How The Beaufort Fund helps create community impact
Operations. Overhead. Administration. Conversations about nonprofits often center on the portion of their budgets dedicated to these expenses. Donors want to be sure their dollars are going to “the cause”, so many times, they will dedicate their gifts to specific program work.
However, overhead is often the lifeblood of an organization, powering its dedicated staff members, purchasing necessary supplies and giving nonprofits the flexibility to allocate funding where it is needed most. The Beaufort Fund of Coastal Community Foundation recognizes that, enabling applicants to apply for general operating support in its annual grants program (SoLo nonprofits, don’t miss the application deadline of next Friday, August 12th!)
The importance of this support is not lost on Lindsay Roberg, Executive Director of Friends of Caroline Hospice. The oldest nonprofit hospice in Beaufort County, Friends of Caroline Hospice received $15,000 in general operating support from The Beaufort Fund last cycle. Their hospice services are open to anyone, regardless of their ability to pay, and the organization also offers support services for patients, families and community members dealing with loss.
“Healthcare is constantly changing,” Lindsay explained. Government regulations, prescription coverage and other market effects constantly alter how, when and where the hospice can utilize funds from insurance and other providers. “If we’re able to adjust [our funding], then our patient care doesn’t ever have to fluctuate.” After growing 200 percent last year alone, the more funding the hospice receives, the more they are able to provide, whether that means paying for salaries or lights.
Maureen Korzik of Second Helpings, a food rescue operation serving more than 60 agencies in Beaufort, Jasper and Hampton counties, saw the impact of general operating support through a 3-year, $15,000 renewable grant from The Beaufort Fund her organization received from 2014 to 2016. Organizations qualify to apply for renewable support in recognition of a highly effective program and business model.
Second Helpings’ program is, essentially, trucks, explained Maureen. In order to coordinate the 7-days a week, 6-truck fleet that keeps the program going, she needs to maintain her fleet, train volunteers and pay for insurance – all activities that may fall under the umbrella of “overhead” for some donors. Knowing she had a stream of funding to use however it was needed assisted Maureen with longer-term planning and other projects that helped increase the effectiveness of the program, which provided approximately 2.4 million meals to more than 22,000 individuals in 2015.
For example, Maureen knew she had money in the bank to cover maintenance on her trucks, so she was able to focus fundraising efforts on a new truck, increasing people served by the food rescue. Additionally, she had the capacity to develop a new website that better communicates the location of food pantries for people in need, as well as update volunteer training. The last endeavor was especially important: Second Helpings runs largely thanks to their 400+ strong volunteer crew.
Last cycle, The Beaufort Fund provided general operating support to 25 percent of its grantees, mirroring the number of requests for support. To learn more about Friends of Caroline Hospice and Second Helpings, visit www.friendsofcarolinehospice.org and www.secondhelpingslc.org.
To apply for the 2016-17 cycle of The Beaufort Fund, visit our online grants portal to apply by August 12th.
