Settlement in lawsuit leaves Wingo in charge of Angel Food Ministries
By Bobbi Mlynar
Monday, March 9, 2009
An e-mail from Angel Food Ministries headquarters in Good Hope, Ga., announced that ministry co-founder Joe Wingo will continue as chief executive officer of AFM, according to a settlement reached in Walton County Superior Court on Friday.
Two board members — Craig Atnip and David “Tony” Prather — filed a civil suit in what the Atlanta Journal-Constitution described as a “legal fight over Angel Food Ministries, a $137 million nonprofit whose managing family has drawn millions in salaries, loans and benefits.”
Atnip and Prather came to an agreement with the Wingo family on Friday.
“That suit claims the Wingos enriched themselves through high salaries, buying personal items on company credit cards, and sweetheart deals, including kickbacks from food vendors,” The Journal-Constitution stated. “The family has characterized that suit as a money- and power-grab.
The newspaper reported that under the agreement approved by Judge John M. Ott, the Wingos’ company credit cards will be canceled, and Angel Food Ministries will undergo a forensic financial audit. As part of the agreement, Joe Wingo will sign over a company he owns to Angel Food Ministries. The company was renting a corporate jet to AFM at an alleged profit of $10,000 per month.
“Attorneys for the nonprofit and the Wingos said other issues already have been addressed,” the story stated.
Atnip and Prather apparently have agreed to leave the board of directors as part of the deal, but will retain standing to take actions, if needed, when the forensic audit comes in.
Wingo and his son, Wesley, will retain their jobs with AFM.
Joe Wingo’s wife, Linda, left her job at the ministry last year; Joe’s son, Andy, left in late 2007.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on Wednesday that Andy Wingo had been accused of sexual harassment in a federal suit filed in late February.
Journal-Constitution reporter Christopher Quinn wrote that Tioni King, now Tioni Barish, alleges that Andy Wingo made numerous physical advances toward her, e-mailed nude pictures of himself to her, took her on company trips, gave her $3,550 worth of furniture, cash and a job and threatened her job and others’ jobs for not accepting his advances in 2007. The nonprofit fired her, Quinn reported.
Edward D. Buckley, King’s Atlanta attorney, told the Journal-Constitution that he was unaware the harassment case had been filed the same day that Prather and Atnip had filed a state suit in an attempt to bar the four Wingos from the charity’s business.
The ministry announced last month that a search warrant had been executed at its headquarters by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. AFM officials said that they were aware of an investigation, which apparently involves individuals, not the ministry itself.
cs (anonymous) says...
The FBI/IRS grand jury investigation is still ongoing.. the forensic audit is still out. How can ministries take the risk of the door getting padlocked and everything get tied up in court. There is potential for a lot of things to go wrong at this time.. As great as the program is.. and it helps thousands of people think for a moment how badly this will HURT the people if they cannot get their food nor get their money back. And what will that do to your integrity as a church should this happens? Are you willing to take that risk???
March 10, 2009 at 2:12 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
cs (anonymous) says...
The FBI/IRS grand jury investigation is still ongoing.. the forensic audit is still out. How can ministries take the risk of the door getting padlocked and assets including the food and checks getting tied up in court. There is potential for a lot of things to go wrong at this time.. As great as the program is.. and it helps thousands of people think for a moment how badly this will HURT the people if they cannot get their food nor get their money back for an extended period of time. From their press release they have the best intentions in the world of fulfilling the orders. But they have no control over IRS court orders and that could come with no warning. What will that do to your integrity as a church, should this happen? Are you willing to take that risk???
March 10, 2009 at 2:17 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Resources_against_hunger (anonymous) says...
I volunteer distributing Angel Food in my local community. I am not going to let fear stop me. Please pray for Angel Food.
March 12, 2009 at 2:39 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
cs (anonymous) says...
I'm not motivated by fear. God does wants us to use common sense. We are to be wise and to inspect the fruit. We are to listen to wise counsel. We cannot just say "Oh they are a Christian organization (we are told) and not listen to legal advice or even what God may be speaking to us"
A lot of good can be undone by a little wrong/bad.
It is our job as ministers to protect our people not put them or their money at risk.
Caution is NOT fear.
March 13, 2009 at 10:22 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Resources_against_hunger (anonymous) says...
I applaud those churches that continue to serve the needy through Angel Food. It is a good thing that we should all support.
March 20, 2009 at 1:21 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )