Transcript
  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    1/7

    Page 1 of 7Faxed to: (202)224-9787

    September 17, 2009

    The Honorable Herb Kohl

    United States Senate

    330 Hart Senate Office Building

    Washington, DC 20510

    Dear Senator Kohl:

    This is to request your help regarding unanswered letters Ive sent to two federal officials.

    You were copied on my May 1, 2009 letter to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

    Secretary Janet Napolitano regarding the Save-A-Life Foundation, a Chicago-area nonprofit that

    has been a FEMA affiliate organization since January 23, 2003. I did not receive a reply, so I

    sent Secretary Napolitano an August 5 follow-up letter (attached). I have not received a reply to

    that letter either.

    You were also copied on the attached September 12, 2009 e-mail I sent to Karen Marsh, Directorof Citizen Corps, the FEMA division of which the Save-A-Life Foundation has been an affiliate.

    As you can see, my e-mail to Ms. Marsh was my third attempt since August 9 to obtain the

    following straightforward information:

    Please advise if the Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) of Schiller Park IL remains in

    good standing as a Citizen Corps affiliate organization. If SALF is no longer

    affiliated with Citizen Corps, please provide me with the date that affiliation ended.

    Its unclear why Director Marshs office has not provided me with this information or why

    Secretary Napolitanos office has not responded to my two letters. Therefore, as one of your

    constituents, Id greatly welcome your help in resolving this. Would you please contact Secretary

    Napolitano and Director Marsh on my behalf and ask them to provide you with an approximate

    date when I may expect to receive their responses? Id welcome being copied on any

    correspondence

  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    2/7

    Page 1 of 4

    Faxed to : (202)282-8401

    August 5, 2009

    Secretary Janet NapolitanoU.S. Department of Homeland SecurityWashington, DC 20528

    Dear Secretary Napolitano:

    In my letter of May 1, 2009, I provided you with information that raised concerns aboutthe Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF), a member organization of FEMAs Citizen Corps. Ialso requested your responses to factual questions.

    I have not received a reply therefore I would welcome some indication from you when Imay expect a response from you or your representative.

    I also have additional questions based on this information published in a July 17, 2009

    Daily Herald article, Suit dropped as Save A Life Changes Mission by Kimberly Pohl(attached):

    The high-profile nonprofit organization, which taught schoolchildren first aid

    techniques, ceased its old mission and closed its office to the public on July

    1(SALF Founder/president Carol) Spizzirri said the organization is negotiating

    for smaller quarters, has turned its focus to the future of emergency medical

  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    3/7

    Sincerely,

    Gordon T. PrattPO Box 18121Milwaukee, WI 53218

    Ph: (707)667-1746e-mail:[email protected]

    cc:

    The Daily Herald

    Kimberly Pohl, Anne Halston

    Encl:

    July 17, 2009 Daily Herald article

    Web page (accessed today): http://www.citizencorps.gov/programs/salf.shtm

    mailto:[email protected]://www.citizencorps.gov/programs/salf.shtmhttp://www.citizencorps.gov/programs/salf.shtmmailto:[email protected]
  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    4/7

    DaflyHeialdBig Picture . Local Focus

    Suit dropped as Save A Life changes missionBy Kimberly Pohl | Daily Herald Staff

    Published: 7/15/2009 5:27 PM j

    Two years after filing a defamation lawsuit to repair its tarnished image, Save A Life Foundation of suburban Schiller Parkhas closed its doors for good.

    The high-profile nonprofit organization, which taught schoolchildren first aid techniques such as the Heimlich maneuver,ceased operations on July 1. Days later, Save A Life's attorney filed a motion to drop the suit against three men accusedof organizing a smear campaign against the foundation and harassing employees and board members, among them

    ex-Palatine Mayor Rita Mullins.

    Founder Carol Spizzirri said the legal action became too costly to pursue, but declined to say exactly why she shutteredan organization she said helped more than 1 million children. The lawsuit claimed the defendants' actions caused lostbusiness opportunities and partnerships.

    "There's certainly a connection (between the closing and the lawsuit) but I don't want to go into it," Spizzirri said. "We'renot supposed to discuss the case."

    Named in the suit was Peter Heimlich, estranged son of maneuver namesake Dr. Henry Heimlich, who served on Save A

    Life's medical advisory board. A blogger and a doctor critical of the Heimlich maneuver were also defendants.

    Chuck Goudie, an ABC 7 reporter and Daily Herald columnist, was briefly part of the suit for a derogatory report he did onSave A Life, but the case against him was dropped in March 2008. His report questioned Spizzirri's credentials and saidthe foundation, which received millions of dollars in government money and corporate donations, was misappropriatingfunds and teaching the maneuver inappropriately - all falsehoods, according to the lawsuit.

    Spizzirri's new focus is fighting the type of online stalking outlined in the suit. She has a meeting scheduled later thismonth with several legislators and has been working with Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office.

    "Cyberworld is the Wild West with absolutely no governance," Spizzirri said. "Anyone can say terrible things aboutpeople, put it on the Internet and nobody can do anything about it. Reputations and credibility are ruined."

  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    5/7

    citizenjhr^corpsPPEPAHINO THE NATION

    You Ready?

    Programs & Partners

    Community EmergencyResponse Teams

    Medical Reserve Corps

    Neighborhood WatchProgram

    Volunteers in PoliceService

    Affiliate Programs

    & OrganizationsNational Citizen Corps

    Council Partners

    Citizen Corps Councils

    News & Events

    Contact Us

    HSearch... 1 Go 1

    Advanced Search

    Home | Council Login

    Save A Life FoundationSave A Life Foundation, a national non-profit, empowering school age students (K-12)with basic life supporting first aid skills to render aid to the injured or ill in an emergency,whether natural, accidental, or man-made; providing youth a clear understanding of therole of emergency medical service professionals while encouraging students to consideremergency medical service as a possible career choice.

    Learn more by visiting www.salf.org .

    Genera l Links (17 )

    FEMA

    State and Local Contact Infor mation State Contacts

    Information Sharing

    Mission Statement Newsletters Request Newsletter Distribution Articles/Press Releases

    o SALF Press Releaseso Life Savings Headline Archiveo In The News

    Annual Report Best Practices/Good Stories Conferences an d Events

    Resources

    Grants Training Courses Publications Online Public Education Material Online Store Regional/State/Local Chapters/Offices Discounts/Special Offers Available?

    %* Targeted Audience Links (13)

    ^ Sponsors (2)

    * Support for Citizen Corps (3 )

    > Additional Links of In ter est (1 0)

    Citizen Corps Home |FEMA.gov|DHS.gov|Ready.gov|Serve.gov |DisasterHelp.govAccessibility | Privacy Policy | No FEAR Act Data |F01A| Get the Adobe Acrobat Reader

    The National Office of Cit izen Corps -FEMA Community Preparedness DivisionTech world Building. 800 K. Street NW, Suite 640, Washington, D.C. 20472-3630

    Gmail 3RD & FINAL REQUEST inquiry re: Citizen Corps http://inail google coin/mail/?ui 2&ik e1a2b66204&view pt&search s

    http://www.salf.org/http://www.salf.org/http://fema.gov/http://fema.gov/http://dhs.gov/http://dhs.gov/http://ready.gov/http://ready.gov/http://serve.gov/http://serve.gov/http://disasterhelp.gov/http://disasterhelp.gov/http://serve.gov/http://ready.gov/http://dhs.gov/http://fema.gov/http://www.salf.org/http://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=s
  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    6/7

    Gmail - 3RD & FINAL REQUEST - inquiry re: Citizen Corps http://inail.google.coin/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=s ...

    Gordy Pratt

    byGoogie

    3RD & FINAL REQUEST - inquiry re: Citizen CorpsGordy Pratt Sat, Sep 12, 2009 at 12:53 PM

    To: [email protected]

    3RD & FINAL REQUEST- SENT VIA E-MAIL & FAXED TO: (202)282-8408

    Karen Marsh, DirectorFEMA Community Preparedness Division

    National Office of Citizen Corps800 K Street NW, Suite 640

    Washington, DC 20472-3630

    Ms. Marsh:

    I have not received a reply to my e-mails of August 9 and August 17 follow-up (copied below) which

    requested the following information from you:

    Please advise if the Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) of Schiiler Park IL remains in good standing as aCitizen Corps affiliate organization. If SALF is no longer affiliated with Citizen Corps, please provideme with the date that affiliation ended.

    If you are unable or unwilling to supply this information, please provide me with the name and e-mail addressof your superior.

    Thank you for your consideration and I look forward to receiving your reply via e-mail or FAX no later thanSeptember 16, 2009. If I do not receive your reply by then, I will assume you do not intend to respond.

    Sincerely,

    Gordon T. Pratt

    PO Box 18121Milwaukee, WI 53218

    G H il

    Gmail 3RD & FINAL REQUEST inquiry re: Citizen Corps http://mail google coin/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=s

    http://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=smailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=s
  • 8/9/2019 My 9/17/09 letter to Sen. Herb Kohl re: SALF, Citizen Corps, DHS - NO REPLY

    7/7

    Gmail - 3RD & FINAL REQUEST - inquiry re: Citizen Corps http://mail.google.coin/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=s ...

    On Mon, Aug 17, 2009 at 7:59 PM, Gordy Prattgmail.com> wrote: On Sun, Aug 9, 2009 at 9:20 PM, Gordy Pratt wrote:

    Karen Marsh, Director

    FEMA Community Preparedness Division National Office of Citizen Corps

    800 K Street NW, Suite 640

    Washington, DC 20472-3630

    Ms. Marsh:

    Please advise if the Save-A-Life Foundation (SALF) of Schiller Park IL remains in good standing as aCitizen Corps affiliate organization. If SALF is no longer affiliated with Citizen Corps, please provide me with

    the date that affiliation ended.

    I would welcome a prompt response, so please feel free to e-mail me.

    Thank you for your assistance and I look forward to your reply.

    Sincerely,

    Gordon T. Pratt

    PO Box 18121 Milwaukee, WI 53218

    Ph: (707)667-1746

    cc:

    Secretary Janet Napolitano

    US Department of Homeland Security Faxed to: (202)282-8401

    http://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=shttp://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=smailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=e1a2b66204&view=pt&search=s

Recommended