When news broke Wednesday evening that the former board president of Circus Flora had been charged with embezzling from the beloved St. Louis nonprofit, it was almost a relief. After all, the organization had quietly been dealing with the fallout from the theft for more than a year. Now the news was out—and federal prosecutors would be taking the lead in seeking justice.
The circus’ longtime executive director, Jack Marsh, says he’d been quietly apprising donors of the situation for months on end. But, he adds, “It’s now in the light of day.”
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“It” is a nonprofit’s worst nightmare. According to federal prosecutors, then-board president George S. Pace was supposed to close a line of credit for Circus Flora at Enterprise Bank and open a new one at UMB Bank. Instead, he kept the Enterprise Bank credit card open, and obtained a card under his own name, which he used to pay for everything from nail salons to restaurant bills to skin care treatments. He also got a Circus Flora credit card under his name at UMB Bank and used it to charge expenses related to horseback riding and more restaurants. He also diverted $50,000 that should have been used to pay down the organization’s debt into his own accounts, prosecutors say. Over a period of about 10 months, he allegedly took $120,000.
Marsh says the organization became alarmed when the records they got from their bank didn’t align with their internal records. “Something seemed to be missing,” Marsh says. “And then, we started to dig, and started to unpeel the onion.” Ultimately realizing the culprit was their own board president, rather than, for example, a hacker, was, in Marsh’s word, “terrible.”
“It’s an organization that I’ve been a part of for its full 39 years of existence,” Marsh continues. “And I love it and all the people involved, and so many people pour their heart into it. So to learn about something like this is most devastating.”
In September of 2023, after they confronted Pace, he resigned from the board. (At one point, the indictment suggests, Pace tried to claim his card had been stolen and the charges were fraudulent, only to forge documents falsely showing the funds had been repaid.) Marsh says the circus’ hope was to get the money back, and when it became clear that wouldn’t happen, they went to the authorities.
Pace now faces six felony counts of wire fraud. Each carries a potential penalty of up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both prison and a fine. Most critically for Circus Flora, if Pace is found guilty, court-ordered restitution is often part of the sentence.
Pace, 61, did not respond to a message seeking comment yesterday and did not yet have a lawyer listed in court fiels. He has had a long history of high-profile jobs in digital marketing, including being named chief executive officer, in 2015, of the U.S. office of the firm Partners Andrews Aldridge. Prior to that, he was reportedly a senior vice president and client partnership director of St. Louis-based CRM specialists Ansira, as well as an adjunct professor at Washington University.
But his past contains hints of financial trouble. In 2007, the Business Journal reported that Drive Agency was one of the fastest growing privately held companies in St. Louis—and that Pace, who had recently purchased the agency, had added $2 million to its billing. By 2008, however, the company had ceased operations, and Pace listed its value as $0 in a 2013 bankruptcy filing.
The filing showed more than $1 million debt (much of it credit card debt) and few assets other than the family home in Ladue, a 1989 Jeep Cherokee, and two dogs and two chickens. Pace had just $175 in the bank, according to the Chapter 7 filing.
Circus Flora now faces a hole of its own to dig out of, Marsh says, but he feels confident that the organization can make it happen. “This issue was happening more quietly last summer, but we’re really proud that we were able to press on and make a wonderful show, and in my view, fulfill our mission and have a successful year, and really start to build off of what felt like a really low point for the organization,” says Marsh.
Come what may, he vows the show will go this next summer, too.
“Our intent is to continue business as usual to the extent we can and not let this derail us or get us down,” he says. “I think we bring a really special type of magic to the city, and we want to keep on doing that through our 40th anniversary, which is in 2026.”
And who knows? Out of tragedy often comes great art. Could great circus come from it, too?
Says Marsh of the circus’ summer 2025 production, “I’m sure we’ll throw some Easter eggs in the show related to this.” He admits that this past summer’s show also contained a subtle nod to the situation. And looking forward, Marsh promises, “We’ve got some great plans ahead.”
