The man accused of misspending money from the Massachusetts nonprofit he founded dropped off food and clothing for Bangor’s homeless residents in recent years and donated a portable shower to a city nonprofit in 2020.
But Peter Kelleher, the Millinocket native behind Support the Soupman, allegedly took more than $6,100 from the organization, which he spent at T-Mobile and a liquor store and used to pay personal debts and for other transactions, according to a May report from from the board’s vice chair examining the organization’s finances.
The report, which the organization’s board chair posted online, found Kelleher had also repaid about $400 of the money.
The board chair, Christopher Cyr, said Monday on the organization’s Facebook page that the Support the Soupman nonprofit would disband because of what he called a “severe case of misappropriation” by Kelleher, and donate its remaining funds to other organizations that help those experiencing homelessness.
Further investigation “continues through law enforcement agencies,” Cyr said. Neither Kelleher nor Cyr responded to requests for comment Tuesday.
The charity’s disbandment marks the end of a group whose founder developed a reputation for driving a red bus throughout New England to serve soup and drop off supplies for homeless residents. Kelleher sought news coverage from the Bangor Daily News when he visited Bangor to drop off supplies or donate the portable shower.
The decision to liquidate Support the Soupman and fire Kelleher as CEO stemmed from an internal investigation, Cyr said on the organization’s Facebook page.
The nonprofit’s board of directors was notified on March 3 that Kelleher allegedly attempted to cash a $1,000 donation check, but the bank flagged it because it was made out to “Soupman,” according to a May 2022 letter to the nonprofit’s board of directors from vice chair and lawyer Benjamin Eddington, which outlined an investigation of Support the Soupman’s bank accounts between June 2021 and March 2022.
The flagged check led the nonprofit’s board to suspend Kelleher from his position as CEO on March 11 pending an investigation and formal hearing, according to the letter. During that suspension, Kelleher had no control over the organization’s finances and didn’t represent the organization. He also had to take weekly drug tests for four weeks.
Kelleher tested positive for cocaine on March 29, according to the letter. The next day, the board informed Kelleher he had to enter a 30-day treatment program, and his right to operate the organization’s vehicles was revoked.
Kelleher entered a program and turned in his keys that same day.
The investigation found Kelleher took more than $6,100 in varying amounts from the organization between June 2021 and January 2022.
The investigation also included an examination of Kelleher’s bank account activity from October 2021 to February 2022, which found he regularly withdrew cash in amounts ranging from $40 to more than $400.
Kelleher also allegedly deposited checks in amounts ranging from $300 to more than $1,000 into his personal account, but Eddington wrote that it was unclear where these payments came from and whether they were donations to the nonprofit.
Based on his findings and conversations with Kelleher, Eddington wrote that he believed Kelleher lied to the board of directors and had a history of misappropriating funds. He recommended the board hold a hearing so Kelleher could plead his case, and the board could decide whether to terminate him as CEO.
On May 12, the nonprofit’s board of directors voted to remove Kelleher as CEO and from the board, according to meeting minutes contained in a Google Drive folder of meeting minutes and other documents the organization posted.
Kelleher began serving soup to people experiencing homelessness from his home in Brockton, Massachusetts, in November 2017 after his son Travis, who lived in Bangor, died of an opioid overdose on Sept. 2, 2016, at the age of 33.
In March 2018, Support the Soupman became a registered nonprofit organization and Kelleher began distributing supplies, including shower units, for those experiencing homelessness throughout New England. Tax filings show the organization had seen contributions rise between 2018, when the nonprofit took in $160,536, and 2020, when it received $491,163.
In 2020, Support the Soupman donated a $50,000 portable shower system to the Union Street Brick Church, which helps Bangor’s homeless community. The propane-powered unit was parked outside the church, and contained three stalls as well as soap, sandals, towels and other resources.
The nonprofit will work with the Massachusetts attorney general’s office and the Supreme Judicial Court to transfer its existing assets, according to Cyr, the board chair.
A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office declined to comment on the investigation and liquidation of the organization.
