Hooters had hard time finding someone to take donation

JANESVILLE, Wis. - A Hooters restaurant had problems finding a nonprofit group willing to take part of the proceeds from its local grand opening.<br> <br> First, the YWCA of Rock County turned down the offer. Then, SpotLight on Kids, a children&#39;s theater group, said no. Then ECHO, a church-sponsored charity that operates a food pantry, declined.<br> <br> All three groups need donations but, for them, dollars were less important than the dignity of women.<br> <br> &#34;I had to choose between taking the money and offending some of our longtime donors, YWCA Executive Director Marge Hilgart said.<br> <br> The restaurant is known for its waitresses, dressed in orange short shorts and tight T-shirts, and relies on female sex appeal to attract a 70 percent male clientele.<br> <br> Eventually, the Madison branch of the Wisconsin Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation accepted it. A message left there Sunday by The Associated Press was not immediately returned.<br> <br> The restaurant chain wouldn&#39;t say if other groups turned down its money.<br> <br> A Hooters spokeswoman also would not say how much money the restaurant raised from the sale of its fried-chicken wings on last week&#39;s grand-opening night. She referred questions to the restaurant&#39;s national headquarters in Atlanta. A message left there Sunday was not returned.<br> <br> &#34;Hooters exploits young women and degrades all women,&#34; SpotLight on Kids Managing Director Edie Baran said. &#34;I work with young people. How could I possibly look them in the eye and try to teach them integrity, positive body image and self-confidence and then accept money from an organization like Hooters?&#34;<br> <br> No one answered the phone at a local ECHO office Sunday.<br>

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/10/188649