Twist and contort....not!! |
Feb 23, 2010 |
Mission Increase’s upcoming March workshop, ‘Grant Writing: It’s a Partnership’ suggests that traditional granting activity is not unlike a game of Twister whereby we twist and contort our non-profit programs and priorities in the hope of convincing the foundation board to give us money.
The March workshop digs into a wholly different type of grant writing centered on transformational partnerships which glorify the Lord, reveal His purpose and provision, and deepen the impact on the shared cause. The relationship and shared values, in fact, become more important than the funding itself.
About a year ago, I witnessed the crisis a non-profit experienced when awarded a huge grant from a (government) funder with considerably different values. The staff and board of the ministry worked insanely for one entire month to compile and submit a monster application to request $95,000 – about 25% of their annual budget - in city funding.
At the time the application was submitted, the relationship between funder and grantee was not particularly developed. The acceptance of funds required the ministry to agree to non-discriminatory hiring practices. It wasn’t until the first meeting about requirements for grantees that this fact was clearly communicated by the city - in other than microscopic fine print. This requirement was problematic since the ministry’s desire was that all staff hired by the organization would share their Christian values and beliefs.
So how did this become a crisis? Half the board – and particularly those members who had ‘slaved’ over the application - wanted to accept the money. “Oh go ahead and sign the agreement…we can still hire who we want. And we really need the money.” The other half felt convicted to decline the grant.
The situation led to serious strife among the board. It was the vote of the ED, by the way, which broke the tie vote of the board and resulted in the decision to decline the grant. Emotions among the board were high and, soon thereafter, the ED resigned.
Another observation I had during that crisis was that the ministry had little to no idea of the resources that would be needed during the grant term to provide the government with the required reporting, monthly paperwork, and ongoing reimbursement requests. For a grant of that size, it could easily take one full-time resource to meet the ongoing reporting requirements. Lack of experience with government funding was the culprit here…as well as an undeveloped relationship between funder and grantee.
While March’s workshop specifically excludes the pursuit of government funding, come learn more about God’s view of how your ministry should see private foundations not just as partners but as champions to disciple.
