Improprieties by John Dehlin and the Open Stories Foundation: An Open Letter to Current Donors
After posting my previous Open Letter to John Dehlin and the OSF Board, I started receiving information from a lot of people with similar concerns. I even heard from a prior board member and the information he/she shared was very disturbing.
All of the feedback centered on the character and ethics of John Dehlin. I realize that many people reading this will immediately react to that statement in a defensive manner but I would ask you to think back on how you felt as a believing Mormon hearing someone criticize your church or its leaders… did you react the same way or were you open to hear the information before judging if it is valid or not? Are you now simply giving your allegiance to a new leader or have you truly become an open-minded critic to anyone that asks you to give of your time, talent and resources? Believe me, it gives me no pleasure to write this, but I decided long ago that truth matters and that we must all be willing to hold power accountable.
Before writing this second letter, I decided to wait for John to publish his 2018 finances as I knew they would prove a lot, but it is now mid-November and the financials are still not published so I want to start with this glaring fact.
John Dehlin and the OSF board are currently breaking the law as they have failed to publish their 2018 financials. This is the first time in the history of the OSF that they have not disclosed their finances and it is because John Dehlin is trying to cover up the fact that he forced out his entire staff in 2018 so that he could pocket a majority of OSF/Mormon Stories Podcast donations
At the time Dehlin forced out his staff, the OSF was bringing in over $400K per year. He then became the only full-time employee of the OSF and it is estimated that he is taking home over $250k. This does not include any profits he is taking from his for-profit ventures or private coaching. In contrast, his last reported compensation was $82,500 plus a bonus. No one claims he should not be adequately compensated for what he does.
The fact that his combined income is likely well over $300k is not necessarily a problem but Dehlin continues to portray himself as a financially struggling activist in order to solicit more donations which is completely dishonest (refer to the final few minutes of Mormon Stories episode 1202.
One of Dehlin’s major criticisms of the Mormon church is its overall lack of financial transparency and that it uses charitable donations to launch For Profit businesses (why would the church own a mall?). But this year, Dehlin followed the Mormon church’s lead when he used OSF to help launch 2 separate For Profit businesses; Gift of a Mormon Faith Crisis and Thrive.
Refer to the above podcast where he clearly states that Thrive (which he owns) is paying him money for marketing services even though he says that Thrive is losing money… if it is losing money, why would it pay anything to a non-profit organization? This is just another way to enrich himself and do so in a way that can be hidden from the public.
On a separate note, Dehlin has exhibited very abusive behavior to his paid employees since OSF was launched. This has been corroborated by several victims and witnesses including multiple board members. He even had a long-term affair with his first paid employee. When it ended, she lost her job and nothing happened to Dehlin.
Several board members have resigned or been forced out by Dehlin if they contradicted or disagreed with him. When he had an affair with his first employee the entire board resigned and this pattern of resetting the table with new board members has occurred every year or two when a new controversy blows up.
John Dehlin also has a clear pattern of placing close friends on his board which is a questionable move as the entire point of requiring a board is to ensure the integrity of the non-profit. When he forced out his staff in 2018, his board included 6 members but most of them resigned as a direct result of Dehlin’s actions. His current board consists of two close friends Steve Holbook and Nadine McCoombs Hansen. This is NOT an ethically functioning board as Non-profit law states that a board must include at least three members.
Finally, several people have gone public about Dehlin’s behavior in the past but every one of them have been shunned by the community as Dehlin owns the major post-Mormon Facebook groups and he blocks and slanders anyone who he views as a threat. There is even a FB group dedicated to those blocked by Dehlin.
To everyone who donates their hard-earned money to John Dehlin and the Open Stories Foundation… how is any of this okay with you? I am not saying that John should not make decent money for what he does. The Mormon Stories Podcast has helped so many people including me but that is no excuse for what John has done and continues to do. As Dehlin loves to say, “Sunlight is the best disinfectant”!