bobdina
08-24-2010, 05:39 PM
By Andy Banker FOX2now.com
9:12 PM CDT, August 23, 2010
FESTUS, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com) - An apparent scam targeting the families of troops killed in the line of duty has hit close to home in St. Louis. The victims say they had no reason to suspect the man behind the proposed "U.S. Fallen Heroes Memorial" might not be legitimate.
The victims included the families of fallen troops from Festus and Lemay, Missouri.
The parents of Army PFC, Andy Habsieger, 22, killed in Iraq in March, 2008, were at a small park named for their son, in Festus.
They found a "thank you" card, left at the foot of a life-sized, chain-saw sculpture of their son.
They're deeply moved by the park as well as kind notes and messages, like that card.
So, they were honored when asked to be part of a larger, more grandiose project: "The U.S. Fallen Heroes Memorial".
"We may have lost a son, but we gained a hero," Mike Habsieger said in a public service announcement for the project. He, his wife, and Andy's brother, Jacob, also a war veteran, all appeared.
So did the father of Amanda Pinson of Lemay. Amanda was also killed in the line of duty.
They all thought "Fallen Heroes Foundation" chairman Walter Coleman was an honorable man on an honorable mission.
"He flat told me that he was a veteran," said Brenda Habsieger, Andy's mom. She even thanked him for serving.
By all appearance, everything was "above board".
Coleman had held a big news conference in Texas to announce the project, receiving heavy news coverage.
He struck a deal to buy the land for it from the city of Kennedale, Texas, an Arlington suburb.
He hired a public relations/fundraising firm in St. Louis to raise the $15 million he said he needed to build the memorial, throwing fundraisers in Chicago and an event at the Soldier's Memorial in downtown St. Louis in April. Former Big Red and Rams coach-announcer, Jim Hannifan, was the emcee.
The Habsieger and Pinson families got granite plaques like the ones that would be part of the memorial.
"The thing that sold us is that it was honoring not just Iraq, not just Afghanistan or the Gulf War, but everyone from Vietnam on. The Vietnam Wall is very impressive. It would be nice if there was something that impressive for the others," Brenda Habsieger said.
But news reports in Texas showed the federal government didn't even recognize Coleman's "Fallen Heroes Foundation" as a non-profit organization. Plus, Coleman had a criminal record for fraud and he was not a veteran.
"That to me is a big slap to every young man or woman whoever put boots on the ground in Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia, anywhere," Mike Habsieger said. "The thought of somebody trying to line their pockets at the Gold Star families' expense – that's wrong."
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"That man will pay. Whether he pays here or somewhere else, he'll pay," his wife said.
An operator of that fundraising firm says she reported Coleman to the IRS when questions an official from Boeing told her there was no federal record of the foundation's reported "non-profit" status.
The Texas Attorney General is investigating Coleman. The foundation still exists, with new leadership. The new president, Larry Summers, says he was a documented Army and Marine veteran.
He said he was also a member of Patriot Guard Riders, the group that escorts the bodies of the fallen during their funeral processions.
He said a Gold Star wife had just joined the foundation board.
"I would really like to see it [the memorial]," Brenda Habsieger said. "What they've told us about it, it would have been awesome. We were actually hoping that we could go down."
Summers said the foundation was cooperating fully with the investigation. He said the investigation was the best thing that could have happened, because Coleman had them fooled, too. He's even posted links to news stories about the investigation on the foundation's website.
http://www.kfsm.com/news/ktvi-fallen-soldiers-memorial-habsieger-082310,0,6767671.story
9:12 PM CDT, August 23, 2010
FESTUS, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com) - An apparent scam targeting the families of troops killed in the line of duty has hit close to home in St. Louis. The victims say they had no reason to suspect the man behind the proposed "U.S. Fallen Heroes Memorial" might not be legitimate.
The victims included the families of fallen troops from Festus and Lemay, Missouri.
The parents of Army PFC, Andy Habsieger, 22, killed in Iraq in March, 2008, were at a small park named for their son, in Festus.
They found a "thank you" card, left at the foot of a life-sized, chain-saw sculpture of their son.
They're deeply moved by the park as well as kind notes and messages, like that card.
So, they were honored when asked to be part of a larger, more grandiose project: "The U.S. Fallen Heroes Memorial".
"We may have lost a son, but we gained a hero," Mike Habsieger said in a public service announcement for the project. He, his wife, and Andy's brother, Jacob, also a war veteran, all appeared.
So did the father of Amanda Pinson of Lemay. Amanda was also killed in the line of duty.
They all thought "Fallen Heroes Foundation" chairman Walter Coleman was an honorable man on an honorable mission.
"He flat told me that he was a veteran," said Brenda Habsieger, Andy's mom. She even thanked him for serving.
By all appearance, everything was "above board".
Coleman had held a big news conference in Texas to announce the project, receiving heavy news coverage.
He struck a deal to buy the land for it from the city of Kennedale, Texas, an Arlington suburb.
He hired a public relations/fundraising firm in St. Louis to raise the $15 million he said he needed to build the memorial, throwing fundraisers in Chicago and an event at the Soldier's Memorial in downtown St. Louis in April. Former Big Red and Rams coach-announcer, Jim Hannifan, was the emcee.
The Habsieger and Pinson families got granite plaques like the ones that would be part of the memorial.
"The thing that sold us is that it was honoring not just Iraq, not just Afghanistan or the Gulf War, but everyone from Vietnam on. The Vietnam Wall is very impressive. It would be nice if there was something that impressive for the others," Brenda Habsieger said.
But news reports in Texas showed the federal government didn't even recognize Coleman's "Fallen Heroes Foundation" as a non-profit organization. Plus, Coleman had a criminal record for fraud and he was not a veteran.
"That to me is a big slap to every young man or woman whoever put boots on the ground in Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia, anywhere," Mike Habsieger said. "The thought of somebody trying to line their pockets at the Gold Star families' expense – that's wrong."
Sign up for News and Weather Alerts
"That man will pay. Whether he pays here or somewhere else, he'll pay," his wife said.
An operator of that fundraising firm says she reported Coleman to the IRS when questions an official from Boeing told her there was no federal record of the foundation's reported "non-profit" status.
The Texas Attorney General is investigating Coleman. The foundation still exists, with new leadership. The new president, Larry Summers, says he was a documented Army and Marine veteran.
He said he was also a member of Patriot Guard Riders, the group that escorts the bodies of the fallen during their funeral processions.
He said a Gold Star wife had just joined the foundation board.
"I would really like to see it [the memorial]," Brenda Habsieger said. "What they've told us about it, it would have been awesome. We were actually hoping that we could go down."
Summers said the foundation was cooperating fully with the investigation. He said the investigation was the best thing that could have happened, because Coleman had them fooled, too. He's even posted links to news stories about the investigation on the foundation's website.
http://www.kfsm.com/news/ktvi-fallen-soldiers-memorial-habsieger-082310,0,6767671.story