Guidestar June 2010 Survey: The Effect of the Economy on the Nonprofit Sector

Public charities and private foundations continued to take a beating during the first five months of 2010. Some 40 percent of participants in GuideStar's first nonprofit economic survey for 2010 reported that contributions to their organizations dropped between January 1 and May 31, 2010, compared to the same period a year earlier. Another 28 percent said that contributions had stayed about the same, and 30 percent stated contributions had increased.

"The Effect of the Economy on the Nonprofit Sector: A June 2010 Survey" presents these results and more. Among the other findings:

• Eight percent of respondents indicated that their organizations was were in imminent danger of closing.

• In order to balance budgets, 17 percent of respondents reduced program services, and 11 percent laid off employees.

• More than 60 percent of participants reporting decreased contributions attributed the drop to a decline in both the number of individual donors and the size of their donations.

• Among organizations that use volunteers, 17 percent used one or more in what had formerly been paid positions.

• About a third (32 percent) of organizations increased their reliance on volunteers, whereas 9 percent experienced a decline.

Chuck McLean, GuideStar's vice president for research, and research assistant Carol Brouwer conducted the survey, analyzed the results, and prepared the survey report.

Download your free copy of the report

Member Information on Bogus Phone Bill Charges

This message was sent to us by one of our member agencies, so we now pass it on to our readers for their information regarding bogus phone bill charges:

"Hi all,

I recently received a phone call from our Qwest representative informing me that a ESBI third party charge was showing up on our agency Qwest phone bill. I had no idea what that was and he explained that it was a charge that Qwest bills for another company as sort of a "pass through". He asked if this was something that we wanted and I told him I didn't even know what the heck it was. He said that he would get it discontinued for us and credit back June and July charges that we paid. The charge was $34.95 for June and $69.90 for July. On a bill like ours it is pretty easy to miss that in all the pages that we get, and I think that is something that the third party is counting on.

I did a quick Google search on ESBI and it appears that this is happening all over the place, including other carriers than Qwest, and home phones - although a smaller amount. $13.+ seems to be a common amount. I read several discussions concerning this and decided that it might be good information for all of you to have when looking at your home phone bills. I haven't read enough to see if cell phones are effected or not.

Anyway, take a look for third party billings. You can't just not pay them, as some people report being sent to collections, but you need to call your carrier and get them to stop putting the charges on your phone, unless it is something that you have authorized.

If you want more information, this link will take you to a forum that is discussing the issue on Embarq phone bills. Embarq must be a North Carolina phone company. This discussion is from Granite Falls, NC. you can also just do a Google search on ESBI and take it from there.

http://www.topix.com/forum/city/granite-falls-nc/TF905ENP2S95PB1C3

another link http://www.consumeraffairs.com/cell_phones/esbi.html

You may want to forward this on to some other folks. Up to you."

Meet Our Members - Seattle Food Committee Van Tour Fifth Stop: Spiritual Miracles Food Bank

The Seattle Food Committee hosted their annual van tour and conducted a tour for 60 attendees to visit 5 new food banks in the Seattle area. These visits provided an inspiring an insightful visit for all of those who participated.

Fifth stop: Spiritual Miracles Food Bank

The Spiritual Miracles Food Bank is located in the Skyway neighborhood of Seattle.

Cheryl Johnson, Founder of Spiritual Miracles and her son Dion Johnson, President of Spiritual Miracles, started the food bank with some extra money they had in 2003. They now both have full-time jobs and run the food bank on top of their regular commitments. Until long-term funding is secured, they continue to use their hard-earned money to support the work they do. In time and treasure, they have devoted themselves to their ministry. Their passion for serving and genuine heart to give is an inspiration.

Future plans for Spiritual Miracles includes a community computer lab. The project is nearly ready, as seen below.

Another future project is a community hangout area and library of resources.

Fresh produce abounds at Spiritual Miracles.

THE END! Some of the visitors in our luxury van for the tour on our way back home! Thank you Seattle Food Committee!

Meet Our Members - Seattle Food Committee Van Tour Fourth Stop: Jewish Family Services Food Bank

The Seattle Food Committee hosted their annual van tour and conducted a tour for 60 attendees to visit 5 new food banks in the Seattle area. These visits provided an inspiring an insightful visit for all of those who participated.

Fourth stop: Jewish Family Services Food Bank
The Jewish Family Services Food Bank is located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle.

By the numbers:

• 400 families/month (service is available 1x/month, with some exceptions)
• 33% of clients receive home delivery

Above: showing off the emergency preparedness packages provided through the Seattle Food Committee and sponsored by Seattle Public Utilities. Below: the 7 items in the emergency preparedness packages.

Did you know? The symbols above indicate that those foods are kosher!

Explaining how they just switched over to the Client Card FB database tracking system. The reasons for the switch:

1. Increased efficiency
2. Accuracy
3. Ease for reporting

Meet Our Members - Seattle Food Committee Van Tour Third Stop: North Helpline Food Bank

The Seattle Food Committee hosted their annual van tour and conducted a tour for 60 attendees to visit 5 new food banks in the Seattle area. These visits provided an inspiring an insightful visit for all of those who participated.

Third stop: North Helpline Food Bank
The North Helpline Food Bank is located in the Lake City neighborhood of Seattle.
By the numbers:

• 6000 sq ft
• 833 families/month
• Agency is 21 years old (the food bank opened in 2001)
• Home delivery program holds capacity to serve up to 40 households
• 50-70 volunteers per week
  

North Helpline never turns anyone away who is hungry, and they offer 3 main services in one location: food bank, emergency services program, and a health care clinic.Food Bank manager Kay talks to the group about the advantages of their new location.
An outdoor planting area is a new part of the services provided.
In the health clinic, RotaCare Medical Services and Neighborcare Health provides services ranging from acute care and health services screening to a long term healthcare home for managing chronic conditions.

Photo above is of collection barrels decorated by local groups and businesses as part of a SeaFair event.

Meet Our Members - Seattle Food Committee Van Tour First Stop: Ballard Food Bank

The Seattle Food Committee hosted their annual van tour and conducted a tour for 60 attendees to visit 5 new food banks in the Seattle area. These visits provided an inspiring an insightful visit for all of those who participated.

First stop: Ballard Food Bank
This location is so new that the staff had just moved in and were one day away from their first day of service at the new site.

Ballard Food Bank was gifted by skilled volunteers with a specialized paint coating that is graffiti resistant!

Nancy McKinney, the Ballard Food Bank's Executive Director, informs the group on the new advantages of their shopping area. They will be using a points system, modeled after the University District Food Bank. They were able to get some great glass-front refrigerators from a second-hand restaurant supply warehouse.
Fantastic artwork by Rachael Bigham adorns the walls of the new Ballard Food Bank.

The welcoming reception lobby allows entrance to the food bank, the teaching kitchen, and the other community service items (i.e. mailboxes, voicemail services, etc).

Meet Our Members - Seattle Food Committee Van Tour Second Stop: Greenwood Food Bank

The Seattle Food Committee hosted their annual van tour and conducted a tour for 60 attendees to visit 5 new food banks in the Seattle area. These visits provided an inspiring an insightful visit for all of those who participated.

Second stop: Greenwood Food Bank
The Greenwood Food Bank is part of Volunteers of America Western Washington.

By the numbers:

• Volunteers=74
• Households served=2100/month
• Home delivery=2x/month to 55 households
• 3 programs in 1 center
  
• Average service in food bank=47 lbs.
  
  
  
  

Meet Our Members - Teen Feed

Teen Feed is a fantastic agency serving right here in the University District neighborhood where our office is. Their approach is unique, their clients are specific, and the results are inspiring. Teen Feed rotates to different churches each evening to provide a delicious meal in a friendly environment for homeless youth. In addition, they also have staff and resources available to assist the teens with any issues they may be facing or help them succeed in any way they can.

Last night, we visited them at University Congregational Church as a volunteer crew from Temple Beth Am served a delicious meal and a great experience for homeless youth in the area. This low-key environment allows for a safe, relaxed place for the youth to be renewed with a home-cooked meal and enjoy time with friends.

The staff and volunteers at Teen Feed are inspiring with their positive attitudes and sincerity in service to the youth that arrive. The youth that attend the meals are not just clients, but interesting individuals with stories, backgrounds, and a need to hope for their future.

Teen Feed operates on the principle that when youth are able to rely on consistent contact with safe and non-judgmental adults, they are better able to take on the challenges of finding safe shelter, a job, or attending to their mental or physical health.

Photos: Excellent young volunteers from Temple Beth Am are enthusiastic to serve!

Learn more about this innovative and impactful agency at their website here.

Here's information on how to volunteer with Teen Feed:

Below is the Teen Feed orientation information, the first step to becoming a volunteer at Teen Feed. The orientation contains information about Teen Feed’s history, best practices, rules and guidelines that help us provide excellent care every night. At the orientation you will also receive an application and background check paper work that you will take home, fill out, and return to us. After the orientation you and a Teen feed staff member will decide which volunteer position is best for you and which night (or nights) works best for your schedule. Thank you and we will see you soon!

Teen Feed Volunteer Orientation

Date: Every first Thursday of the month from 5pm until 6:30pm

Location: University Congregational UCC.

4515 16thbAve NE Seattle, WA 98105

(Enter by going down the stairs through the large rust colored doors on 16th)

If you have any further questions contact Jaime Jamison at jaime@teenfeed.org or (206)229-0813

How to be an Advocate Volunteer for Teen Feed:

Advocate Job Description

Teen Feed is a dinner program for homeless and street-involved youth. We serve dinner seven nights a week. The heart of our program is having Advocates available to interact with the youth. This person commits to a minimum of six months to show up once a week (or more) to Teen Feed and sit and talk to the guests. The goal is to get to know them, create a safe and welcoming presence, and be available to help the young people know about services. We interview each potential Advocate after they have visited Teen Feed once. We seek those over 21, who show themselves comfortable interacting with youth who don’t typically trust adults. Basic responsibilities include:

To take the required Teen Feed Orientation offered by Teen Feed To be consistently present and accessible to the youth	This class is offered to help new our Advocates better understand and care for the youth that we serve. You can sign-up for the class at Jaime@teenfeed.org To be open and approachable, interested in getting to know the youth, hear their concerns, value their thoughts
To be non-judgmental and open-minded	· Accept them at face value · Encourage the solutions or progress they have made
Demonstrate that you care	Be an attentive listener and be proactive in meeting their requests of you.

Budget Update from Budget & Policy Center Blog

Senate's Passage of Federal Aid Would Come at a Critical Time By Tara Lee The Senate voted this morning in support of $26 billion in additional federal assistance for states -- including $338 million for Washington. The bill, which is now expected to pass the Senate, comes at a critical time Given declines in the state’s revenue forecast and in recent revenue collections reports, this amount would likely be enough to barely balance the current state budget -- obviating any immediate need for a special session or Governor-ordered across-the-board cuts. The much-needed funding comes at a time when the state has already cut $4 billion in cuts in response to the effects of the recession and faces an additional shortfall in maintaining essential services in the coming biennium. Without the funding, the state would have faced an even bigger budget challenge in preserving priorities like education, health care and environmental protection. The bill would also include an additional $200 million to prevent teacher layoffs at a critical time. As part of last year’s Recovery Act, states received federal assistance through an increase in federal matching dollars on state Medicaid spending. This aid has helped our state weather the impacts of the national recession by preventing damaging cuts to health care services and saving jobs in the public sector. The increased FMAP provisions are currently set to expire at the end of 2010, but the Senate bill would extend the funding through the end of the state fiscal year (June 30, 2011). Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates released Tuesday night show the revised bill would pay for itself, even reducing future deficits by $1.37 billion over the next decade. To see more of our analysis: visit the schmudget blog

Know Your Volunteers - WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT GENERATION Y OR THE MILLENIALS?

Average donations annually to charity	$341
Number of groups they support	3.6
Number who have volunteered in the last year	57%
Number of text messages sent in 24 hour period	20
Number who sleep with cell phone on or near bed	83%
Percentage that make donations online	29%
Percentage that joined a charity social network in last month	37%
Percentage who prefer to receive updates from charities via email	93%

Learn more about Volunteer Management at our upcoming annual conference-register today!