...~,.,..----------.,.....------------------ - - ----------
C'.omelius
<i
fighting it e\'er since • got here," said
Cornelius, who is black,
Comelius said his recent trip to Chicago
was not at all hurried, as The
Tribune reported Friday.
Cornelius left for Chicago after he
was questioned by Tulsa County deputies
about some of the allegations April
2. His wife and children later flew to
Chicago and have not retumed.
". left the same day-but I told the
deputies I was leaving and I told them
where I could be reached. phone
numbers and all,"
Cornelius also said he thought a
great effort bad gone into improving
the shelter. "not just on my part-bul
on the part of all those who wort out
there...
"The place used to be an old folks
home where people went to die. Now.
people can come out, get a meal, get a
job and get on their way."
"~I hope that doesn·t go do\\"n tile
drain, ..
~melius' supervisor. Jack Helton,
director o( social services for Tulsa
County and Counly Commission chairman
Robert S. ~ewhouse have promised
an investigation.
They are to meet \liith
Monday morning.
By JACK "'''11m
Shelter h~rfldLiadmits 'estimating' meal count
Iiii' "wl~IGION
end of each month, usmg eslimates- "When I came. there were no pro\'i- more meals .... ere reportedly sen'ed in The maximum number of residents to
based on the maximum numter of resi· SlOns for keeping records of shelter January - when the institution pro-- eat anyone meal this month was 11
dents in the sheller at the lime-in days, meals, or county property. he vuled 339 shelter days - than in March but the average attendance at meals
places where he felt the cooks reports said. - when the institution provided 710 was about five.
were inaccurate. "Now there is some accountability. shelter dal's. On more than half the days so far
When the Tribune asked to see the and everyone says there is something . A. "shelter day" as explained in lhe this month. employes ootnumbered the
original cook's reports. Cornelius said going on." institution guidelines, is one person fed residents at the noon meals,
.they had ~n destrol'ed, "because The Tribune found records which had and sheltered for one day. Cornelius said a television set. whicb
they were dirty and greasy. and were been altered to show additional persons Cornelius said figures which in- was allegedly ~'ven to a former em-na
long" -'...""..'".." eating at the institution and found e.o- ddicated that residents ate six meals pe' plol'e aI the IIer, was comY~'eu'.1; Y
ComeII·US. whos·adl he has noI IeII tries on one month's records that 1Ialy_in Jan'uJanl were probably in error. Wlusahie.
the house for the past four days. could dicated the indigent residents there '" think it must be a clerical mat- "The 1V repairman told us it was not
not be reached at his home for com. \\ould have had to eat nearly six meals ter:' he said. worth fixing,"
ment friday. per day I0 consume that many meals' "I haven't had time to look al the . CoroeI·IU.s said the couch and. file cab-
Three persons have wid The Tribune January records because I\'e been sick h h cdl
'" was told when I came here in 1973 they knew of food theft at the shelter -but I can't imagine that our own fig- ~~~~II~ ~~:n~el~c:r~ YJ~l~~ tt:
thai there would be rumors about me and had seen employes carrying food ures .....ould show such a thing." longed to him and his wife. •
and the shelter - but J ne\'er thought It out of the kitchen in crates late at .'. called out to the shelter friday- "The couch was badly ripped and
Id th o I .. C I··d ..ght but the January records were not there. he ,., h w~u ~o ,~ar, O~IUSsal, . t leca inets were jW1k-that's why
'I think It s a shame. The Tribune also questioned why 600 I don't know where they are." \lie ga\'e them away," the supen'isor
The only original cook's record found said.
by The Tribune was a partial record for Cornelius denied that any of the
the month of April. The record in· items .....ere given in exchange for sexdicated
that several days were left ual favors.
blank and several zeros were entered
for various meals. "That's ridiculous." he said.'
During the other eight months, the Cornelius said he feels rumors and
records which Cornelius said he had es- allegations leveled against him are tbe
timated do not indicate any meal where product of racism.
there were no residents present. "1 know it is a racist thing-I'\'e been
Clarence W. (ChIck) Cornelius. supervisor
of the Tulsa County Emergency
Shelter. admitted today that
meal records there are "estimates at
best" but said his record.keeping is
"'ike the Garden of Eden compared to
lhe records before I came."
Cornelius responded to a Tulsa Tri·
bun e story which rel'ealed meal
records at the shelter aPParently had
been allered and more meals "'ere
b!ing recorded than actually served.
"I'\'e been trying to get the cooks to
keep a daily record-but some of them
just aren't capable of keeping accurate
records." he said
Cornelius said he took the original
cook's report and copied it at the
