplained withdrawals from the bank accounts, the judge froze the foundation’s bank accounts in early February and scheduled the hearing.
Judge Belinky took the matter under advisement and said he expects to rule early next week on whether to unfreeze the bank accounts and how to distribute the funds.
In early February, the judge designated NCB as the guardian of the victims’ estate and appointed the Rev. Lewis W. Macklin II, who had been counseling the victims’ family, as the guardian of Julius Crawford.
To date, the judge said a total of more than $100,000 has been donated by Mahoning Valley residents in various fund-raising efforts for the Crawford family since the fire.
Carol Crawford, 46; her daughter, Jennifer R. Crawford, 23; and Jennifer’s four children, Ranaisha, 8; Jeannine, 5; Aleisha, 3; and Brandon, 2, died in the fire.
Michael A. Davis, 18, of Bennington Avenue, is charged with setting the fire under a 29-count aggravated murder and aggravated arson indictment with death-penalty specifications.
His jury trial is set for Oct. 6 before Judge R. Scott Krichbaum of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.
milliken@vindy.com