One Bad Apple Can Spoil the Whole Barrel
By Bill Cleary
UPDATE: I just been informed that charges have been filed against the suspect who committed the crime. Further details will be coming on Wednesday after I speak with the City Police Department.
PS-From the comments being received some people seem to be missing the fact that it was because of a whistle blower the public found out about this allege crime. The e-mail I received named the person who admitted to stealing the money, which I withheld until charges if any are filed. I am asking the fire association to release a statement to confirm what is fact and what is rumor. They know by now if the money is missing since an audit was conducted last week. They also know that one of the members confessed. The association is responsible for not having better control over cash money being collected back in September. Buckets of coins and cash were mishandled I was told by someone who was there. I also wonder why the $7000 wasn\’t given to the Burn Center in September? Why did this individual still have $7000 sitting in the checking account? They can address these questions right now but they refuse to talk to me. Bill Cleary
Shock and disappointment were two of the emotions I felt last Monday morning (February 12) when I received an anonymous e-mail that someone admitted to stealing monies from the 2006 Fireman’s Softball marathon. A confidential source said $7200 is missing from the account.
For those of you who are unaware, the Gloucester City Volunteer Fireman’s Association has sponsored an annual Softball Marathon in September for many years. The event is held at the Little League Field on Nicholson Road. The teams, made up of mostly volunteer and paid firemen from all-over would play softball for 48 hours straight. The players would pay an entry fee to enter the Marathon. Firemen would stand on Nicholson Road and on Johnson Blvd. with hats in their hands collecting buckets of coins and dollar bills from passing motorists.
So many people volunteered and gave their time and money to this worthy cause. The monies would be sent to the Crozier-Chester Burn Center in Upland, Pennsylvania. To their credit those involved with running the event have raised thousands of dollars for the Burn Center.
One has to wonder if it wasn’t for the \”whistle blower\” coming forward, would the public been told the money was missing from the Softball Marathon account? I wished I felt different but I doubt it.
I have been waiting for the Association to issue a public statement to explain this unsettling news. Is it too much to ask for the officers of the organization to step-up and tell us all what is true and what is rumor?
What we are seeing instead is complete silence from those in charge. Maybe they believe the bad publicity will just go away?
I asked for further explanation last week and received this response via email from an officer of one of the volunteer fire battalions.
\”Mr. Cleary, as of this time I will not have a comment on this matter until we have this all straightened out. Until then please don\’t rely on all of your sources on this matter\”.
It is apparent the Fireman’s Association has learned nothing from the previous mistake made. To be more specific I am speaking about the $10,000 being stolen by a fireman from the same account in the 1980’s. That too was hushed up until the Gloucester City News broke the story.
What saddens me most is the fact the entire Fireman’s Association receives a black eye because of one individual.
The results of a recent study about the effects of the one bad apple concept states, \”The
Negative behavior outweighs positive behavior, so a bad apple can spoil the whole barrel,\” researchers at the University of Washington said in the current issue of the journal Research in Organizational Behavior.
\”Companies and organizations need to move quickly to deal with such problems because the negativity of just one individual is pervasive and destructive and can spread quickly,\” said co-author Terence Mitchell, a professor of management and organization.
My suggestion to the officers of the Firemen’s Association is just that; deal with this problem fast. Otherwise the entire membership of the Association looks guilty because of your silence. The public is waiting for an explanation. They deserve some answers. Not next week. Not tomorrow. But today!
What is your opinion?
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