Troubled by poor business decisions, the Sheldon Kennedy Foundation has abandoned its dream of building a ranch for sexually abused children and will hand its donations over to the Canadian Red Cross.

``This is the best decision that we can make as a foundation to get through to as many kids,'' Sheldon Kennedy said yesterday .

"I think this is great because we've just given the Red Cross abuse prevention services an opportunity to run," added the former NHL hockey player.

The Red Cross will take the foundation's $1 million in assets to address issues of emotional, physical and sexual abuse, as well as neglect and violence in children's lives.

Mr. Kennedy said Canadians won't mind that their donations from his cross-country skate will be spent on programs other than the ranch he had planned.

"It wasn't that people were really giving money to Sheldon Kennedy specifically," he says. "I'm glad that it covers all the abuse."

Mr. Kennedy, who turns 30 today - he was born in 1969 in Elkhorn, Manitoba - put on in-line skates to skate across Canada last year. He was trying to raise $15 million to build a ranch for sexually abused children near Radium, British Columbia.

The former NHL player turned the hockey world upside down in January 1997 when he went public about how junior hockey coach Graham James sexually abused him. Both were with the Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League at the time.

Sheldon's story was clearly one of the biggest to ever hit the Canadian sports industry and forced governments, organizations and parents to reconsider the role athletics plays in children's lives.

The Sheldon Kennedy Foundation received $2.2 million in donations last year and paid out $1.3 million in expenses. About $1 million remains, which includes the 640-acre property donated for the Anaphe ranch. It is estimated to be worth $500,000.

The foundation is closing down because it didn't raise anywhere near the money needed. It lacked foresight and planning, foundation president Wayne McNeil admitted Monday.

"If you take a look at our foundation and the different events that happened along the way, there's been a lot of spontaneous decisions made, to say the least," says Mr. McNeil.

Mr. Kennedy and Mr. McNeil say when the skate was over they both realized the ranch was an expensive proposition, particularly due to its high risks, ongoing maintenance and operating costs.

The foundation's credibility was also hurt when Mr. Kennedy crashed and abandoned a borrowed vehicle in Edmonton, Alberta. He had been drinking. There were also questions about the fact that he was paid a salary from the fund during his skate.

The Red Cross said they want to work with Kennedy in the future, but didn't say in what capacity.

The Red Cross Abuse Prevention Services reaches out to Western Canadians. The organization has plans to expand to Eastern Canada.

1. When did Sheldon Kennedy say this is the best decision that we can make as a foundation to get through to as many kids?