What is the worst fundraising scam you have heard of?

myopenhandsguy: What is the worst fundraising scam you have heard of?
I work with small non-profit groups, and am working on proposals for some potential clients. The hardest part of this business is building trust, because so many people in fundraising are scam artists.

I am collecting people’s stories of bad deals and rip-offs. Would be interested in yours.

Answers and Views:

Answer by sportmavericks
During the Katrina disaster, there were people collecting for Katrina and selling the goods back at a flea market (Rumored)

Answer by math_goddess
I think the worst fundraising scam of all time was when that famous televangelist (no name, no blame) said that God would “call him home” if his followers didn’t help him raise some humongous amount of money within such and such a time!

Answer by mstrywmn
I heard that soon after the flood in Johnstown, PA, some people came around collecting money for the “Flood”. They apparently collected a great deal of money. It turned out their last name was Flood.

Answer by nursesr4evr
National Cancer Society. They have a name similar to American Cancer Society (a very good one) and appearently it takes 450,000 overhead to finally get $ 200 to the actual cause.
If you’re looking for bad ones, I’d say watch for name rip offs like this.
Another one is the awareness walks for breast cancer. Although they are legitimate, since one woman in 7 gets cancer, we ALL know someone who has it. We need a cure, not awareness.