County tables funding vote
By Steve Herring
Published in News on January 21, 2015 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/STEVE HERRING
Wayne County Commissioner Joe Daughtery listens as Lindsay Waldon, Special Olympics North Carolina vice president for field services, answers one of his questions. The agency's request for county funding was not granted.
Wayne County commissioners were quick to say Tuesday that they support the Special Olympics. But they refused a request to provide financial support for the organization, at least for the time being.
Instead, they said, the organization and the public need to step up and raise the money necessary to hire a coordinator for the program while the county works on its budget that won't be ready for several months.
But they provided no assurance that funding would be provided when a budget is approved.
The problem with that is that the need is urgent, said Lindsay Waldon, vice president for field services for the Special Olympics North Carolina, and Scott Barnard, Goldsboro Parks and Recreation director.
However, Commissioner Joe Daughtery, who continues to lead the effort to reduce the county's funding of nonprofit organizations, chastised Ms. Waldon and Barnard.
"I am really upset that this was brought and put at our feet unexpectedly when in fact, in my estimation, it was some bad planning in the past of making sure there was a successor to the volunteer (coordinator)," Daughtery said. "Somebody needs to say that because I think Special Olympics here locally were aware of this for five years or more.
"And all of a sudden here in mid-budget it is laid out making me look like someone who does not have heart enough to allocate dollars from the taxpayers to fund a position that is needed."
Chairman Wayne Aycock added that the board had been made aware of the request just eight days prior to Tuesday's meeting.
At issue is the leadership of the county Special Olympics program. Volunteer Richard Walderman stepped down as coordinator last year, after serving for 10 years.
That leaves the program with no leadership, supporters say. They are asking the city of Goldsboro and the county to fund a position that would include the duties of a Special Olympics coordinator.
Wayne County offers 11 of the 19 Special Olympics games, a significant number, in which 650 athletes participate, Ms. Waldon said.
With support, that number could grow to 3,700 based on a study of the county's population, she said.
The hope had been to hire someone to take over that role and who would be an employee of the Goldsboro Parks and Recreation Department, she said. The coordinator would also work with the Senior Games.
The Goldsboro City Council earlier refused funding the Special Olympics job, saying that the county should be asked to share in the cost of an events director. That brought Ms. Waldon and Barnard to the county commissioners' meeting.
Wayne County Manager George Wood, who earlier was told by commissioners to develop a policy dealing with nonprofit groups, said the county is not in the recreation business.
Wood said any such request should be made during the county budget process and not when a nonprofit comes up short on funding.
Also, Wood said that he believes a nonprofit's mission should have some direct connection to services provided by the county. He cited the Senior Games since the county runs the Senior Center.
"The other thing I would point out is that you need to have a direct connection with our core mission," he said.
Wood said as well that the county can expect nearly $2 million in additional debt next year because of new schools, a new jail, an Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence for Wayne County College and other obligations.
Daughtery said it was his understanding that the proposed coordinator would work with Special Olympics and Senior Games.
Daughtery then made a motion to continue funding the Senior Games, leaving the city to handle the Special Olympics.
Commissioner Ed Cromartie asked Daughtery if the motion was for the county and city to split the cost of an events coordinator.
Daughtery said no, only that the county still support the Senior Games.
Commissioner John Bell asked if any of the commissioners had been out to see what the Special Olympics are all about.
Daughtery said he had and that was where the "real difficulty" came in.
The easiest thing to do would be to create a new position and fund it, he said.
"But there is more at stake here in regards to this position," he said. "It is kind of mid- budget. You have two organizations. You have a county and city government. There are just a lot of unanswered questions."
Commissioner Ray Mayo asked if money donated to Special Olympics could be used to pay someone to serve as coordinator.
"I would say no, we don't do that," Ms. Waldon said. "I can't really answer that because our CEO deals with all of that. I can tell you that does not happen in any of the 100 counties."
Mayo asked if Special Olympics had a financial officer.
"Do you have a fund balance?" he said. "Do you have a savings account?"
Wayne County has its own fundraising, she said.
"They fund their entire program here," she said. "All of the uniforms, equipment is being raised by the committee. There is a volunteer group of people -- a very strong one here actually -- that does all of the fundraiser that goes along to support the program."
So money raised locally stays in the county, Aycock asked.
It does, she said.
"So it could be used (to hire a coordinator)?" Wood said.
Cromartie suggested that it might be best to table the request to allow for further study, including using local money and the possibility of having an existing employee take on the role. Bell said he was ready to make that motion as well.
But before Cromartie could offer an amendment, Daughtery withdrew his motion.
He followed up with a motion that Wood and City Manager Scott Stevens further study the issue and bring it back as part of the annual budget process.
Before a vote could be taken, Mayo amended the motion to include looking at all of the nonprofits that the county deals with.
Mayo asked if Walderman would be willing to serve through the county budgeting process.
"No sir," Barnard said. "The reason it was brought to our council with some urgency by myself and by the members of the North Carolina Special Olympics is as of Dec. 9 the program has more or less ceased to exist.
"A handful of volunteers are cobbling together a way for a basketball spring event to take place. But as you all are well aware, once you lose momentum in a program, any program, whether it is Special Olympics or otherwise, there is some startup time to get going."
The amendment and then the amended motion were both unanimously approved.