The story about 90-year Fran Itkoff, who was kicked to the curb by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) after 60 years of volunteer service, has pretty much “gone viral,” as they say. Therefore, I wasn’t sure I wanted to throw my two cents in, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense to do it. The main purpose of this Substack is exposing the myriad lies that we are spoon fed from cradle to grave and the big charities certainly tell their share of whoppers. It’s time to expose them to a little sunlight.
I recall quite well where my long-standing suspicions about charities were solidified. I suppose it is fair to say I have always been skeptical about anyone asking me for money but there was a time when I believed that big name charities actually did at least some good work. But I could still not shake off my suspicions and was therefore reluctant to hand my money to them.
When I worked in the corporate world I was employed by a big company that had an affiliation with a charity you have likely heard of: The United Way.
Every year the company would set aside a week or month or whatever it was, to promote donations to the United Way. But what made this effort a bit unique was that they were encouraging us to make donations on a regular and consistent basis by allowing them to extract those donations from our paychecks.
Being skeptical about charities, especially big ones, I always declined to have the company dip into my earnings and extract donations to the United Way. Especially since I was living and working in Massachusetts at the time and there was already plenty of money being extracted from my paycheck in the form of state and federal taxes. That whole approach to charitable donations just rubbed me the wrong way. Hard. Probably for similar reasons as to why I never set up automatic bill payments. I just don’t like the idea of someone taking my money when I’m not looking. It just gives me the creeps.
Little did I know at the time that my suspicions about the United Way would be validated and that was thanks to a man named William J. Aramony. He was the chairman of the United Way for twenty years beginning in 1972. He is credited with helping to build the United Way into the largest charity in the United States. Now that’s an organization that’s taking in a lot of cash!
Apparently, all the incoming cash presented a great temptation to Aramony and I suppose it would to most people, but it’s what you do about that temptation and not so much about the fact that it exists. Aramony had a choice to make and unfortunately for the United Way and all the people it supposedly serves, as well as for Aramony himself, he chose the low road.
After his divorce in 1988, rumors began to surface that Aramony was wining and dining a teenage girl on lavish vacation trips in places like Cairo, London and Paris. Everyone knows that your average young woman does not carry on with a 61-year-old man unless she has a good reason and in this case, it does not seem likely that those reasons were due to Aramony’s good looks, charm and personality. But I accept that I could be wrong about that.
Over time, more suspicious activities came to light. He was said to be flying first class when traveling and sometimes even flying on the legendary Concorde. He was also reported to be hiring chauffeur-driven cars and buying expensive gifts for friends.
By 1991, other United Way big shots were hearing enough about Aramony’s exploits to convince them it was time to look into it. They hired an outside firm to investigate Aramony and determine if there was any truth to the rumors and allegations. Although the investigation did not result in any evidence that Aramony himself engaged in any wrong-doing, what it did reveal was probably just as interesting.
The investigation found that the organization was plagued by “sloppy record-keeping, inattention to detail, and accounting problems.” And since all of Aramony’s travel expenses were subject to approval by the board of directors, one has to wonder if the corruption extended beyond Aramony himself and was just never fully investigated. With a fall guy set to go down, perhaps that was enough to settle things and satisfy the public outcry for justice.
And cry out they did! What else could have influenced local chapters to disassociate themselves from the organization or stop sending in their 1 percent to cover the dues that the national office mandated. People were understandably outraged when they learned that their hard-earned money was being used for some aging executive to “entertain” a teenaged girlfriend on expensive holiday trips and enjoy other luxuries that are usually associated with the wealthy.
You would think Aramony’s lifestyle would be enviable enough prior to the scandal considering his $390,000 salary at the time as well as the $73,000 he collected in “other compensation.” Does it not seem a tad disingenuous for an organization that claims to be helping the poor and disadvantaged to be spending over $450,000 to compensate a top executive? Amazingly, that did not seem to be sufficient for Aramony.
Another investigation would soon be launched and this time it was the Federal Government that came snooping around. As a result, Aramony, along with CFO Thomas J. Merlo and Partnership Umbrella President Stephen J. Paulachak were charged with defrauding the United Way to the tune of $1.2 million.
Aramony was found guilty in 1995 and was sentenced to 7 years in prison and a $300,00 fine. He never admitted wrongdoing and had filed several appeals but all were denied. He was released from prison in 2001 and placed on probation for an additional three years. The $300,000 fine was vacated since Aramony had no means to pay it. He remarried in 2002 and died in 2011.
Let me tell you a little about the impression that makes on people. This happened some 30 years ago but I never forgot that name. To this day, every time I hear the United Way mentioned, the name “Aramony” comes immediately to mind. I did not remember his first name and had to look it up but I sure did remember his last name. And that comes from someone who never gave them a penny. Imagine how well someone would remember if they had made regular donations to that organization from their paycheck for years.
Unfortunately, it is likely that William Aramony was not the only charity insider that was enriching himself using money that the public had donated with the intention of assisting those in need. And it is not something that just happened 30 years ago. It is likely, if not certainly, going on today.
Although this latest kerfuffle with 90-year-old Fran Iskoff being booted by the NMSS does not involve anything as scandalous as fraud, it does tell us a lot about that organization. The fact that they would do that to a well-meaning elderly woman whose late husband had MS is disgraceful. She had devoted 60 years of volunteer work to that organization because she believed they were doing good things for people suffering from multiple sclerosis. Her offence? Well, she had the audacity to show some signs of confusion after noticing that some people in the organization had started to add pronouns after their names on written correspondence. Being someone who lived the majority of her life in a world that made infinitely more sense than the upside-down, woke clown world we currently seem to be existing in, she was understandably confused. And for that she was shown the door.
In order to be good citizens of our clown world, the NMSS had decided to adopt policies that are consistent with DEI, otherwise known as “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.” I won’t delve into what that’s all about other than to say it’s purpose is to legitimize and promote all the contemporary nonsense regarding men pretending to be women, women pretending to be men, people pretending to be animals and God knows what else. And because an elderly volunteer did not understand all that, she was told she would no longer be welcome as a volunteer.
Undoubtedly, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society is a fine, upstanding organization that is only doing good for those suffering with MS, right? As someone whose brother had MS and who has a brother-in-law and nephew suffering from it now, I have some experience with that disease. I have no doubt that there are millions of MS sufferers that have faith in institutions like the NMSS and look to them for hopeful signs that there may some day be a cure. In fact, on their website they state, “The National MS Society is bringing the world together to cure MS for every single person — as fast as possible.”
Sounds promising, no? Sadly, I do not believe that the main focus of the NMSS is to assist people with MS. Do you think they would be able to continue to exist and collect donations if there was a cure for MS? Their stated goal is one that does not coexist with their continued existence. And I dare say that existence enriches a few people in the organization quite enviably.
When I started to dig in a bit to NMSS financials I was initially somewhat encouraged. It turns out that was because I had first discovered salary ranges for employees that you might think of as “regular people.” You know, office managers, administrative assistants, IT staff and the like. Those salaries all looked quite in line with the norm and I considered them to be fairly typical. That sure changed quickly when I started to see the executive salaries.
Why don’t we start with the NMSS CEO, a woman named Cynthia Zagieboylo, who is, by the way listed as CEO and President. Impressive. And indeed she should be considering the $473,993 salary she was awarded in 2022. And let’s not forget the $33,350 in “other” compensation she collected. That puts her safely in the half-a-mil-per-year club. Curing multiple sclerosis must be hard work! And to think that fine compensation package would probably go “Poof!” if a real cure was discovered for MS. I can see that she is substantially incentivized to work day and night to bring that cure to the masses just as soon as she is able.
It might be interesting to mention a few of the other top executives of the NMSS and see if they are being properly rewarded for their hard work and passion. From the same source, we find that Lisa Goldfarb, Chief Ppl, Vol & Comm Eng Officer (whatever the hell that is) was rewarded with a $331,191 salary and $34,536 in “other compensation” while John Scott, Chief Mkt & Development Officer, enjoyed a generous $325,645 salary and an impressive $50,221 in “other compensation” for his blood, sweat and tears. (I had to include at least one dude to satisfy DEI requirements.)
The list, as you might imagine, goes on with more generous compensation packages that you can check out yourself with the included links if you are inclined. Suffice to say that they are all pretty well compensated for their service to the NMSS. Is what they do really beneficial enough for MS sufferers to justify that kind of compensation? What do you suppose an MS sufferer living on a $900-a-month disability payment might think if he or she (they?) were presented with those facts and figures? They might think that a portion of those generous salaries might be better spent on finding that elusive cure. Wouldn’t a $100,000 salary be generous as well? It’s more than the average American makes, that’s for sure. Why are they compensated so generously from funds that were most likely donated to the organization to help people suffering from MS?
I wish a had a clear and accurate answer to that question but without insider knowledge of what actually goes on within the NMSS, I can only speculate. One potential reason is that the organization takes in a lot of money. In 2022, they collected a total of $166,995,681 in contributions and that’s a fair bit more than a hill of beans! Perhaps they figure that taking in $167 million justifies throwing a few hundred thousand over to the top people who presumably make all those donations happen. But still, I just can’t help but wonder why some of the top earners wouldn’t scale back their compensation a bit for the sake of devoting more resources to the cause – finding a cure for MS. Surely they are passionate enough about the mission to at least consider that, right?
At this point it is hard for me not to think about the 90-year-old volunteer who was cast out of the NMSS after 60 years of service. As a volunteer, she didn’t collect a salary, generous or otherwise, but she was still shown the door. As a result, the NMSS cannot even claim they will benefit from a reduction in expenses as a result, but I am willing to bet it could be said that the organization will suffer, if only a little, by the absence of a woman devoted enough to volunteer her time and effort for 6 decades. For Fran Iskoff there can be no doubt that her efforts were a labor of love. I doubt the same could be said for the NMSS as a whole. Unless one considers the love of money.
Getting back to our high-earning heroes, as the top earner, CEO and President Cynthia Zagieboylo is probably a good place to start. If employee reviews are any indication, she does not seem to be especially popular with the organization’s minions.
Glassdoor is a website where people can go to post reviews about organizations they have worked for. The NMSS and their leadership did not engender glowing positive reviews from the people who posted on the site. Overall, only 47 percent approve of the CEO (and President!) and coincidentally, only 47 percent would recommend the NMSS as a good place to work. That might not be the best look for a charitable organization.
Disgruntled employees not withstanding, let’s be fair and give credit where it is due. Back in 2016, Ms. Zagieboylo dared to challenge the forces of Big Pharma according to the New York Times. While many of her peers in the charitable world remained silent about the rising cost of drugs used to treat all manner of ailments and ills, Zagieboylo defied warnings about speaking up and went ahead with a new campaign that would call attention to the issue.
The article does not mention whether or not the NMSS suffered any consequences as a result of their campaign but considering that in 2016 the organization accepted some $10 million from Big Pharma and in 2022 they accepted $8.5 million, it does not appear that they punished the NMSS that severely if they did at all. Perhaps $8.5 million pales in comparison to the $167 million in contributions the NMSS received in 2022 but it is still a tidy bundle of cash. I surely wouldn’t object if someone wanted to hand me that amount.
Even though the amount that NMSS receives directly from Big Pharma may be a relatively small percentage of their total income, it does not mean they aren’t essentially owned by Big Pharma, whether they realize it or not. That does not make them unique since practically the entire medical industry is owned by the drug makers. Since the NMSS only promotes treatments devised and promoted by Big Pharma and appears to discourage any form of alternative treatment, when it comes down to it, they are just another Big Pharma mouthpiece.
The page on their website dedicated to “Complementary and Alternative Medicines” is written in a way that seems to discourage alternative treatments and makes sure to mention the potential dangers of those treatments. They issue the standard medical industry advice to make sure you tell your doctor about any alternative treatments you might try. They know that the majority of physicians treating MS patients will discourage alternative treatments because their training dictates that the only effective treatments come from Big Pharma.
The passage I found particularly amusing on that page was this one: “Unlike conventional medical treatments that are thoroughly tested and carefully regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), most supplements have undergone very little — if any — scientific study to evaluate their safety and effectiveness.” My, my, that’s a good one. Rest assured that the thoroughly corrupt FDA is watching out for you. The same FDA that is staffed at the highest levels with Big Pharma veterans. The same FDA that rushed the approval of the dangerous Covid-19 “vaccines” that have killed and disabled so many around the world. Yes indeed, that’s an agency you can place an enormous amount of trust in.
There is not a shortage of alternative treatments for MS and there is reason to believe that some of those treatments are effective. Take Mathew Embry for example. To say he has devoted a super-human amount of passion and effort into promoting effective alternative treatments would be an understatement. He’s even made a movie about his own experience with MS.
Considering the NMSS’s refusal to recommend any treatment that does not enrich Big Pharma, it is not difficult to conclude that there may be significant pressure on the part of the “experts” who advise NMSS regarding treatments to fund or recommend to patients. The NMSS has a number of committees consisting of people who seem to have impressive credentials like Ph.D and M.D. listed after their names. Perhaps for a few of them they might consider appending a dollar sign as well since they have received a lot of money from Big Pharma and have the potential to be influenced by that.
Since the government’s Open Payments website only includes data for payments health care providers receive from Big Pharma, I am not able to determine if any of the many members of NMSS’s various committees with designations such as Ph.D receive any type of compensation. Therefore, we will focus on those with medical credentials and see what kind of financial relationships they have with Big Pharma.
One of the most important committees seems to be the Scientific Advisory Committee. That committee is described by the NMSS thusly: “The senior oversight committee (Scientific Advisory Committee) is comprised of renowned scientists, staff, and volunteer leadership. This committee provides advice on programs and strategies to advance research. Final funding decisions are made by the Society’s CEO.” Sounds pretty important indeed.
The other committees do not seem quite as impressive but even so, some of the medical doctors that are members have received payments from Big Pharma so they are worthy of consideration as well.
Here’s a helpful chart showing the members of the various committees who have received money from Big Pharma during 2022:
The doctors who are members of these committees are the ones who are providing advice that will help to determine how all that NMSS money will be spent. The leadership relies heavily on them for advice regarding where the organization will direct funding for research. Presumably the search for the cure that never seems to surface despite the astronomical amount of money that has been spent.
The vast majority of the medical doctors on NMSS’s various committees received payments from Big Pharma. Does that make them unique? I rather doubt it and suspect that most medical doctors receive these kinds of payments. And that is why they have the potential to be influenced by Big Pharma just like the doctors on the list above. It’s kind of an interesting illustration of just how much money the pharmaceutical industry generates. And this is a very, very small sample. Is it any wonder they wield the influence that they do?
I would imagine that the leadership at the NMSS has been in panic mode since the story involving Fran Iskoff broke and that will likely continue until the dust settles. It is likely that there are a lot of people who have decided that they will no longer contribute to the NMSS but whether or not that will have any real effect on their income remains to be seen.
There are bound to be a significant portion of dedicated NMSS supporters who do not appreciate their devotion to DEI ideology and the whole woke agenda. This incident leaves no doubt that as an organization, the NMSS is aligned with left-wing efforts to destroy this country as we know it. It’s abundantly clear at this point that the goal is exactly that.
You would think than an organization like the National Multiple Sclerosis Society would focus all its resources and efforts on assisting with the fight against MS and not allow themselves to be distracted by politics but that is not the case. Perhaps that is just another indication that they really are not as dedicated to the cause as they claim.
I am certainly not the only person in the world that is skeptical about charities and the good that they claim to do, especially the big ones. And the fact that the NMSS has been around presumably working day and night to find a cure for 77 years (!) and has still not been able to facilitate one might make one even more skeptical.
At the very least, one might hope that this incident might serve as a useful message for charitable organizations. Clearly aligning yourself so strongly with a political ideology, and a pretty extreme one at that, is not the smartest way to run a charity. They have potentially alienated half of their contributors over a foolish decision to terminate an incredibly devoted volunteer because she grew up and lived most of her life in a world very different from the current one.
Given what I believe about the NMSS and whether their existence actually results in any positive results for MS patients, it is hard for me to feel sorry for them after this. Perhaps the money people contribute to the organization with the idea of helping MS sufferers would be better spent elsewhere. The near total capture of the entire conventional medical system by Big Pharma is not something that actually benefits anyone suffering with a serious illness. As I have already stated, true cures for those diseases would potentially put them out of business and that fact places them in a difficult position. Do they want the organization that pays them such generous salaries to cease to exist? I rather doubt it.
UPDATE: Apparently the NMSS has seen the error of their ways! They have apologized to Fran Itkoff and say they want to find a way to work with her again. Let me translate that for you: “We realized that our dedication to ridiculous woke initiatives like DEI has alienated a sufficient portion of our regular contributors and as a result a noticeable decline in donations was observed. That, of course, could threaten the organization and especially the generous salaries that the leadership enjoys so we have decided that Fran is not such an awful person after all and we want her back with the hope of bringing those disgruntled donors back into the fold.