12/14/2020

Don't let scammers fool you into sending them your donations. Please share this article.

Scammers are hitting religious and non-profit organizations hard right now, counting on the generous hearts of people like you to fill their pockets, rather than actually serving those in need. Please read this article and share it with your congregation, family and friends so they don't become victims of this crime.

As we have shared numerous times before,

1) the Bishop of the Southern Ohio Synod, WILL NOT solicit money from you directly--EVER! Such solicitation is against our financial checks and balances and should be part of your congregation's as well.

2) The Southern Ohio Synod staff each have one official email address ending in @southernohiosynod.org . Always check the email address from which you are receiving any synod communications to validate whether or not the email is legit. (Pr. Katie Kerrigan also has an email from the ELCA, which ends in @ELCA.org.) Most email request from scammers use some other email address, such as @gmail.com or @yahoo.com or a variety of others.

3) Do not click any links or respond in any way to the email scammer. Delete the email and block the address. (See your email provider's How-To's to learn how to block an email address.)

4) Please contact Susan Barton-Nonno at sbarton-nonno@southernohiosynod.org if you receive a scam email. Forwarding the original email is helpful. Please do not send these directly to the Bishop.

4) Please read and share with your entire congregation through your official channels the articles below from the Federal Trade Commission so they can be better informed and less likely to fall victim to an email or other scam.