FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) — The former executive director of the Springdale Rotary Club was given 20 years probation and ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution for embezzling from the service organization.
Courtney Palfreeman, 40, pleaded guilty Dec. 13 in Washington County Circuit Court to theft of property and second-degree forgery — both felonies. A felony charge for fraudulent use of a credit card was dismissed.
Palfreeman pleaded guilty under Act 346, which allows non-violent, first-time offenders to have their record expunged if they complete their probation.
Palfreeman, who now lives in Texas, turned herself in to Springdale police in July after an audit covering July 2017 to June 2018 revealed approximately $245,000 was missing from Rotary Club accounts.
Palfreeman spent $88,000 on the club’s credit card for personal use and forged names on club checks and financial records, according to an arrest report.
A Rotarian said Palfreeman admitted to stealing from the club after board members confronted her last summer about money missing from some non-profit accounts, according to the report.
Palfreeman was a member of the Springdale Rotary Club from 2003 to 2017, serving as an executive for 12 years, according to Karen Talbot Gean, former club president.
