Evening star., 1947-07-19
WeIfareLeaders
Assai| Defects
Chest Reports
Statement Proposes
Reorganization Be
Started at Once

Started at Once
Repercussions from the final re-
ports of the Citizens Committee
investigating the Washington Com
munity Chest continued today with
the issuance of a statement by 10
special welfare leaders criticizlng
the multiple defects" of the reports.
The statement proposed that the
question of reorganizing the Dis
trict's welfare setup be submitted
Immediately to the Chest Board OF
Trustees and the Board Of Directors
of the Council of Social Agencies.
Signing the statement were mem
bers of the boards of the three major
case-work agencies-Family Service
Association, Catholic Charities and
Jewish Social Service Agency-as
well as board members identified
with several other Chest agencies.
They emphasized, however, that they
signed the statement as individuals.
They concentrated their attack on
the majority report of the Citizens
Committee "because Of its apparent
moderation" The minority report,
signed by six members OF the Citi-
zens' Committee, was considered too
extreme for comment, one OF those
signing the statement explained.
Separate Report Awaited.
The Citizens Committee, appoint
ed in March to make an Independent
survey of Chest operations, made
public its majority and minority
reports Thursday in an atmosphere
of dissension so pronounced that
four members of the committee
withdrew their support from the
majority report and are preparing
a separate report.
Recommendations of the majority
which drew most criticism from the
welfare leaders concerned the pro-
posal to eliminate paid workers from
membership on the Board OF
Trustees, the proposal to set up a
grievance committee, the proposed
formula for excluding or including
agencies as Chest members and the
proposal for a long-range survey of
the welfare situation here and in
nearby. areas
The suggestion by the Citizens
Committee that paid agency workers
may have shaped decisions of the
Chest Board of Trustees drew from
the 10 welfare leaders the assertion
that any such inference is unjusti-
fed They contended that paid
agency workers in recent years have
never constituted a majority OF
members present at board meetings.
Expert Opinion Held Barred.
The statement contended that the
proposal to exclude paid agency
workers from the board was intended
to eliminate agency representation
on the board thus depriving the
community of the benefit of the
practical experience and informed
judgment of those closest to social
welfare problems"
The proposed grievance committee
to investigate complaints was criti-
cized in the statement as unit
which could be used "as an instru-
ment to dictate the entire social
welfare program in Washington.
The formula suggested by the Cit
izens Committee for admission of
agencies to the Chest, combined
with the grievance committee pro-
posal, would result in the limitation
of Chest activities to handouts to
the needy, all service beyond this
being eliminated from the scope of
the Chest" the statement declared.
The welfare leaders said greater
reliance might be placed in the ma
jority report if the Citizens Commit
tee had had time to make "the thor
ough investigation which the COM
mittee had promised and which the
report suggests was made"
Hearings Held Too Limited.
Actually, the statement declared
agencies were given too little time
to prepare requested materials to
present at subcommittee hearings,
agencies were limited to single
brief hearing and requests for addi-
tional time were refused and, in
many cases, only agency finances
and not the work or the purposes of
the agencies we're examined.
1T is the reluctant conclusion of
the undersigned" the statement
continued, that the task presented
to the committee was too great for
its facilities"
cfo a
the welfare agences were going con-
Germs before the Chest, but that the
Citizens Committee gave the i'm
preston the agencies are "the
creatures of the Chest, instead of
the Chest being, in fact, the crea-
tion of the agencies
Signing the statement were G..
Howland Shaw, chairman of the
Advisory Committee of the Juvenile
Court and of the Continuing Com
mittee of the National Conference
on Juvenile Delinquency and board
member of the Bureau of Rehabili-
tation; H. T. Crossen, president OF
the Board of Catholic Charities;
G. Rowland Chase, president of the
Board of Family Service Associa-
ton; Mrs. Henry Gichner, board
member of the Jewish Social Service
Agency; Mrs. Allen L. Worries, pres
ident of the board of the Society for
the Prevention of Blindness; Benia-
min w. Thorn, Family Service
Association Board member and
chairman of the Chests Classifica-
ton and Study Committee; Howard
H. Long, board member of the
Council of Social Agencies; John
w. Andrews and Lawrence M. c..
Smith, both board members of the
Washington Housing Association,
and Mrs. William G. Stuart, secre-
tary of the Board of Mental Hygiene
Institute.
S50,000 Damage Suit Filed