By MARY STARR
A spokesman for a veterans organization that was asked to stop a fundraising effort Sunday at Walmart by Glynn County police says his group had every right to be there and to solicit donations.
Bill Mock said representatives with the Veterans Service Organization were asked to leave the premises of Walmart, where the group was collecting donations for veterans.
"We were asked to leave by local police," said Mock. "We were told to leave because we did not have a permit." They didn’t have a permit because they didn’t need one, he said. Mock said his group has solicited funds for more than a year in Glynn County and has been told by the county business office that permits are not required for organizations that have been granted 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The VSO has that status.
Mock said Sunday was the first time the group has encountered any problem with law enforcement. He said proper clearance had been obtained from local Walmart managers.
While not affiliated with any specific veteran’s organization, the VSO, which has offices in several states, works with Veterans Affairs field offices and coordinates with groups such as the Disabled American Veterans, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Wounded Warrior Project to help veterans who are in financial need.
"We’re a legitimate organization," Mock said, explaining that representatives have documentation that details the group’s registrations and supports their legitimacy.
Tina Herring with the Brunswick office of the Georgia Department of Veterans Affairs in Brunswick vouched for the organization, saying it had helped out some local veterans who were in financial straits.
Matt Carrothers, spokesperson for the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, said most charities are required to register with the state. The VSO is registered with the office, he said.
If people want to verify that a charity is registered, they can visit the office’s Web site at www.sos.ga.gov, said Carrothers.
Carrothers said the Secretary of State’s office Web site also has information about how to determine if a charity is legitimate, and contains links to other Web sites that give consumers information about charitable organizations, including how much of the funds they actually receive go directly to charity.
Ashley Hardy, a spokesperson for Walmart’s corporate offices in Bentonville, Ark., said the discount chain regularly allows charitable and civic organizations to collect donations outside its stores if the group first obtains the approval of local store management.
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