Charities Left Out In The Cold After Chassé Owner Arrest
After the arrest of Chassé Ballroom and Latin Dance Studio owner Michael LaJoice, many people are wondering how the charities that benefited from his donations will cope moving forward.
As previously posted, LaJoice turned himself in last week after admitting to embezzling more than $20 million from the Clarkston Brandon Community Credit Union, where he held the title of CFO. He's been officially charged with 14 counts of embezzlement, each carrying a 20-year sentence.
Of course, our first thoughts go to his three young children. But, as is widely known, Chassé was one of the more charitable local businesses in Fenton and the surrounding communities. If there was a fundraiser for charity, you would almost certainly see their logo in the list of donors.
Two of the more prominent recipients of donations are the American Cancer Society and the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan. Chassé was one of the top sponsors of the Making Strides Walk, which takes place in October, and Backpack Night, which is coming up in March.
Here are the links to these two organizations, if you'd like to donate yourself to help offset their losses:
Also in question is the $31 million development in Fenton, the 155,000-square-foot facility that was to house condos, a restaurant, an organic grocer, a daycare, etc.
If you have a business to add to this list, please let us know by emailing us at pat@wcrz.com or AJ@wcrz.com.