On Thursday, a popular news outlet had reported that a fundraiser that would feature former First Lady Melania Trump had been scheduled for April would be canceled due to action taken by state regulators on the company that was hosting the event with her, in Florida. The charity had not properly been registered in order to collect contributions. Melania slammed the outlet for its “inaccurate” reporting
On Thursday, the New York Times reported that Mrs. Trump had announced an event called “Tulips and Topiaries”, late January. The event was to be held at an undisclosed location in Naples, Florida and was a ticketed event with a VIP table costing approximately $50,000. The event would feature “an elaborate flower garden with tulips” along with “tea and bubbles” as per the Times’ report. The money collected would be used to provide scholarships for those children who had emerged from foster care.
The Times reported that the event had to be called off as the charity had not registered with the Sunshine State. It said that Whip Fundraising, the company organizing the event had not completed registration as a charity, until the state officially began an investigation. The state requires that certain organizations who ask for donations, have to register as a charity with them.
On Friday, the Office of Melania Trump tweeted that the event had not been canceled. It had been postponed to December 4, 2022. Another tweet from her office also said that they “captured the attention” of many more people due to the “New York Times’ inaccurate reporting” and now required a “larger venue.”
The March 4 tweet also thanked the “incredible supporters of foster care children.”
The head of Whip Fundraising, Brad Keltner said that he had been advised that he need not register with the state and that he had not broken any rules, according to the Times. However, the registration process began after there was a state probe into the event and he began working on it.
He said that the state of Florida did not shut them down and that it was an internal decision that was made as they had an overwhelming response that they had been unprepared to handle, echoing what was said by the Office of Melania Trump.
(Photo: Frederic Legrand – COMEO)
