I guess parenting really does make you a better person.
larious
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090211/NEWS/902110324&s=d&page=1#pluckcommentsAbout $20,000 intended to buy playground equipment at Carrcroft Elementary School was stolen by the treasurer of a Brandywine School District PTA, police said.
Cheryl R. Wood, 37, of Osage Avenue in Claymont, surrendered to state police Tuesday and was charged with theft and falsifying business records -- both felonies -- and released on $3,000 unsecured bail, state police Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said.
"If, in fact, it's true, it's a sad thing that people would take money from kids," said Jim Scanlon, Brandywine School District superintendent.
The embezzlement was discovered after PTA president Sue Wildman unsuccessfully tried to purchase playground equipment last week with the PTA debit card, according to court records.
When Wildman confronted Wood, she reportedly said she had lost the debit card.
On Thursday, Wildman and the group's vice president went to Commerce Bank and discovered the PTA account had $100 in it.
Wildman then called Wesleyan Investment Foundation and learned it had no record of an investment account for Carrcroft PTA.
"We were in absolute, total shock," Wildman said. "I never suspected this, absolutely not."
When Wildman checked the group's Wilmington Trust account, she learned it had been closed because of a negative balance.
The Wilmington Trust Mutual account was left with 75 cents, court records say.
In early June, Wood had been given several blank checks with the PTA president's signature on them because checks or vouchers must be signed by two people -- the treasurer and one other person -- per PTA by-laws, according to court records.
Wood was instructed to transfer $15,756.37 from the Wilmington Trust checking account to Commerce Bank, and to transfer $4,550.55 form the Wilmington Trust Mutual account to a Wesleyan Investment Foundation account.
Between June 11 and Nov. 25, Wood allegedly wrote out nine checks totalling $18,447.80 from the Wilmington Trust account to herself and two checks worth $740 from the Commerce account and cashed them at Commerce Bank, the records say.
Wood, who had been elected to the treasurer's post two years ago, gave inaccurate statements about the PTA financial standings to the board and could not produce proper records for the 11 checks, police said.
When the PTA officers asked Wood what she was thinking by spending $20,000, she replied, "Oh, I thought it was only $6,000," police said in court records.
"We've ordered an immediate audit and have contacted our insurance company," Wildman said. "We have liability coverage."
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