Eaton County's SIREN shelter launches online fundraiser after 'theft' of money

CHARLOTTE — An Eaton County nonprofit that provides domestic violence and homeless outreach services is asking the community for hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations after discovering money was missing during a "routine audit" in May.

Tracie Socey, the outreach coordinator for SIREN/Eaton Shelter, characterized the missing funds as "theft," but declined Wednesday to say how much money is missing from the organization, which relies on grants, fundraising and private donations.

"I've been told we're at increased risk of not being able to provide the services that the community has come to rely upon us for," she said. "How much is actually gone, I do not have a dollar amount for that."

SIREN officials notified Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's office about the missing funds in May, Socey said, as soon as staff discovered the money was missing during their review of financial records. She said Nessel's office is investigating.

"We are working diligently with the Attorney General’s Office to investigate and bring the person responsible to justice," Socey wrote in an online fundraiser established through GoFundMe on June 3. "I’m (sic) the meantime, our funding is limited and we are at risk of having to close our doors and end the supportive services that the most vulnerable in our community have grown to rely upon. At this time, we are asking you, the community, to help us to overcome this obstacle."

Kim Bush, a spokesperson for Nessel's office, said Wednesday morning she was unable to confirm if the office was investigating a theft from SIREN.

Officials with the Eaton County Sheriff's Office and the Charlotte Police Department said their agencies weren't contacted by SIREN about a theft.

A message left Wednesday morning for Kelly Morton, president of SIREN's eight-member board of directors and an Eaton County district court judge, wasn't immediately returned.

Shelter employee starts online fundraiser

In 2022, SIREN, which has seven full-time employees, sheltered nearly 200 families, Socey said, and the organization, established in 1994, is currently housing 36 families.

The agency had about $1.4 million in revenue in 2020, according to an online tax document.

"Our goal is to continue services," Socey said. "We're all still coming to work every day. We're all still here. We're providing every service that we provided beforehand."

The online fundraiser is seeking $300,000 — enough to ensure the nonprofit can avoid selling its domestic violence emergency shelter site and operate for the next several months, Socey said.

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"Right now, our biggest concern is for our clients," she said. "We're trying to make sure that they don't suffer in any way due to the situation so we're just trying to get funding in place to make sure that we can continue to provide programming without interruption."

SIREN has been without an executive director for three weeks, Socey said. Former director Teri Looney left the position in May, she said. Looney currently works as the executive director at Loaves and Fishes Ministries in Lansing. A message was left for her there Wednesday afternoon.

"Several board members have stepped in to give day-to-day support until a new executive director can be hired," Socey said.

Contact Rachel Greco at rgreco@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @GrecoatLSJ .

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Eaton County's SIREN shelter launches online fundraiser after 'theft' of money