CathInfo.com

I’m seriously confused.  Donations from the public are being requested??  I was forwarded a copy of an email that is making the rounds saying that Father Collins left sufficient funds to take care of remaining medical bills and funeral expenses!  I will not be donating and would very strongly caution anyone else who is considering it.  

I think you need to re-read the text ofJudith Sharpe's request in the OP.

http://isoc.ws/donate/

STATEMENT OF THE ESTATE OF FR. JOSEPH F. COLLINS: “Based in part on consultation with intimate friends and family of Fr. Collins, his Estate has authorized the establishment of a means to accept donations to assist the Estate with expenses for his funeral and remaining medical bills. Solely as a matter of convenience and given the pressure of time, the donations will be accepted by a small Catholic organization (see http://isoc.ws) that Fr. Collins supported as chaplain and advisor over the last years of his earthly life. (In consequence, and quite obviously, the donations are for Fr.’s Estate expenses and not for the organization. [Take note of tax consequences accordingly.] An accounting of income and expenses will be made at the appropriate time after receipts and Estate debts are tallied.) While contributions will be gratefully received, the Estate does not in any way wish to impede contributions that may be made to priests and religious organizations around the world for Masses to be said for the repose of Fr. Collins’s soul. We also acknowledge the regrettable circulation (apparently by individuals close to Fr. and unconcerned with his privacy or of the legal implications of circulating inaccurate and potentially defamatory information) of rumors to the effect that the Estate came into possession of a very large sum of money upon Fr.’s departure from this life. Without conceding any limitations upon the legal authority vested by common and positive law in Fr.’s Estate, we finally note, for the sake of transparency and the assurance of potential contributors and other interested parties, that 1) the Estate does not control the account holding the aforementioned sum (the exact value of which is presently unknown), which is both legally and practically inaccessible to the Estate; 2) the Estate is willing to receive contributions merely to offset (and reimburse in a timely way) funeral costs and other Estate debts that include, most importantly, the travel expenses (and stipends, as applicable) of clergy, singers, and impoverished laity who wish to attend the services but who would otherwise be impeded financially from doing so; 3) the key surviving family members expressly endorsed this course of action for the opportunity it would provide for individuals who knew and loved Fr. to show their appreciation of his life by the tangible means of financial participation in his obsequies; and 4) this course of action is consistent with Fr.’s final wishes, expressed numerous times and in various ways – a fact as to which at least one person is prepared, if necessary, to offer eye-witness testimony under oath, and which is also confirmed by readily available extrinsic evidence.”