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Sebring Chamber Members, Public Finally Learning Facts

The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 26, 2008

Make no mistake, Dan Andrews is innocent until proven guilty. There are serious allegations against him, and he deserves an opportunity to prove his innocence. All anyone wants is the truth.

The saga of Andrews and the Greater Sebring Chamber of Commerce turned dark this week when the former chamber executive director was arrested on three felony counts dealing with money missing from the chamber's coffers.

Andrews was fired earlier this year and a painfully slow investigation began into money being shifted, chamber credit cards supposedly being improperly used for personal expenses and even golf clubs and home improvements being charged to the chamber.

The arrest report is damning against Andrews, as would be expected. The charges of grand theft, scheme to defraud and making false entries on books of a corporation are serious.

Of all the crimes alleged by the state, the theft of money from the community scholarship fund is the most heinous. It's clear that some of that money was shifted into the general fund without the board's permission, but beyond that, it's unclear how a fund with more than $75,000 ended up with a balance of about $450.

What's needed is stability at the chamber, and that's been found with Sarah Pallone taking over as chamber director. The organization is important to local businesses and the faith shown by many has been refreshing, and even surprising. They were not given enough information during these troubled days and several members have complained, wondering what was going on and the stability of the chamber. It was difficult to answer some of those questions, though, due to the investigation that was under way.

Let's hope this latest step is the beginning of the end. The coming months will be painful for everyone involved, but sticking our heads in the sand and pretending it's not happening is not an option. In fact, a full airing of the facts are in order, and it appears that's going to happen. They might show there's been a terrible mistake, or it might show wrongdoing. Either way, chamber members and the public have the right to know.

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