by David Ball
Staff Writer
The message to non-profits was clear: funding from grants and government sources is drying up while the demand for services is not.
“The work you do in your neighborhood is so important, and you can’t lose the credibility you have established,” said Rudolph Porter, manager of the Mayor’s Office of Faith and Community Based Partnerships.
Porter and other officials talked business with a group of 100 representatives from local non-profits at a special meeting at the Main Library Tuesday.
But the goal of the all-day workshop, “Strengthening Your Financial Capacity,” wasn’t to dwell on the current state of non-profit funding, it was meant to engage groups in finding alternative funding sources and new ways to network and partner with groups to create sustainable businesses.
Porter’s office, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, The War on Poverty and the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida hosted the seminar, which is expected to become a reoccurring event.
“To me, this is a real formula for success at a minimal cost,” said Porter.
“If we look at bringing all of the assets of different groups together, they can help provide services more efficiently and not rely on grants.”
Representatives of several groups, including the Clara White Mission, Builders Care and the Westside Church of Christ, spoke to the group on topics such as fund raising, creating a business plan, finding new resources and board development.
J. Nicholas Shelley, Jacksonville field office director for HUD, spoke about the importance for groups to diversify funding as well as tapping into new resources, such as federal funds through President Bush’s Faith-based Initiative.
“There are some 3,800 programs available to these organizations,” said Shelley. “The point is why should we leave faith-based groups on the sidelines when they have the exact capacity to deliver the necessary programs.”
Jane Hart, founder and director of Hart Felt Ministries, said the seminar was a no-brainer for her after budget cuts threatened her city grants.
“We don’t know the city grants are disappearing, but any way we can learn about it will help,” said Hart, whose Southside-based group provides home-care and volunteer transportation for the elderly.
Hart said she’s been working with the Office of Faith and Community Based Partnerships since it began operating three years ago, and the workshop is a natural extension of the services it provides.
“Their whole basis is that grassroots organizations need to be well-run businesses, not just compassionate,” she said. “There isn’t enough good to be said about their work.”