This man claims to be a documentary filmmaker who accidentally started a free tutoring program. I worked for him for a short time, during which I found out he is a convicted felon (check out his lovely mug shot on the Oklahoma Deparment of Corrections website).
Here's the story he sells people—he meet a girl on an airplane on his way back from Disneyland (read, on his trip to Montana from the OK pen) and she couldn't go to college because she reads on a 7th (or 8th grade depending on the day he tells the story) grade level. This led him to produce commercials about reading to your kids—just guess who the main star is??? Anyway, the commercials led to parents calling him to find tutors for their kids because they got his website (www.whisperingwindproduction.com) off the commercials. Then he referred them to Sylvan and they called back because they could not afford it. Or, he also tells it that this mom walked ten miles in the rain to tell him that she couldn't afford tutoring for her 7 or 8 year old (sometimes the mom is pregnant, 3 or 8 months). So, he started a free tutoring program for Belgrade and outlying areas.
Okay, so I go to work for him and here is what happens. First, he hires me at $50,000 per year plus benies. I give two weeks at my job. He calls me almost everyday while I am at work. We meet three times during my last week at my old job and he says he is going to start me at $2,500/month plus insurance and commission. Tells me about how this lady name Gwyn stole $79,000 from the company and he needs to make up the funds—isn't going to turn her in because her brother begged him not to. (Later on I learn that Gwyn worked for him, things went bad, she got an injunction against him using her name, he still is using her name to this day as a partner and reference with a disconnected phone number. Also, later the next week he tells me that some lady named Jeanette stole the money. Never did find Jeanette but he lists her as a partner, too)
Back to the story, first day of work—no office, no desk, no phone (well, a cell phone but no office phones), no computer, no internet... Then, he expects me to spend 8-5 with him including lunch (he hired me to work 8-3 with 1 hour lunch). During that week, we go to Staples twice to pick out a desk. He complains that the phone company won't hook him up, claims Dell screwed up the computer order, and never again mentions the business cards until I ask and he tells me we just need to pick them up but never tells me where. He has me cold calling businesses on the phone to ask for donations in exchange for advertising. On a number of occasions, owners tell me they already donated and never heard back. Some bought airtime (120 showings) on a commercial—some even say they called ABC/Fox to get airtimes and were told there were none.
Changes what he wants to sell over and over—first, he wants to sell $25 spots on a newspaper ad, then wants $50 for them, then wants $100, then wants to sell corporate sponsors 120 airtimes for $585, I don't even remember all the other ones. Changes his contracts almost everyday. Almost forgot, one day a business owner hung up on me—mentioned it to him and he called the lady and yelled at her, when she hung up he called her again, and again, and then she blocks the call so he uses me phone! I was so embarrassed and pretty freaked out. I call in sick on Friday because I am totally uncomfortable about all of this.
Monday, I come to work and his car is gone—tells me he wrecked it, gives a big story and it almost rolling and the airbag going off and how the lady driving ran the stop sign and her husband drove them to the hospital. So, Mon/Tues/Wed I drive him around. SAys the insurance company is giving him the run around—here is where I have a blonde moment, he told me he did not have a valid license so why did I not realize he couldn't have insurance!
Tuesday I take him to the bank—he picks up a stop payment form, we drive back to the office, I watch him sign some lady's name, we go back to the bank (can you say fraud?) Tuesday night I do a search on his name on dogpile and guess what—there is a documentary about him! He is a con man and a convict. Now, since there is no picture, I email the company that is doing the documentary and I send a link to his website asking if the man in the picture is the convict—sure enough. Wednesday night— on a whim I call the police officer in the town he claims to have had an accident—no accident that fits that description in that COUNTY! The police officer asks what state the guy came from—when I tell him he searches him on the Oklahoma Department of Corrections website and finds the mug shots. Yeah, here I am—I have worked my butt off to establish myself as a professional and a teacher and I am now officially working for a felon!!!
Oh, forgot—my third day of work the landlord called me and told me he had not paid the rent and was blocking her calls and this was not the first time! She also told me she had attempted to evict him and she told the sheriff that if she wound up dead—he would be the one who did it.
But, I digress. Thursday I call in sick and try to figure out how to get myself out of this mess. I call the accountant he dropped my I9 and W4 off with—did not have her name because he wouldnt give it to me but I had driven him to a building that I was sure she was in. She is not his accountant but he has been bringing stuff to her off and on for the past year and a half without ever paying her! The day I took him there, she told him she had not been paid. He acted confused, then mad, then wrote her a check, then called her back and told her he stopped payment on the check because he already paid her.
Well, there is so much more—including the fact that he did finally get a couple of commercials to make himself look legit. And the fact that the whole time I was working for him I asked numerous times for names of tutors, children, and parents so I could put together a brochure and he always evaded my questions. No one I spoke to could confirm any tutoring and one day he told some business owners that he had gotten a tutor for kids in a town he had only heard of two days before when I mentioned it.
Now, he wouldn't pay me and he is threatening to send derogatory information about me to a variety of entities—including schools—all because I want my check after finding out he is a thief!!!
He is continuing to run his scam as we speak—but he has done just enough so that people can only prove him a thief if they take the time to do so. Please, please do not become involved with him!!
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