3-12-02

Re: Jeff Jones

Dear President Harris:

I believe my distinguished colleagues are aware of my feelings in this matter. When I was President of the NCCA in 1985, I, like many others before me, and since, inherited an organization without a "Gambit" editor. Unable to find a competent one, I accepted the responsibility of the job and subsequently published 6 consecutive issues, every two months. In order to save the organization money, I spent many hours organizing the mail according to bulk rate requirements. The information in my "Gambit" was always current, and the magazine was always on time. The "Gambit" under Jones was rarely ever even published and never current. Once, when the officers of my administration decided to have a meeting over lunch, a lively debate insued over whether the NCCA should pick up the $30 tab!?! It is my understanding that Jones stayed in hotels and often ran up tabs for steak dinners to be paid for by NCAA funds? When I organized the Invitational, I simply sought and found a "chess dad" who volunteered the free use of his large home. Other local players provided the travellers with a free place to sleep and a hot meal! The cost to the NCCA other than the small prize fund and rating fee was $0. Jones squandered an absurd amount of money on an invitational which among other things paid a custodian $350?! While I was President, I never wrote a single check...I thought that was supposed to be the responsibility of the Secretary/Treasurer. Jones wrote most of the checks. ("But Captain, that's why we have two keys; so no one man can fire the missles?!")  And more recently, of course, I organized the 2001 North Carolina Championship here in Charlotte whereby I personally lost money,(as did benefactor Frank Newton,Sr) but the NCCA lost not one cent! In fact, the organization sold many memberships and generated a sizable amount of revenue on that weekend! Jones' NC Championship lost money.

Addressing this issue is no enjoyable task. However, it is our responsibility as officers of the NCCA to expose the truth of this matter and attempt to prevent it from reoccurring. When both accountants report that Jones wrote checks to himself to the tune of $1,000 for reasons which are still unexplained, that he wrote duplicate checks in two cases, and that $360 was simply unaccounted for, (duh!) I find it difficult to understand how they substantiate their findings of no malfeasance? What is very clear to me in this matter, however, is that Jeffrey Mason Jones was the President, he wrote the checks, and he alone is responsible for the monetary loss suffered by this organization.

It is therefore my recommendation that his membership to the NCCA be revoked and that he be required to make restitution for the full amount.

I remain,

NM Leland Fuerstman, Vice President NCCA
National Master (1984)
Senior Tournament Director
USCF Life Member
USCF Delegate
USCF Certified Instructor
Founder of the Charlotte Chess Club (1975)
President & Director of the CCC (115 members)
Webmaster of CCC at: www.charlottechess.com
Weekly editor of "News & Views"
Active OTB Player
Past NCCA President, VP, Sec/Treas, Editor
Major event promoter: Simos for 8 different GM's
Chess Coach and Instructor for Providence Day School