Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, November 20, 1995                   TAG: 9511200064
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

`PEOPLE THAT JUST DON'T DO RIGHT' PROMPT CALL FOR CHANGE IN SQUADS

The former chief of the Fort Lewis Rescue Squad, Anita J. Hansen, was indicted in October on a charge of embezzling about $4,500 from the squad.

She is accused of misusing the squad's credit card and taking money from a charitable donation to make purchases for herself.

"You see it a lot in these volunteer organizations," said Jim Swanson, attorney for the Salem Rescue Squad.

"As squads get bigger and more complicated," they become tougher to manage, he said.

One way to prevent such problems is by hiring outside professionals to do the bookkeeping, Swanson said.

"Unfortunately, one of the ways squads like this try to keep expenses down is to keep the professionals out," he said.

The Fort Lewis Rescue Squad has hired a certified public accountant to keep track of its records, said Karen Foster, captain of the squad.

"You figure most crew members are not trained" for bookkeeping, she said.

Fort Lewis' books already were being audited every year by Roanoke County. But Foster said there is always a chance for things to slip through the cracks:

"You've got people that just don't do right."

Carey Harveycutter, a lifetime member of the Salem squad, believes more squads may change their bookkeeping practices after the problems in Salem and Fort Lewis. Instead of electing members as treasurers, they will hire accountants, he said.

But Ronnie Slough, president of the Virginia Association of Volunteer Rescue Squads, believes these are isolated cases.

"I don't think this is a widespread problem," said Slough, captain of the Buena Vista Rescue Squad.

Slough said the state association has tried to head off future problems by offering bookkeeping classes to rescue squad members. The association represents 15,000 rescue workers and 328 rescue squads.

"I guess people will learn by all the problems Salem and Fort Lewis had," Foster said.

Foster said the Fort Lewis Rescue Squad will soon find out how the indictment of its chief will affect public funding. The squad, made up of both career rescue workers and volunteers, will start a fund-raising drive within the next two weeks.