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12 ▼ October 7, 1904 ▼ just out
/>o >ói/ E xperience
local briefs
Sym ptom s O f
PANIC?
(J Sudden Fear
(_l Shortness of Breath
L Dizziness or Fainting
L
Back on track
With financial turbulence behind it,
CAP is working to regain support
Shakiness, Sweating
by Inga Sorensen
L Feelings of Unreality
LI Chest Pains-
Pounding Heart
olstering public confidence is the pri
mary goal of the Cascade AIDS
Project now that the agency has been
given a clean bill of health by the state
Department of Justice.
“There’s still a lot of watchfulness and skepti
cism out there, but we plan to prove to the public
that CAP is getting back on its fiscal feet,” says
Susan Stoltenberg, CAP’S executive director.
During the past year CAP has been ravaged by
a series of financial problems, including claims
that one former employee— Rob Kaola Bradley
Strahan— diverted nearly
$15,000 of CAP funds into
his personal account. The
state Justice Department re
leased findings of a lengthy
investigation intoCAP’s fis
cal problems Sept. 29. The
26-page report details the
difficulties of the agency,
whose budget of nearly $ 1.4
million makes it Oregon’s
largest HIV/AIDS education
and service organization.
Susan Stoltenberg
“By January 1994, CAP
was an organization in substantial fiscal and ad
ministrative disarray,” wrote Ross Layboum, the
attorney in charge of the Justice Department’s
Charitable Activities Section and author of the
report. “[The organization] has taken significant
corrective measures, prior to receiving any spe
cific recommendations from this office. [Based]
on our review and charting process of the last six
months of the 1993-94 fiscal year, we know of no
inherent reason why the organization should not
presently be deserving of the public’s consider
ation for further financial and volunteer assis
tance.”
The report found “no evidence that any indi
vidual has misused CAP assets or funds for his or
her personal benefit, with one notable exception.”
That exception is Strahan, who was the chief
financial officer at that time. He was removed
from that position April 7. The agency was also
criticized for “inadequate and unrealistic budget
ing” and “inadequate board-level and executive
level-management, staff guidance and oversight”
prior to March 1994.
The report noted CAP has undergone many
positive changes in recent months, most notably,
it applauds the recent hiring of a new administra
tive staff, including Stoltenberg, as well as the
recruitment of new board members who have
“extensi ve backgrounds in
corporate fiscal manage
ment and accounting.”
CAP took another shot
of bad publicity in Febru
ary 1994 after it hired at
torney Ben Merrill to in
vestigate the agency’s fi
nances. Merrill became the
focus of an Internal Rev
enue Service investigation
(unrelated to CAP) and has
since resigned from the
O regon State Bar. At
CAP’s request, the state Department of Justice
took over the investigation.
“The public’s confidence has been greatly
shaken. Usually we attract 3,000 people to our
AIDS walk [an annual CAP fund-raiser]. This
year only 2,000 people showed up,” says
Stoltenberg. “But I’m hopeful that, intime, people
will see that we’re back on track.”
CAP, which was founded in 1984, is a non
profit public benefit corporation serving people
with AIDS and HIV. The group also provides
educational programs to prevent the spread of
HIV. Approximately half of CAP’s funding comes
from federal, state and county grants and con
tracts; the remaining amount comes from private
contributions.
A new PAC in town
Oregon-Southwest Washington Community Pro
gram for Clinical Research on AIDS) is the only
community-based HIV/AIDS clinical trials re
source in the Pacific Northwest.
“These CPCRA awards strengthen our capa
bility and commitment to offer HIV-infected pa
tients clinical trials of HIV therapies in community
settings such as private practices and clinics, as
well as health centers,” said Anthony S. Fauci,
M.D., director of NIAID. “The CPCRA uses the
expertise of primary care physicians and nurses
caring for people with HIV disease and involves
these health care professionals in clinical research
on AIDS.”
B
Pacific Northwest Clinical Research Center is now studying
a new investigational medication that may improve the
symptoms o f panic disorder. Participation is free to those
w ho qualify. Individuals experiencing alcohol or drug
abuse or ptx>rly controlled medical problems cannot be
accepted for this research.
If you are interested in participating in this research, please
call our 24-hour message service.
Pacific Northwest
C linical R esearch C enter
(
503 ) 288-0011
SEE LIS FOR ALL YOUR COLLISION REPAIR NEEDS
We don’t gift wrap our
free checking
Butwedoinduaea
thoughtful card.
The newly formed Families Political Action
Committee has announced its opposition to Ballot
Measure 13. The organization represents the di
versity of family structures and will launch a
community education effort to defeat the measure.
Families PAC will focus its efforts on the threat
Ballot Measure 13 poses to the freedom of families
of all types, the integrity of a democratic educa
tional system, and the safety of all children. For
information, or to make a donation, contact Marie
Sorenson (503) 253-8160, or Bonnie Tinker
(503) 288-4306, or write Families PAC, PO Box
1485, Sandy, OR 97055.
Local group gets
money for AIDS trials
VA^shington Mutual’s Classic Checking has no minimum balance requirements
and no m onthly service fees. Plus it includes a W ashington M utual Cash
Card' that lets you conveniently access your checking acco u n t at stores,
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deal on checking and a good deal more.
So stop by and get a good
MUM Washington Mutual
Th« friand of th a fam ily'
1 800 756-8000
-
FDIC Insured
The National Institute of Allergy and Infec
tious Diseases has awarded a five-year grant of
$4.3 million to The Research & Education Group
for community-based AIDS clinical trials and the
study of promising HIV therapies.
Only 16 programs in the nation have received
funding from NIAID for this research. The Re
search & Education Group will use the money not
only to continue the work it is doing here in
Oregon, but also to expand the program into South
west Washington. Currently, The Research & Edu
cation Group (whose name is changing to the
.* lA'yf, V.Vi',' »
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Rev. Rodney Page honored
The Metropolitan Human Rights Commission
holds its awards dinner on Wednesday, Oct. 12, at
the Portland Hilton Hotel, 921 SW Sixth Ave. The
highlight of the dinner will be the presentation of
the Russell A. Peyton Award to the Rev. Rodney
Page, executive director of Ecumenical Ministries
of Oregon. Page has been a longtime advocate for
social justice and human rights for all people.
The featured speaker for the dinner will be
Donna Red Wing, activist, organizer and director
of the national Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against
Defamation. For more information, contact MHRC
at 823-5136.
Compiled by Jann Gilbert