O ▼ J a n u a ry 8 , 1 0 0 9 ▼ j u s t o u t
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Spin doctors, ho!
Controversy surrounds Melinda Paras,
the new executive director o f NGLTF
by Bob Roehr
Nora Isacson
The Prudential Rod Girtman REALTORS, Inc.
215 SE 102nd Avenue, Suite 300
Portland, OR 97216
(503) 256-1234
SPACIOUS IRVINGTON/ALAMEDA BUNGALO
Nora Isacson
The Prudential
Rod Girtman Inc. Realtors
215 SE 102nd #300 Portland, OR 97216
256-1234 office, 948-5610 VM/pager
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PHOTO BY VINCENT R IG A R M I
Completely and impeccably restored
with original flavor, this home is in
credible. From french doors and crown
moldings to the beautiful mahogony in-
laid hardwood floors, this home has all
of its original charm and character in
tact. You will enjoy cooking in this un
usually large 15‘x13' kitchen with solid
oak custom cabinets and ‘Jennaire’
type built-in range. This home is ideal
for entertaining in its light open formal
dining room or around an inviting fire
place and the spacious living room.
There are numerous mechanical up
dates and a large clean unfinished
basement perfect for kids and projects.
Melinda Paras
he National Gay and Lesbian Task
Force has selected Melinda Paras to be
its next executive director. The Dec. 6
announcement was seen as highly con
troversial in many comers of the les
bian and gay community.
Paras’ most recent administrative position was
at Shanti Project, an AIDS service organization in
San Francisco, where she rose to deputy director.
Both Paras and Shanti executive director Eric
Rofes resigned in April 1993, under a cloud of
accusations that they mismanaged government
contracts.
Paras had started at Shanti working on diversity
training and multicultural programs. “But once she
got there, with amazing speed, suddenly she was
up to her eyeballs involved with the financing,”
recounted Marc Ansley, chief financial officer for
Shanti Project from December 1990 to February
1992. Rofes soon created the position of deputy
director and moved Paras to fill it.
"Once it [a contract] was granted, Melinda
deemed they were going to do other things with the
money, said Ellen Hardtke. Hardtke was director
of housing—Shanti’s biggest program—and the
one who blew the whistle on the misuse of contract
money.
Ansley and Hardtke supplied many examples
of how money was spent on things not specified in
the contracts. Hundreds of thousands of dollars
earmarked for direct housing services were redi
rected to other purposes. That translated into more
than 40 people with AIDS out on the streets and not
in the housing the contracts had paid for.
T
Pressure mounted in early 1993 and led to the
resignations of Paras and Rofes, both ostensibly
for reasons of health. Shanti returned $1.9 million
in contracts “voluntarily, before the [city’s] AIDS
office demanded it,” according to Paul Lambros,
the interim executive director, who made the com
ment to The Advocate.
Dr. Mitchell Katz told the press in 1993, “We
have problems with their [Shanti’s] mismanage
ment of a substantial amount of city money.” Katz
is director of the city of San Francisco’s HIV/
AIDS office.
Several audits ensued, including an indepen
dent one by the firm of Coopers & Lybrand. It
found “excess reimbursement for disallowed ex
penses.”
“The audit demonstrates that during 1991-92,
Shanti was seriously out of compliance with city
contracts,” Katz later told the San Francisco
Chronicle.
Shanti is still negotiating the terms and condi
tions of repaying what is believed to be more than
$300,000.
Paras and her defenders say the problems at
Shanti were just typical growing pains of an orga
nization under the massive influx of funds from the
Ryan White CARE Act, and that an inadequate
computer system contributed to the missteps. Sup
porters are also quick to point out that no money
was diverted to personal gain.
The defense that neither Paras nor Rofes them
selves pocketed money seems a bit of a straw man.
Not even their worst critics have accused them of
doing so. The issue is not one of personal but of