Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, November 20, 1995 TAG: 9511200061
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Its former chief, Earl Ray Houff Jr., was convicted in June of grand larceny for taking $1,900 in squad funds.
And Garry Lautenschlager, a 23-year veteran of the squad and a former Salem city councilman, confessed and was convicted last week of taking more than $20,000 from the squad.
"We've all gone through some roller coaster this year," said Harold Weikle, night lieutenant and a former captain of the squad.
For an organization that relies solely on volunteers and raises half its money from public donations, a breech of public trust such as Salem has experienced could have potential for disaster.
But the squad's chief, John Beach, says crew members are trying to learn from the mistakes of their colleagues and reduce the chances of errors happening again. And he has faith that Salem will stand behind the squad.
"This has been very difficult on us," Beach said. "I think there is a collective relief that the process is coming to a conclusion."
The squad has made several changes in its bookkeeping procedures.
In the past, a squad member was elected treasurer to handle the books. And lax accounting made it easy to forge checks and siphon money from bank accounts.
The squad now has an outside professional to do the job. That person also writes the checks and prepares monthly statements for the squad's nine elected officers to review.
The squad has also tightened its processes for transactions.
From now on, any purchase must be signed by the officer in charge of the division for which the purchase is being made. And purchases more than $2,000 that are outside the budget must be approved by a two-thirds vote of the squad's executive committee.
The squad is consolidating several of its funds, Beach said.
That was one of the problems that made it so easy for Houff and Lautenschlager to take money: There were too many funds to keep track of.
Houff took money from the Good Neighbors Fund.
Lautenschlager, who at the time was the only board member authorized by the bank to withdraw money from the Wiley Fund, funneled much of the money he took through the fund.
The Wiley Fund, established in memory of paramedic David Wiley in 1986, is now frozen. Two signatures are required on any check written from the account, said Carey Harveycutter, a member of the board that advises the fund. Also, three out of the five board members must approve any disbursements, he said.
The City of Salem also has agreed to conduct an annual audit of the squad's books. The city used to audit only the money it appropriated to the squad.
City Finance Director Frank Turk said the first complete audit should be finished within the next two weeks.
Members of the rescue squad consider themselves a close-knit group, and the friendships they build there are permanent.
Steve and Marcia Dougherty, both in their 30s, began dating while working at the squad and were married two weeks ago.
Needless to say, when members learned that two of their leaders were taking money from the squad, it hurt.
"It feels like someone stabbed you in the back," said Steve Dougherty, a seven-year member. "It's such a gut-wrenching thing."
Many younger members of the squad were taught emergency medical services by Lautenschlager, Dougherty said. "They thought the world of the man."
And for the members who developed friendships with Lautenschlager and Houff, the situation is more complex.
"There's a healing process we'll have to undergo, and we've begun that," said Weikle, the night lieutenant.
"I think the crew has accepted" their apologies "and is in the process of trying to forgive," Dougherty said.
If the actions of Houff and Lautenschlager affect the squad, the most visible impact probably would be funding.
About half of the squad's $200,000 annual budget comes from public donations, Beach said. The other half is appropriated by the city.
The Salem Rescue Squad's annual fund-raising drive began in August. The squad set a goal of $68,000 this year, Beach said, and so far has brought in almost two-thirds of that.
"That's about where we expected to be at this point," he said.
Beach attributes the success of the drive to the community "still believing in the squad."
The crew has stepped up its efforts to publicize community service projects, he said. And members are trying to stay focused on what they do best - saving lives.
"We've tried to keep a positive outlook," Beach said.
City Manager Randy Smith said the squad shouldn't be held accountable for the actions of Houff and Lautenschlager.
"I would hope that people would rally around [the squad] at a time they need support and not look at them like they were thieves," said Smith, a lifetime member of the rescue squad and the city's former emergency services coordinator.
by CNB