Victor loves when people stop by his office with interesting questions. A group of young people recently had an insightful conversation with Victor and we wanted to share some highlights with you.

• Q: Free The Children receives a lot of donations in many forms, including a lot of coins from coin drives. Pennies, toonies and loonies often come in large containers. How do you bring these coins to the bank? Aren’t they really heavy?

  A: Every penny is important. Every dollar is cherished. Whether it be money donated from a student-run lemonade stand, birthday money from a child who chooses to forgo gifts or a corporate contribution, they are all treated the same. A few months ago, we got three buckets full of pennies from a coin drive done by a local school in the Toronto District School Board. The coins were heavy to lift, but we all worked together to get them into the car. Even the woman at the bank smiled at us when we brought the coins in. We created a long line-up at the bank that day, but it was worth it.

  

• Q: Free The Children has a long history of “unqualified” audit reports. What does this mean and why is this important?

  A: We are audited every year in Canada and the United States by an independent third party auditing company accounting firm comprised of financial experts. Every year, Free The Children has received an unqualified audit rating, which is the highest possible rating for such a report. It is a “clean opinion.” This means that our auditors have found no questions or concerns of any kind in our processes of financial accountability and transparency and have fully vetted our donor information. We are very proud of this. It is akin to Free The Children receiving an annual report card which shows A+ grades in every subject, over the last 10 years.

• Q: Free The Children receives valuable support from its partner organization, Me to We. How does this work?

  A: A: Me to We is a remarkable partner organization. It provides socially responsible lifestyle opportunities to individuals so they can know they are making ethical and responsible daily consumer choices. Moreover, it helps to support Free The Children in very significant ways. Me to We team members donate literally thousands of hours of volunteer service each year to Free The Children. Also, half of Me to We’s net profit is donated to Free The Children on an annual basis while the other half is reinvested to grow the social enterprise to ensure future sustainability. More information about this exciting new model can be found at www.metowe.com/aboutus. Me to We will help to ensure one day soon, Free The Children’s already very low administrative rate will be zero. This is virtually unheard of in any organization of the size and scope of Free The Children. It is very, very exciting.

  

• Q: There are many ways to donate outside of sending in a one-time cheque. How else can one contribute?

  A: There are so many ways to help support the work of Free The Children. One can be part of a monthly giving circle where a small amount is given every month from a credit card. We can receive gifts of stock. We have had a number of adults support the work of the organization through estate planning. We welcome any and all conversations and can help guide the process. People can contact me at accounting@freethechildren.com. Most importantly, everyone can help. Every dollar makes a difference. Even smiles are so important, though these are difficult to account for in my books.

• Q: Victor, you are always working. You are usually at the office at 6am. What do you do for fun and what has been the most meaningful part of your job?

  A: I love my work. I love seeing the difference Free The Children makes in the lives of others. I have the best job in the world. Every day, I have fun. Perhaps the most meaningful day I have ever had at Free The Children was when I took my daughter, Sophia, to visit her grandparents in China. While we were there, we took a few days and also visited a number of Free The Children projects in the rural regions of Ganzu where we work. The communities we visited had an annual average income of $90. And poverty is endemic. It was very powerful for me to see her meet children her age who now have the chance to go to school. She made many friends that day. It was a day I will never, ever forget.

• Q: You have seen the work of Free The Children grow over many years. How has the financial team managed this growth while maintaining financial accountability to all donors—young and old alike?

  A: The work and impact of Free The Children continues to grow, in part because of the hard work of so many supporters who care about its mission and in part because the need to effect positive social change is so great. Free The Children, working with our Board of Directors, our auditors, lawyers and management team, has developed very strong procedures to ensure every dollar is spent properly and that Free The Children projects are well managed. As the organization has grown, the accounting, projects and development teams have also grown, step-by-step. We are blessed to have such a dedicated and intelligent team of passionate change-makers.

• Q: You work with Free The Children’s Boards of Directors and Executive Committee very closely. What is the role of the Board of Directors to ensure financial accountability?

  A: Free The Children has a dedicated group of volunteer board members who provide an additional layer of financial oversight to the organization. The Board of Directors meets approximately four times a year in person. In addition, there are four annual conference calls or meetings of the executive committee of the board. Even though this is a lot of meetings, it is worth it.

  Free The Children’s board is comprised, in part, of financial experts, including a number of notable individuals who are either former or current executives from the banking and financial services industry. They provide quarterly reviews of the budget as well as approve the organization’s annual financial budget and audit. Many board members are really active outside of their board roles. Some have visited and volunteered at our projects overseas with their families. Many board members hold important leadership roles in the companies of some of our most active corporate supporters, so they are able to see the impact of our work in their own organizations every day. We also have some young people on the board so their voice is always heard in every decision. This is important to me because of the work we do to help young people.

  

• Q: Free The Children has some remarkable supporters in its work to ensure it is a strong organization. Can you tell us about some of these partners?

  A: Free The Children works with a great team, both inside and outside the office, who help to makes its work possible. For example, the organization receives pro bono legal services from Torys LLP, one of Canada’s (and North America’s) most respected law firms. Their lawyers are so helpful and always only a phone call away, ready to help with any question, large or small. Free The Children has also received countless hours of free consulting services from teams at Deloitte as well as outside specialized firms in the areas of technology, communications, monitoring and evaluation of projects and financial systems.

  Also, many of our corporate partners make a huge difference to help offset costs. For example, Air Canada Kids’ Horizons Foundation helps to provide complementary flights for our staff to many locations where we work overseas. We could not do it without this remarkable network of people and companies who care.

• Q: How do donations work and what is the process of when a cheque is received and money sent to projects?

  A: Any donation we receive for a project is a “restricted donation” from an accounting point of view and, as a result, has to be spent on that specific aspect of Free The Children’s work. We receive funds for both domestic and international projects. For international projects, for example, we work with our country directors, our projects team in Canada and our management team to ensure donations are sent overseas quickly so the funds can be used to help people as soon as possible. However, our work does not stop there. We also work with the team to ensure that each international project is properly managed and evaluated on an ongoing basis. If anyone is interested in project information, they can visit www.freethechildren.com/donate/faq or contact us and we would be happy to speak to them.