Jackson nonprofit speaks out after former director arrested
After former HERE of Jackson County Executive Director Gretta Worley was arrested, the nonprofit is trying to clear the air.
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Following the arrest of former executive director Gretta Worley, HERE of Jackson County is reassuring residents that it will continue to pursue its mission.
On March 31, Worley was indicted on 10 felony counts of obtaining property by false pretenses. According to the indictment, Worley used her position as director of the nonprofit to “obtain and use multiple credit cards” that were used by her and her family for “person expenditures not authorized by her position.”
The total value of items allegedly purchased is in excess of $100,000.
According to court records, Worley faced a host of similar charges — including larceny, identity theft, writing bad checks and obtaining property by false pretenses — between 2001 and 2007 but hasn’t had any between then and her recent arrest.
In a press release, HERE Board Chair Rady Large notes that seven of the eight current board members were not with the organization during Worley’s hiring process and that “current board leadership have seen no evidence that a background check was completed for Ms. Worley upon her being hired as Executive Director.”
“During HERE’s internal investigation in October of 2025, we had already placed Ms. Worley on investigative leave when the current board found out about her prior criminal history,” the release reads. “Our current board acted swiftly and decisively when the crimes of Ms. Worley came to light. This process highlights how truly important cycling new members onto non-profit boards to safeguard public funds used by non-profits. Our current board makeup listened to staff concerns and asked the hard questions needed to stop the despicable actions of one person.”
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The release says that due to HERE being a small organization, it hasn’t been required to have annual audits but that it does employ an accountant to help complete its annual tax forms, adding that it completed a forensic audit toward the end of last year to assist in the criminal investigation into Worley.
It further states that the loss of county funds that resulted after Worley’s arrest was a “huge hit for the organization.”
“We can withstand the impact of Jackson County withholding the $47,000 that we expected to receive this fiscal cycle but continued defunding by the County Commissioners will make it difficult for the organization to balance immediate needs and growth,” it reads. “For example, Code Purple funding for the 2025-2026 cold season was $76, 684.35 based on our Code Purple coordinator’s estimates. Those hotel stays for our clients in desperate need for a warm bed would not have been possible without the funding support of Jackson County.”
The nonprofit hopes that it can recoup some of the losses due to Worley’s alleged illegal activity through its insurance policy, and a civil suit is still on the table.
“The charges to the credit cards the Ms. Worley used to steal from HERE were paid with HERE funding by being coded to several line items in the budget,” the release reads. “A mixture of unrestricted dollars was used to pay these fraudulent expenses. Some of the funds were from DHHS grant funds, some were from County dollars and some were from unrestricted funds. At this time, DHHS is not requiring HERE to repay the fraudulent charges. HERE is currently on a Corrective Action Plan that includes new management, enhancing existing fiscal policies and putting new processes in place to monitor spending.”
