Last updated: 5 September, 2002 Your organization can be showcased in the next online edition of the Whatcom Catalog for Philanthropy if you send in your completed application by September 24, 2002. Please read the following instructions carefully. Eligibility: Whatcom County 501(c)(3) organizations in any field of service, with annual private gifts below $2 million. Organization must be members of the Whatcom Council of Nonprofits www.wcnwebsite.org (paid up to date) and be registered with GuideStar (see note below). NOTE: To be eligible, organizations MUST be registered with GuideStar Nonprofit Center. If you are not registered, registration is free, quick and easy. GuideStar offers several benefits to nonprofits at no cost. Your organization must be registered by the application deadline (September 24, 2002). Visit www.guidestar.org to register. Application Deadline: September 24, 2002. (late submissions will not be eligible) Application Content: Applications must be submitted by e-mail and include: 300-word summary of your organization's activities. The summary must be submitted in the body of an email (no attachments please); it must be no more than 300 words long (see Frequently Asked Questions below for more guidance on this requirement); Contact information for organization and executive director (or fund development director), including mailing address, telephone #, Fax #, and e-mail address. Send to: gregw@schissler.com After you submit the application information by email (we will not accept applications by regular mail) we will verify your eligibility and we may ask for the following materials: IRS Letter of Determination; current budget, most recent audited financials or completed Form-990 Selection Criteria: To strengthen our appeal to donors, we will consider many aspects of philanthropic excellence; e.g., conventional criteria such as high cost-effectiveness, strategic significance, practicality, concrete and preferably quantifiable products/results, and urgency or degree of need; we also use Catalog-specific values such as ability to attract new donors and donations. As the sponsor of the Catalog, the Whatcom Community Foundation will include only those organizations consistent with its broad community building mission and values (see at www.whatcomcf.org). Three-Stage Selection Process: The Community Foundation will confirm the eligibility of each applicant. These applicants will then be grouped by field of philanthropy (arts, nature, human services), and ranked by excellence within that field and Catalog Project criteria. The final selection will be made by a small group working from the top of each list downward, and introducing at this final stage what might be called "editorial considerations" relating to the unique demands of this project; e.g., diversity across fields of philanthropy, geographic regions, kinds and sizes of organizations, and philanthropic values, as well as combined and complementary appeal to donors, teaching points about philanthropy, suitability for a publication of this size and type, etc. Background: The Whatcom Catalog for Philanthropy is a tool for charitable fundraising and promoting philanthropy. The first edition of the Catalog was successful in raising the profile of Whatcom County's charitable sector, attracting new donors and dollars to philanthropy (including out-of-state contributions). Some donors' gifts were prompted by the Catalog; however, they chose to give through mechanisms other than the Catalog giving form. Therefore, it is not possible to estimate the amount of new dollars and donors the Catalog recruited. The community's response to the 2000 Catalog was overwhelmingly positive. People responded favorably to the excellent quality of the publication and its compelling stories and photographs, and it received two national awards from the Council on Foundations. Online Catalog, Second Edition: As much as the community loved the printed Catalog, we realized that the cost of producing and regularly updating this volume would be cost-prohibitive. That's why we chose to improve the functionality and marketing of the Catalog's web site. We are pleased to announce that the web site will have online giving capability so that donors can easily transfer gifts of cash or securities to Whatcom County charities. Project objectives: Specific Catalog for Philanthropy project objectives include: develop the Catalog for Philanthropy as a showcase of our nonprofit sector raise personal charitable giving here to the national average provide a way for our local charities to reach large numbers of potential major donors identify, recruit, and cultivate new donors and new dollars for philanthropy improve nonprofit services to our communities. Therefore, the subject of the Catalog is not just individual charities, but philanthropy itself illustrated by specific examples of excellence, proving how philanthropy is interesting, exciting, richly diverse, highly productive and beneficial, intelligent, practical, cost-effective and inviting. The Catalog should broaden the horizons of experienced donors, and teach and convert new donors to philanthropy, facilitating their personal involvement, and enhancing their satisfaction. Its theme is that "Giving Is Good For You." Selection Criteria: To strengthen our appeal to donors, we require that showcased charities register with GuideStar, a national clearinghouse of information about specific nonprofits, including nonprofit finances. We also require that showcased nonprofits share other information with us so that we can determine each organization's nonprofit status and income-eligibility. Donors demand and the laws require financial transparency and we expect the same from Catalog showcased charities. Showcased charities will also be current members of Whatcom Council of Nonprofits (WCN), a "Chamber of Commerce" of the local nonprofit sector. WCN has been a partner in the Catalog since the beginning. Funding: Every dollar the Catalog raises will go to donor-designated charities and fields of interest. All costs of the Catalog will be covered by the Whatcom Community Foundation and co-sponsoring grantmakers. Additional Details: Frequently Asked Questions are included below. If you can't find an answer to your question, you can email your questions to gregw@schissler.com. The Catalog has been, and continues to be an experiment, to be entered into in a philanthropic spirit of collegial inquiry. No particular result is guaranteed. We shall try to present the widest possible variety of excellent organizations, distributed across the county. The Project is grateful for your consideration of this opportunity to contribute to our common wealth. Frequently Asked Questions: Q: Is the September 24 deadline firm? A: Yes, because we need ample time to design, compose, test, and market the online Catalog in November for the year-end giving season. We must complete the eligibility review process, involving decisions by experienced grantmakers and editors, no later than October 15. The application format is designed to be as user-friendly and feasible as possible. Q: What kinds of institutions and projects are likely to be most appealing to donors? A: Those that are the most engaging and offer the greatest "philanthropic satisfaction," consistent with a donor's personal interests, values, knowledge, experience, and available funds. Data suggest that the strongest appeals combined intellectual, emotional, and practical values; they were conspicuously practical, cost-effective, and down-to-earth; they offered concrete and quantifiable (if possible) results; and they showed unusual, even surprising, inspiration, creativity and intelligence. All charities, of course, should be presented as responsive to clear and demonstrable needs. Q: Are the grantmakers supporting this project also providing dollars for grants to the charities in the Catalog? A: Not as a part of this project; we expect regular grantmaking programs to proceed as they always have. Your grantseeking should not be affected by the Catalog. Q: If we are selected for the Catalog, will we be able to review and approve the final text and photographs for our presentation therein? A: Yes, but primarily for factual accuracy. Obviously time is at a premium in this process, and we are tightly constrained by the Catalog's requirement of consistent treatment. Editorial control could not feasibly be distributed among the charities presented; a charity always has the freedom to withdraw, because we will have more applicants than spaces. Keep in mind that you will only have a few days to review and approve the narrative before the new web site goes "live." However, one functional benefit of the online Catalog is the ability to edit easily "on the fly," so we may find it necessary to edit/update certain content after the launch date. Q: Will the quality of our writing determine our selection for the Catalog? A: Yes, it will help you a great deal if it is clearly written and tells a compelling story. But keep in mind that your narrative will be edited for length and clarity if your organization is selected. Q: Are there other benefits we should consider in weighing our decision on whether to apply? A: Yes. There is significant publicity value and public relations advantage just by appearing in the Catalog. It also helps other fundraising, volunteer recruitment, and morale-building efforts. Q: Should our institution apply if we are located in Whatcom County, but provide services to a broader region or even internationally? A: Yes, all nonprofit institutions that are incorporated or provide services in Whatcom County and meet the other eligibility requirements are encouraged to apply. Q: What information should we include in our narrative? A: When you were founded and incorporated; what your institutional mission or purpose is; an overview of your programs; your greatest successes; what are your institution's distinctive features; any institutional-development challenges you faced or now face (this is for teaching purposes about philanthropy); and any particular projects for which you seek funding. 9) Q: If we are a Whatcom County 501(c)(3) charity with annual private gifts below $2 million, but did not receive an invitation, may we still apply? A: Absolutely! We mailed the invitations to Whatcom Nonprofit Council members. If you are not a current member, we're glad we got the word out to you by press or word-of-mouth. That is no doubt an imperfect method, and it might have missed you if you are not WCN member. We hope the word will get around to nearly everyone, and we urge everyone to help spread it, in the philanthropic spirit. Q: Where can I get more information? A: If your questions are not answered here, you can send an email to Greg Winter at gregw@schissler.com.