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The Salvation Army Carolinas Division Carolinas Division » News » Fraudulent Check Response

The Salvation Army Responds

Charleston Office Receives Fraudulent $25,000 check

As has been reported through many news outlets, The Salvation Army of Charleston, SC received a fraudulent $25,000 check during the Christmas holiday season. This story has generated a significant response and interest from many individuals across the nation.

Captain Anthony Juliana, the commanding officer of The Salvation Army's work in the Charleston area has prepared the following response to the public.

Dear Friends,

We at The Salvation Army in Charleston stand amazed and encouraged and extremely humbled at the wonderful response of people, just like you. Your generosity in response to this act of fraud demonstrates your concern for people who are hurting in the Low Country of South Carolina. That, to The Salvation Army, is the real story here. If you are looking for ways to help financially, please feel free to:


  •  Use our local Christmas Assistance Program website,  http://www.LowcountryAngels.com and donate through the on-line red kettle. This is a secure way to give directly to the Charleston, South Carolina Salvation Army using your credit card.
  • By sending your gift to The Salvation Army, Post Office Box 70579, North Charleston, South Carolina 29415.

We will be posting updates and will be providing media outlets with word on how generous people like you have come along side of The Salvation Army to help those less fortunate in the Low Country of South Carolina. 

And now, the rest of the story, so to speak:

The Best Practices of The Salvation Army do not include the spending of money that it does not, in fact, have. And, while the Christmas season is our highest profile time of year, it is also a time of year that we see the magnitude of need in our community all in a singular period of time. This year we provided food for Thanksgiving and for Christmas to over 2,300 families in Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties of South Carolina. This equates to over 7,900 individuals. Additionally, we distributed an average of 3 new toys per person to over 4,500 local children 12 years of age and under. Each child was also provided a new book to help with their reading skills, and a stuffed animal. In the midst of these three days of distribution, we received what looked to be a legitimate donation of $25,000.00. Immediately after the distribution days concluded, we were made aware of another 100 families who were in need of Christmas assistance. What could we do? We needed to purchase more toys. We needed to purchase more food gift cards. We needed to come along side of the hurting people of our community. So, we did! We did so breathing a bit easier that we had received a donation that could help us meet this need. Additionally, we began allocating funding for future use to help families with rental assistance and keep families together in their homes. We began allocating funds for future use to help families with utility assistance as they faced emergencies, such as the freezing temperatures we are experiencing now, that would inhibit them from paying heating bills. By the time we received word that the donation in question was not payable on an active account, we had not spent $25,000.00 before it had cleared, but we had indeed allocated the funding for immediate use in the emergency Christmas cases and the future use of rental and utility assistance.

The fact is, the annual donations made to The Salvation Army in Charleston have experienced a significant drop over this past year. Conversely, the numbers of requests for help have increased significantly as well. The challenge for The Salvation Army is how to help more people with fewer resources. This unexpected donation was going to help us answer that pressing question.

A few things we’d like to make clear: 

  1.  The Salvation Army is not casting blame at either our bank, SouthCoast Community Bank, nor is it casting blame at Force Protection, the company whose name, letterhead and check was used to commit the fraud.
  2. While The Salvation Army center in Charleston, South Carolina is a victim of fraud, the true victims are the families that would have benefited from such a gift. The families of Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester Counties.
  3. We are truly humbled by the way caring people, such as yourself, have thoughtfully and generously responded. As I said, this is the real story. You are making an immediate impact in the lives of our hurting neighbors. For your confidence in us to make that impact, we are most grateful.

Finally, for those of you who reside outside of the Charleston, South Carolina area, we are most grateful for your support of our community. We would be remiss if we didn’t also encourage you to be supportive of your local Salvation Army, as well. While we have been the victims of a hurtful act, please know that your local Salvation Army also needs your support to help people who live in your community. Together we are committed to “doing the most good” – in the communities in which we live and serve.

Thank you again. May God Bless You for your thoughtfulness and generosity.

Gratefully,

Captain Anthony T. Juliana
Commanding Officer