Questions over Mihdi Joon Fund go unanswered
A fund set up for the care and treatment of special needs child Mihdi Brock received about $700,000 between 2000 and 2011, according to official records.But the Mihdi Joon Fund faces an uncertain future as it has not been re-registered since the summer of 2012, The Royal Gazette can report.Hundreds of individuals and dozens of organisations answered the call when Marvin Brock Sr, Mihdi’s father, launched the fundraising campaign in the late 1990s.Mihdi was born in 1997 with a rare life threatening spinal condition and a host of other medical issues.Chinese medicine has been instrumental in saving Mihdi’s life, according to the family.The Mihdi Joon Fund was established as a Bermuda registered charity in 2000.Besides raising funds for the child’s care and treatment, the Fund also aims to educate the public on the use of Eastern medicine and assist other families who cannot afford such treatment.Mihdi’s need for constant care prevented Mr Brock from working.Last year Mr Brock estimated costs at $120,000 a year.Between 2000 and 2011, a total of $684,744 — averaging $57,000 annually — were disbursed to Mr Brock for his son’s care, according to records filed by the Mihdi Joon Fund with the Registry General.The largest disbursements were in the years 2007, 2008 and 2009 when $89,240, $88, 310 and $91,125 were disbursed from contributions of $89,497, $106,531 and $88,360 respectively.A low point was in 2002 when just $8,326 was collected by the charity.Claire Quinlan, Mihdi’s mother, was awarded sole legal and physical custody of the teenager by a Los Angeles, California judge on February 13.The couple had four other children together but have been divorced since 2004 and had battled over custody for the last three years.Last night, Mr Brock told The Royal Gazette that he is no longer receiving monies from the charity, and that the primary benefactor had decided to end his contributions.He said that the Charities Commission has asked for audited financials — something that had not been requested since the inception of the Fund — and that he was working hard at providing the necessary documentation.We were unable to get other officials to speak on the record about the charity by press time last night, but it is understood that they will be meeting soon to determine the way forward.Officials at the Registry General have been tight lipped about the charity, saying the governing legislation does not require them to answer many of our questions.Ms Quinlan told this newspaper last month that she will not be seeking funding for Mihdi’s care from Bermuda, saying she believes it is possible to be self-sufficient.Last night she reported that she is “leaning toward” spinal fusion surgery for the teen — a procedure which could guarantee a decent quality of life but which comes with considerable risk because of Mihdi’s unique physical condition.