Financial Results for Conference? | <– Date –> <– Thread –> |
From: Marty Maskall (mmaskallpacbell.net) | |
Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2015 07:01:32 -0700 (PDT) |
Thank you, Alice, for your thoughtful post about a revenue model for Coho/US. Fair Oaks EcoHousing will continue to support Coho/US as an community, and I will continue to support Coho/US as an individual, and also encourage others to do so too. Do you have financial results from the Conference? Can you share that with us? Thanks for all you have done to make such a successful Conference for Coho/US, and for all the other things you do. In appreciation, Marty Maskall ------------------ Marty Maskall, Future Resident & Project Manager www.FairOaksEcoHousing.org -- a Family-Friendly Green Neighborhood (916) 967-2472 about.me/marty.maskall Message: 1 Date: Mon, 8 Jun 2015 12:16:50 -0400 From: Alice Alexander <alicecohous [at] gmail.com> To: Cohousing-l <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org> Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Funding and Organizational Model for Coho US Message-ID: <CAK_ucoPUM+38=Ls+g_beCCA_7So7A=aO6kHR3zhw42HmLJJYtQ [at] mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Many thanks to the good comments on a revenue model for sustaining Coho/US. To confirm: Coho/US is not a membership organization; we are a 501(3) nonprofit organization. We do not require membership dues from individuals or cohousing communities, and our services as a connector and clearinghouse to grow and support cohousing are available to everyone, not just "members." Coho/US relies on financial support from individuals and communities both. Individuals gifts can be claimed as a charitable donations; cohousing communities may prefer a reference to membership dues or support, and this is fine. "Membership" can be a generic term! In 2014, I sent out two requests to all our subscribers (9,300) to encourage individual charitable donations; this yielded gifts from individuals of $4,061. We have invested time and will continue to invest time in growing this support from individuals. Also in 2014, we encouraged all cohousing communities to support Coho/US, and we received more gifts from cohousing communities than ever before - over $13,000. Just last month, I sent a "Community Connection" newsletter to encourage planning for annual support to Coho/US - sent to those who are tagged as reps for their cohousing communities. I am happy to share this with others. However, with an operational budget in 2015 of $62,444, Coho/US continues to be challenged in raising sufficient funds from individuals and communities to be sustainable. A strict membership structure as a business model for associations (one that requires dues, and provide services to a select audience) generally only works well for trade associations representing for profit businesses (think American Medical Association). Cohousing communities are not profit centers, and support is based on a decision to recognize that Coho/US (1) provides credibility and relevancy for cohousing as a housing and living option; (2) attracts the public to cohousing, thus helping provide communities with robust waiting lists; and (3) serves as a clearinghouse and connector for cohousing resources. Other sources of revenue include advertising (which at $50 per month for a classified ad is a great deal! we keep this cost affordable as a service to the cohousing world), and support from our cohousing professionals <http://www.cohousing.org/professionals>. I appreciate the ideas for foundation grant support; as a career nonprofit fundraiser, our status is a huge challenge for traditional funding (we serve cohousers who for the most part are not foundation target populations). Project-oriented work as Sharon Villines has suggested is likely our only avenue, but that requires staffing, and resource investment; consideration would have to be very thoughtful to balance our priorities. Please share ideas! But understand that project grant funding does not support operational funds generally - so we are back to the challenge of sustainability. A challenge that inspires me actually, and one reason I am committed to this position, knowing the importance of stabilizing and strengthening our basic organization. Alice Alexander, Coho/US Executive Director
- (no other messages in thread)
Results generated by Tiger Technologies Web hosting using MHonArc.