Who is actually in charge of Hunger Busters? The longtime Dallas nonprofit has spent most of this year embroiled in controversy after an I-Team investigation showed it was collecting donations without doing the work it advertised.

Now, a newly released document is raising even more questions about its leadership, including an apparent CEO who said she had no idea about the job.

For at least a decade, Hunger Busters built its name on the promise of providing a sandwich and sides to thousands of Dallas ISD students at the end of each school day, giving students facing food insecurity a third free meal each day in addition to school-provided breakfast and lunch. The organization relied heavily on restaurant leftovers and corporate volunteers to make and deliver the meals.

In 2023, Latame Phillips, a onetime driver at the nonprofit, took over as CEO. At some point after that, the meals stopped. In January 2026, Phillips admitted to the I-Team that it had been at least a year since the deliveries were made.

Fundraising for Hunger Busters continued

Despite the lack of food deliveries, Phillips kept raising money for Hunger Busters. Among the multiple grants the group received, two were from the Dallas-based Tyler Street Foundation, which were earmarked to help buy the Hunger Busters building and another delivery van.

Vivian Skinner, the president of the Tyler Street Foundation, told the I-Team that after the grants were issued, it was difficult to get Phillips to fulfill the terms. Phillips did show up for a photo op with the van purportedly purchased with the grant money, but Skinner said something about it “seemed off.”

“There was just a magnetic sign stuck on it,” Skinner said. Her team researched the van’s license plate and found it was a rental.

Tyler Street sued Hunger Busters and Phillips in September of 2025, claiming he had lied on the grant applications and doctored paperwork to fake the purchases.

In a court filing, Phillips said the money was used for the nonprofit’s “core operations and charitable mission.”

Lawsuit reveals new details

A week after the I-Team’s first investigation aired in January, Phillips emailed the Hunger Busters board chair saying he was resigning “for the good of the organization.” But bank records show he kept spending the nonprofit’s money.

The day after his resignation, one account showed nearly $22,000 in payments to Reputation 911, a company that promises to control search results and manage online reviews to help make clients “look good online.”

The I-Team analyzed thousands of purchases across Hunger Busters bank accounts that showed Phillips paying tens of thousands of dollars to companies that had no obvious links to the mission of feeding children, including:

• $33,125 to Million Air, a company specializing in charter flights and hangar storage
• $14,447 to Club Corp, a nationwide golf club membership program
• $9,500 to The Blox, a reality show competition for entrepreneurs

JB Schwartz, the attorney representing the Tyler Street Foundation, told the I-Team he had to subpoena the banks for the account information because Phillips has yet to turn over any records from Hunger Busters.

He said he was shocked by the purchases made with donations meant to feed Dallas ISD students. The spending, which he called “bonkers,” continued despite the pending civil lawsuit. “Latame Phillips was moving that money around after we filed this lawsuit,”  Schwartz said.

The only documentation Schwartz said he has received from the Hunger Busters’ attorney is a six-page document, dated April 7, 2026, that names new leadership at the nonprofit.

More questions left unanswered

For most of 2026, Latame Phillips has been the only person associated with Hunger Busters; after his resignation, all of the board members resigned and the interim CEO vacated the role days after agreeing to the job.

So who were these new leaders?

According to the document, the board appointed a Dallas-area woman as CEO, adding her as an “authorized signer” on all of Hunger Busters’ accounts. However, when the I-Team contacted the woman, she said she had no idea about the job, telling us she had never applied for it or entered into any agreement.

The I-Team also contacted the three board members who signed the document: Luke Gervais, Greg Robinson, and Jarvis Ballard. Gervais did not respond to questions. In emails, Robinson and Ballard told the I-Team they had been “misled” about the intent and purpose of the document, which they thought was meant to “close out” the nonprofit. Both told the I-Team that Phillips supplied a partial copy of the document for them to sign.

The document also designated Phillips as special advisor and gave him “access to accounts.”

After he resigned, Phillips shut down the Hunger Busters website, domain email, and its social media accounts. According to court filings, the official contact email for Hunger Busters is now a Gmail account.

When the I-Team emailed that account with questions, it replied with an unsigned message asking us to stop contacting anyone else connected to the nonprofit and directing us to send all questions to the Gmail address. The email did not answer any of our questions, and the I-Team has not received a subsequent reply.

I got to spend my Tuesday morning up in Frisco at Comerica Center.

But no, the Dallas Stars were not practicing… although some NHL and AHL guys were skating, and Stars GM Jim Nill and head coach Glen Gulutzan will do their press conferences tomorrow to kick off training camp.

Instead, I spent my time watching the Stars youngsters improve to 2-0-1 in the prospect games up in Michigan and then experiencing a wonderful moment and donation ahead of North Texas Giving Day.

[Check out Stars Thoughts for Robert Tiffin’s full on-site coverage of the Stars prospect tournament]

A couple of days before Giving Day (Thursday), the amazing foundation ‘Brave Like Ellie’ got together at Comerica Center to record a promotional video… Or at least that’s what they thought they were doing there.

Instead, the Stars and Amazon teamed up to surprise them with a special moment and more importantly, a $25,000 donation in the form of one of those giant checks that Happy Gilmore always stored in his car. The donation exceeded their Giving Day goal by 2.5 times and kick-started their $60,000 goal before Christmas.

Stars players Matt Duchene and Thomas Harley were at the forefront of this surprise, walking in with the massive check before taking pictures and sharing some kind words with all involved.

“I worked with Brave Like Ellie last year with my charity suite,” Duchene said. “And I said it before, my youngest is named Ellie, and this is inspired by [Founder Jennifer Johnson’s] youngest, who passed, named Ellie. So, tugs on some serious heartstrings for me, and what they’re doing was really similar to the inspiration behind my charity suite. So working with them last year was a pleasure, and this is really special.”

When Amazon approached the Stars about which charity to make this donation to, Duchene said Brave Like Ellie was the first one he thought of.

“Brave Like Ellie – serves North Texas families affected by pediatric cancer, providing Brave Boxes with toys, activities, and comfort items. Founded in honor of Elizabeth Grace (Ellie), who passed away from acute myeloid leukemia in January 2017 at age three, the organization carries forward her spirit to support families facing childhood cancer.”

The foundation also makes boxes for holidays that they refer to as “A party in a box” for families who are unable to celebrate at home.

Donate or learn more about Brave Like Ellie

The emotion and excitement when Duchene and Harley walked in and presented the check was really amazing to see, and this is something the Stars and their foundation and have worked really hard to do more and more of every season.

“Yeah, it’s pretty special,” Harley said. “We came in, and I think she started tearing up a little bit. So anytime you’re able to give back like this, it’s pretty special… I think it’s important for us as athletes to do this, and the Stars as an organization, they’re very supportive in finding ways to do this. There’s not really any reason not to do this, you know?”

“We’re very blessed to be able to do what we’re doing for a living and living our dream, and making the money we’re able to make,” Duchene said. “And I think it’s our responsibility, and it’s a privilege to give back. It’s really special. Puts a lot of things in perspective.”

It was also a cool tie-in to have Amazon involved after the Stars officially moved their TV coverage to Amazon Prime starting this season. There were a few Amazon reps there to present the check to Brave Like Ellie, as well as surprise the Dallas Stars Foundation with yet another $25,000 check to “Welcome them to the Amazon family.”

“Whatever makes it easier, easiest for fans to watch us, and, you know, our family members. I mean, that’s great,” Duchene said about the Prime deal. “Amazon’s a massive company, and there are definitely a few of those boxes sitting outside my house with my wife ordering them all the time. So it’s a name we’re very familiar with.”

Me: “So, you’re a Prime member? You don’t have to pay for it?”

“Yeah, my wife’s a Prime member. I’ll say that.”

And one more thing… I can tell you from my brief chats with Duchene and Harley that this summer was far too long for them and the Stars. The team has been itching to get back on the ice and will do just that when training camp kicks off on Thursday.