Eugene Melnyk strikes again

[Toews]

Quote

 

GIBBONS: Melnyk's tussle with Sens Foundation could be a messy one

Rick Gibbons

 

What would you think if a charity raised nearly a million dollars but spent less than half a cent of every dollar raised on the causes it was supposed to support? Hold that thought.

 

Now, what would you think if the sole director of that same private Toronto-based charitable foundation now wants greater control over another charity, this one in Ottawa — the Ottawa Senators Foundation? You good with that? Again, hold that thought. First, some background:

 

We are witnessing the start of a blistering fight between the franchise’s enigmatic owner, Eugene Melnyk, who never seems to miss a chance to do the wrong thing on the PR front, and the team’s charitable foundation, which just happens to enjoy broad community support.

 

The fight is for nothing less than control of the Sens Foundation and the allocation of millions of dollars it dispenses to worthy causes every year. And the fight could get very messy.

 

Melnyk has long agitated for more say in the foundation’s operations, including deciding where all the money goes after the bills are paid. He wants to broaden the list of prospective recipients beyond local youth-related programs that are currently funded to embrace causes closer to his own heart, like organ donation awareness. That’s not surprising, given that he narrowly survived a liver transplant in 2015. But the manner in which he is going about it has a growing number of community leaders worried and angry.

 

The team recently warned the Sens Foundation that it will either start marching to Melnyk’s drum or be replaced by a new charitable organization that will. Last week, the foundation’s voluntary board of directors, which prides itself in its independence providing community oversight, responded with a polite “No thanks.”

 

Unless the differences are resolved, the two sides will officially part ways July 31, leaving Melnyk in search of a new charitable foundation more to his liking while the existing one embarks on a very uncertain future independent of the hockey team.

 

The team’s new president of business operations, Anthony Leblanc, told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch on Friday the team just wants to make the Sens foundation more efficient so more money can be invested in good causes, like organ donation awareness. Leblanc has been on the job seven weeks and you’d think he’d have bigger fish to fry, given the team’s myriad challenges on and off ice.

 

Undaunted, Leblanc cited a since-widely disputed 2018 Charity Intelligence Report which gave the Sens foundation a C- grade for spending about half what it raises on programs. The findings were controversial, in part because of the manner in which it calculates expenses related to 50/50 draws.

 

Charity Intelligence does not always hit the mark in assessing charities. Last year, it apologized to the Winnipeg Jets foundation for, among other reasons, misrepresenting its revenue reporting.

Still, Leblanc insisted the Sens Foundation should be spending closer to 70-80 cents of each dollar raised, a near-impossible benchmark when half the proceeds of a simple 50/50 draw are deemed to be an expense.

 

Also, it’s tough for the foundation to keep up with some other like-minded sports-related charities when some Canadian NHL teams cover the rent and even the salaries of their foundations’ employees. The Sens Foundation, meanwhile, is assessed hundreds of thousands of dollars in HR, IT, finance and rent costs annually, according to individuals familiar with the situation.

The real issue isn’t costs. It’s about control of the foundation’s operations, including where it dispenses the cash.

 

The foundation didn’t entirely ignored Melnyk’s appeal to flow at least some cash into organ donation awareness. In 2018, against its better judgment, perhaps, it budgeted $100,000, plus an additional $15,000 in sponsorships, to The Organ Project (TOP), a Toronto-based private charitable foundation set up by Melnyk in 2016 to manage his pet project — creating greater awareness about organ donations and waiting lists. Ultimately, the $100,00 was never sent.

 

According to Canada Revenue Agency filings, the Organ Donation Project generated  $991,708 in revenues in 2018, primarily thanks to a big charity gala it staged in Toronto. No doubt, that $100,000 Senators Foundation cheque helped.

 

So what happened to all that money? Again, according to CRA filings, The Organ Project invested barely $5,000 of the nearly $1 million it raised on organ donor awareness. For those without a calculator, that’s 0.49 per cent, or less than half a cent for every dollar raised. And yet the Sens Foundation is being attacked for investing about 50 cents on every dollar it raises on programs. The hypocrisy is stunning.

 

So, where did all The Organ Project money go if not to worthy causes? According to CRA,  a whopping $779,464 went to cover fundraising costs. Another $238,118 went to management and administration. I’m told these are the kind of results almost certain to draw the attention of the taxman.

 

The Organ Project is registered as a “private foundation” and, as such does not require an arm’s length community board of directors overseeing operations as does the Ottawa Senators Foundation. Instead, it appears to have only one director: Eugene Melnyk.

 

The Organ Project shut down last year with a promise to re-launch this spring. That hasn’t happened. Its Toronto office is closed and there doesn’t appear to be anybody left on the payroll.

Its balance sheet lists $201,378 in assets and $391,655 in liabilities, including  a $224,902 unpaid debt to someone with a “non-arm’s length” relationship with the private foundation, according to the CRA filing.

 

So, who do you want overseeing the important work of the Senators Foundation? A volunteer board of community leaders or … somebody else?

https://ottawasun.com/opinion/columnists/gibbons-melnyks-tussle-with-sens-foundation-could-be-a-messy-one

 

 

Personally I blame Melnyk's organ donor, if it weren't for a liver we wouldn't be here.

Edited June 8, 2020 by Toews

[JM_]

It occurred to me that splitting the foundation from the team is a good prelude to a sale. 

[Nuxfanabroad]

25 minutes ago, Jimmy McGill said:

It occurred to me that splitting the foundation from the team is a good prelude to a sale. 

As long as they stay in Canada(Ottawa preferably). Love it if they get a new Cdn owner.

 

Long suspected this dodgy league will use EM as the pretext to ship this team stateside - just while on the verge of great improvement(loaded with top youth).

[Tre Mac]

He just needs to do something appalling like what that former Clipper Owner did so the NHL can force him to sell the team.  Otherwise he seems content running that team into the ground.  

[-SN-]

The Organ Project needs to be investigated. That absolutely reeks of fraud. 

[peaches5]

This is why you need to thoroughly research charities you donate too. I think Melnyk is just clueless not committing fraud but either way this guy needs to be kicked out of the league.

[JM_]

15 minutes ago, Nuxfanabroad said:

As long as they stay in Canada(Ottawa preferably). Love it if they get a new Cdn owner.

 

Long suspected this dodgy league will use EM as the pretext to ship this team stateside - just while on the verge of great improvement(loaded with top youth).

he'll sell it to the highest bidder, my guess would be another US team. Given the league finances Bettman would welcome it. 

[Nuxfanabroad]

22 minutes ago, Jimmy McGill said:

he'll sell it to the highest bidder, my guess would be another US team. Given the league finances Bettman would welcome it. 

As this league further exploits the Cdn sucker-fan, I'll be out. Will prob keep tabs on Van's situation, but I'll never support an untrustworthy league with $/time

[NewbieCanuckFan]

43 minutes ago, StealthNuck said:

The Organ Project needs to be investigated. That absolutely reeks of fraud. 

That's Melnyk you're smelling.

[Pears]

I understand why some here don’t like Aquilini but at least he’s not an utter piece of human garbage like Melnyk is. 

[Coconuts]

I feel bad for whoever gave him their liver. Man is garbage. 

[NewbieCanuckFan]

23 minutes ago, Pears said:

I understand why some here don’t like Aquilini but at least he’s not an utter piece of human garbage like Melnyk is. 

Aquilini's heart is in the right place.  He might make 'bad decisions' but you can't question that he wants the team to succeed.  The other guy?  Team is just a means to make *him* $$$ imho.

Edited June 8, 2020 by NewbieCanuckFan

[coastal.view]

melnyk is playing an interesting game of baseball

i think in his game he gets 10 strikes before he is out

i'm thinking he has used 9 of them now ?

but have not seriously reviewed all the previous wiffs he has made and so have not kept count

[BCNeil]

You expect 90% of the money to go to administration and fundraising costs.........not 99.5

[Ghostsof1915]

2 minutes ago, BCNeil said:

You expect 90% of the money to go to administration and fundraising costs.........not 99.5

Sounds more like a televangelist than a charity. 

[JeremyCuddles]

Move em to Quebec already. 

[Fanuck]

4 hours ago, Tre Mac said:

He just needs to do something appalling like what that former Clipper Owner did so the NHL can force him to sell the team.  Otherwise he seems content running that team into the ground.  

While I agree, he needs to go.  Conduct detrimental to the league or whatever bs reason they make up is fine.

That said, he'd need to do something far, far worse than squabble with a charitable organization in order for the NHL BOG to force him out - all of the league owners know that if they get rid of him, any one of them who makes a wrong step could be next and they don't want to wage war on their own 'old boys club'. 

[King Heffy]

4 hours ago, Coconuts said:

I feel bad for whoever gave him their liver. Man is garbage. 

I'd be demanding it back if I was the poor bastard who'd made the mistake of prolonging Melnyk's worthless excuse for a life.  Keeping that bum alive caused more damage to the team than if they'd hired Mike Milbury for 3 years.

[peaches5]

4 minutes ago, King Heffy said:

I'd be demanding it back if I was the poor bastard who'd made the mistake of prolonging Melnyk's worthless excuse for a life.  Keeping that bum alive caused more damage to the team than if they'd hired Mike Milbury for 3 years.

Your liver regenerates in a few months. It's our only organ that can regenerate. 

[King Heffy]

4 minutes ago, peaches5 said:

Your liver regenerates in a few months. It's our only organ that can regenerate. 

Yep, but I'd still want to take a mulligan on the mistake of saving Melnyk's live.  Wouldn't want the liver back, just wouldn't want him to have it either.

Edited June 9, 2020 by King Heffy