Tuesday, November 16, 2010
The Powers Behind PVAS Peru Ambulance
For several years now there has been controversy about the structure of Peru Volunteer Ambulance Service. Their past history is not so shiny and bright and has caused many residents to wonder about the way it in which the leadership has conducted the ambulance service. I can only hope that some light will finally be shed on the way the entire system operates, starting at the very top. I welcome all comments and particularly from these who have knowledge of what actually goes on with the powers that be. Roberson may be the director but who does he answer to?
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32 comments:
Does anyone know if he has the sole power to do all the negotiating with La Salle? Does he have to answer to anyone? I sure hope Peru does not have to make up the loss of revenue that will be the result of La Salle pulling out. I can't believe that not one of our board members was at the meeting to represent PVAS. Am I correct in stating that they are aldermen O'Beirne, Mikyska, and Ankiewicz? And, does anyone know who actually owns the building and the ambulances and equipment?
The county has them listed as a volunteer organization who pay no taxes and the property is owned by the Peru Volunteer Ambulance Service. No other information available from them. The way it is run makes it seem like a stealth organization with no information available to the public.
In an attempt to put this organization into the proper perspective, I went to the 10/33 web site and I think every resident should do so and then go to PVAS and see what they want the public to know.
http://1033ambulance.org/Board_of_Directors.htm
and then try
http://www.peruems.com/
It has been under construction for 2 years that I am aware of. What don't they want us to know?
PVAS Board of Directors consists of Ald. Ankiewicz, Mikyska, and O'Beirne and LaSalle Ald. Diz Demes.
Previously I had understood that the LaSalle Alderman did not have a vote but Ald. Mikyska said Ald Demes did but I guess he would certainly be outvoted 3 to 1, so it really doesn't matter, does it?
Peru City Council went into closed session after a record short regular council meeting, about 15 minutes. The topic supposedly discussed was the use of land. Perhaps the ambulance and the land upon which the building sits were discussed. Back to the point brought up previously who owns the land and what happens to the land and building if the ambulance service should ever be dissolved and taken over by the Peru Fire Dept.
There seems to be an awful lot of unanswered questions regarding PVAS. Why is everything being kept so secret by this supposed life saving service? Why are Peru aldermen who have no medical training on the board of a volunteer ambulance service? Why has their website been under construction for 2 years? Wasn't the director in trouble not too long ago? Does anyone have any answers? It seems as though the EMT's themselves are doing an excellent job as reported by La Salle. Where does the money go that is paid for each answered call go and why does Peru have to donate $4000 a month?
Peru has to pay for the ambulance service the same way LaSalle did. They are not City employees, they are a business that the City contracts with to provide a service. It's not a donation.
2:16 pm
We understand the business aspect but the only difference is that PVAS has city officials only on the Board of Directors making the decisions for PVAS.
There is no other business the city does business with that has aldermen on their Boards of Directors. Big difference since it was setup to be run by elected officials of the city of Peru and not as a private corp.
to Lois:
I know my question does not belong here but I am very concerned about an article in the thurs front page News Trib.
Is the Steve of this blog the SAME curriculum director Steve Wrobleski of LP, who has failed our children recently in passing the minimum standard testing levels?
If this is the same Steve, a person who was the manager for Mayor Harl election, and the person thinking about running for alderman in the city of Peru, WHY WOULD WE SUPPORT SOMEONE WHO CLAIMS TO KNOW EVERYTHING AND HAS ALL OF THE ANSWERS, and yet has FAILED OUR CHILDREN ?
The board of education should fire Steve for the inadequacies provided us for our tax dollars.
I hope you print this note for others to express comments ?
Thank You..
8:31AM
NO not the same person and not even the same name. Both last names start with a W and have the same ending so I can see where you might mistake it but absolutely not even very close.
Mayor Baker is the owner of the ambulance business, why do you think Mikyska and Ankwiecz, and O'beirne are on the board of directors? To watch out for his interests.
8:31 - I have no idea what you could possibly be trying to accomplish by suggesting Steve Weberski and Steve Wrobleski are the same person. I have been accused of many things on this blog but never for "failing the students of L-P High School". But if it makes you feel any better, I'll take full responsibility for the Minimum Standards Test results at L-P.
ANON 9:54 Are you certain he's the owner? It makes sense and has been an idea but are you sure? Is he the controlling figure? Or, is there someone else? I found it hard to believe that the 3 aldermen were qualified to make decisions regarding life and death. Who gave Roberson the proposals he presented to La Salle or does he do that himself? I would be suprised if he doesn't have to report to a higher controlling figure.
I’m not sure what the controversy is about. If you look or ask, the information is available. I downloaded their Form 990. This is like a corporate tax return, except it is for non-profits. The document is very detailed and shows all income and expenses as well as all assets, donations received, property… very detailed – all the way down to office supply expenses and $121K in bad debt. Apparently many people do not pay their bill. The only compensated board member is the Director who makes about $57K.
I looked and looked and looked…. And could not find Don Baker’s name on this document.
As for why PVAS exists – If I recall, and I’m going on memory, 10-33 could no longer provide adequate coverage for Peru because of their obligations in Bureau County. So Peru copied the 10-33 structure and created PVAS – PERU Volunteer Ambulance Service. The reason Aldermen serve on the board is to look out for Peru’s interests.
There are two other options. The first option is to contract with a FOR PROFIT service which would put profit margins ahead of community service. The second would be to have the city provide the service and hire all of the employees.
I think PVAS is doing just fine the way it is. As a non-profit, they have strict reporting requirements. If you want to find out more, all you have to do is look for the information or just ask them for it.
8:31 - I will happily respond to your foolish comment about Mr. Wrobleski at LPHS. You are going to be so simple minded as to blame one man for the test scores of 1300 students? Really? Have you ever met him? Have you worked with the LP administration who is working very hard to improve the learning opportunities for our kids? Mr. Wrobleski is one of the most dedicated hard working people who is so committed to our kids. If we had more parents care about education as much as school leaders like Steve instead of drinking, gambling or.contributing to mindless drivel like your post, our test scores would take care of themselves.
Look where Mr. Foster? The obvious place would be there website as all of 10/33's information is on their website. The only problem is that PVAS's web has been under construction for around 2 years.
Brian, perhaps you would like to give directions for those who would like to download the form as I did not find it that simple.
I think that many people feel that in comparison to many small ambulance services of similar size, our local service is not very upfront with information. For at least 2 years they have had a web site "under construction" and that site is not even the Peru Volunteer Ambulance Service but instead has the address of peruems.com. It contains no names, history, service area and in other words it makes it look like we are hiding something. That is why I was so impressed with 10/33 where everything is upfront.
I am sure you have been reading the N.T. blog and are aware of the complaints about the Board of Directors, so I will not add to that.
Director Roberson is not on the Board, so is he the Lone Ranger as no one on the Board has any expertise to advise. Years ago, I heard that a M.D. was involved but would never allow his name to be given out. Again only rumor.
It is only when businesses operate in the dark that questions arise and that is the situation right now. I would like to know why only Peru Aldermen make up the board and what qualifies them to be there? I know there were legal problems in the past
and you may remember the details as I do not have them at hand.
You can get it directly from the IRS. They are also required to make copies available to the public during normal business hours. Additionally, there are organizations that provide information about non-profits. The one I used is GuideStar. www2.guidestar.org. You will need to register, but do not have to pay anything. They also have a premium service which requires a payment. The 990 is available for free.
Mr. Roberson is listed on the form as an officer of the corporation (Executive Director)and a key employee. He is also the only compensated officer of the company.
I don't think an MD needs to be involved - other than to provide training. Remember - the AMA fought tooth and nail during the 70's to prevent the establishment of EMS.
My question is who hired Mr. Roberson as executive director and a key employee? Somebody has to own or control the company and its employees (including Roberson).
The Board of Directors hired him. They are a 501C Corporation. Nobody "owns" it persay and their are no "shares." They provide a service without expectation of a profit. If they make a profit, it is put back into the company.
They are not a government entity.
It is no different than IVCH or the YMCA.
They just happen to be organized in such a way as that sitting Aldermen must be on the board.
Brian: Take a look at 10/33 Spring Valley's ambulance website. They too are a not for profit organization but are up front with all their information. Who is PVAS's President, vice president, secretary, treasurer, etc. 10/33 board of directors is made up of representatives from each town it services. PVAS is supposedly not solely Peru's yet its name and structure supports exactly that. Why have their been no changes in it's board and why is it made of solely Peru aldermen not even volunteer citizens not involved in government. You have to admit its structure is questionable and it is very hard to get answers from anyone.
There is a major difference between the two organizations. I downloaded the 990EZ that 10-33 filed. According to the paperwork, they get 97% of their funding from "public support" and recieve "tax revenues levied for the organizations benefit." Also, accorging to their web site, at least part of the board is elected.
PVAS gets the majority of their funding patient billing. The form states they recieved $1.3M from services provided and only $99K from Peru, LaSalle, and Peru & Dimmick Townships. That's about 8%, non of which is in the form of a tax levy.
10-33's web site is a bit confusing in that they say they are not a taxing body - but the paperwork says they receive almost all of their funding through taxes levied on their behalf.
This being the case, I suspect that their web site is better because of the source of their funding.
I agree that PVAS should do a better job with their web site and public relations in general. In fact - the web site is useless and not worth whatever they are paying to keep it on-line.
I would also like to know how much of the "Patient EMS Revenue" comes from MEDICARE and MEDICAID.
Ok so part of their board is elected. How did our 3 aldermen become PVAS's entire board? Who elected or appointed them? Was anyone else ever offered a position on the board? And, we still have no known Pres., V.P., treasurer, secretary, etc. Who does Mr. Roberson report to - our aldermen? Then my question is what qualifications do they have to answer medical questions and respond to medical situations?
Going out on a limb here but I believe these same aldermen were on the ambulance board under the Baker administration and when Mayor Harl was elected they continued to remain. Perhaps someone else might know, but there is a good possibility that Mayor Baker was also on the board and I believe Mayor Harl chose not to also be on the Board of Directors.
Again... download the 990.
President - Joseph Mikyska
Secretary - James Dems
Treasurer - Robert Ankeiwicz
Board Memeber - Jack O'Beirne
Executive Director - Mark Roberson
PVAS is a private non-profit corporation.
The board requires no medical qualifications.
The Director reports to the board.
In reality, I believe the corporation was set up this way to prevent it from being funded directly from tax dollars while keeping the City of Peru in charge of it.
Don Baker was President from its inception to 2008.
Again Brian - I don't know how to download the 990. If you have the answers from that form maybe you could post the form on your blog or here so we could all see it and maybe better understand its format.
The forms are over 20 pages in length. You can download them from
www2.guidestar.org. You will need to register, but do not have to pay anything. They also have a premium service which requires a payment. The 990 is available for free.
So now we know that Mayor Baker was an integral part of the ambulance service since its beginning along with the named individuals on the Board. He was defeated, the Board remained the same with former Mayor Baker now only the back seat driver and still clearly influential with the current board members.
And since the Leader of the Valley sign was placed right in front of LaSalle for all those years, I can put 2 and 2 together and know why LaSalle always got a NO to their requests from the PVAS Board. Considering all the elements involved it was inevitable that one day LaSalle would say enough. Many residents of Peru are not even surprised at the turn of events.
Mt question if the service's board is all city officials then why is it not a city entity. The best thing that could happen to Peru ambulance is that it would be taken over by Peru fire I no several people that work there and they have no respect or confidence in the director of the service Mark Roberson. Mr foster if you look close you will find that Mr Roberson is under his third investigation by the state of Illinois over his poor decisions in staffing and not being in compliance with the services EMS plan filed with the state. The public really needs to look into things and call the mayor's office over what is going on at PVAS. The employees do a great job and you have some of the best EMT'S in the Illinois valley working there but they our being held back by poor management and poor representation of the board. If you talk to the powers in charge of Lasalle emergency services they would be lying if they said it was not the sole reason of there leaving PVAS was the board and upper management of the service.
Hi
Ive been reading this board for a long time but this is my first time posting.
This board has been a wealth of knowledge but I was wondering about some other sites you use you use for this type of stuff.
Please let me know other sites/forums you use
I'll go post an intro now!
Is there anything new on the PVAS front that you're aware of? I see no changes and I see no leadership.
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