Public Benefit : Advocacy and Civil Rights
Operation Lookout
Every missing child deserves the chance to be found
suspect tactics
Posted by Maris Edgar | October 14, 2008 7:21:44 AM
Donating to organizations spending 68% of revenues like this one does is not wise, regardless of fundraising tactics.
Suspect Tactics
Posted by Coachjoker | October 13, 2008 8:11:15 AM
I too was contacted by Operation Look out. The first person I spoke to stated they were from "National Center for Missing and Exploited Children". I check on line using the charity navigator while we were speaking and said I would make a donation. Then they put a supervisor on the phone who stated they were from Operation Outlook. I told her that was not what I was told. This is one not so good charity using the name of a good charity to make money.
Suspect-OPERATION LOOKOUT® Nat'l Ctr Mi sing Youth
Posted by Melody Gibson | August 6, 2008 5:49:58 AM
OPERATION LOOKOUT has provided its free missing child search and case management service since 1984. OL assists in cases of family and non-family abductions, unexplained disappearances, and runways prior to age 18.
Outsourced third party professional teams provide various outreach activites; costs are combined and allocated to cover all phases including public education, voluntary community call-to-action, and fundraising campaigns under the good name of OPERATION LOOKOUT® National Center for Missing Youth/Children (or the Foundation for Missing Children) The tag 'National Center for Missng Youth' is a descriptive effort to clarify the services provided and it has been in use since at least 1986.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and The Association of Missing & Exploited Children's Organizations (AMECO) are similar names to each other, however they are not legally related. Names may be similar without intent to mislead. The names can be verified on the AMECO website, There are approximately 30 missing children centers that network and know each other by name in the USA and Canada--OL is a founding member of AMECO.
NCMEC and AMECO are gov't funded and they do not call for support. To file a complaint about a phone call received, reach OL directly at oladmin@operationlookout.org. Go to www/operationlookout.org to donate and to help find a missing child. "Every Missing Child Deserves the Chance to be FOUND!"
HOW TO GIVE MORE TO BENEFIT A MISSING CHILD: To reduce fundraising costs, go to the OL website and click on DONATE NOW PayPal or mail directly so that ALL of the donation goes to CHILD SEARCH activites.
Suspect Tactics
Posted by jo1987 | July 22, 2008 9:16:30 AM
National center for missing youth identified itself in it's phone solicitation as "National Center for Missing Children", possibly in an effort to be linked to "National Center for Missing and Exploited Children" which has a very good reputation and high rating. Having had a missing child, and worked with NCMEC I was surprised to get a fundraiser call, and thought the caller had just mispronounced the name, but when I got the literature and saw it was a totally different organization, I felt it was a scam. The charity reports confirm my suspicions about the organization.
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If you do not like these calls
Posted by Massman | December 11, 2008 6:50:51 AM
The Secretary of State of Washington State has a website of info on this "non-profit." http://www.secstate.wa.gov/charities/search_detail.aspx?charity_id=3483
If you do not enjoy these phone calls, I suggest you contact your local Attorney General's Office, Charitable Division. Have the name of the charity, address, and phone number. Also collect same info if a Commercial Fundraiser is calling you.
Very few charities call you themselves. Most likely the AG will send a letter on your behalf to the charity/fundraiser requesting to remove your name, phone number, and address from their lists, and to not contact you again.