Charitable Contributions Committee: Annual Report, 2016
On April 18th 2016, the CCC met to review last year's (2015) Third Haven Friend's charitable contributions, its beneficiaries and to make any adjustments. We had three aims with the budgeted amount—$3500:
- We sought to be inclusive of our wider Quaker community, leveraging our contributions through their better fulfillment capabilities. Here our recognition, our appreciation and support rather than the size of the gifts were expressed as important.
- We provided assistance to local organizations that are doing good work to address the needs of the less fortunate in the local community. In this case small contributions significantly impact their abilities to function, given their limited budgets.
- In meeting our directives, we wanted to provide integrity of oversight, good stewardship of our finances and assist in educating our meeting membership, so they might have less reservation about making their individual tax-deductible contributions to these worthy causes.
Our process included interviews with representatives from each organization, to see how they are doing fiscally and in terms of fulfilling their mission. We then arranged for each organization to give a presentation to our meeting community, so that each might better understand our commitments through Q/As.
The committee recommends continued contributions to the same organizations for year 2016 and possibly the following year as well. Though the organizations remain the same as last year, we adjusted the size of each donation, to better assist the strongest service needs.
Going forward we will be looking into organizations that focus on environmental work. Your assistance in sharing any knowledge or preferences that you may have in terms of environmental charities would be much appreciated.
The committee is requesting that the Meeting's budget for charitable contributions remain the same $3500 for this upcoming fiscal year.
Respectfully, Molly Burgoyne (clerk), Leigh Anne Dodge, Lorraine Claggett, Norval Thompson, and Sally Vermilye.
FRIENDS ORGANIZATIONS:
| NAME OF CHARITY: | TESTIMONY: | MISSION/GOALS: | FINANCIAL FACTORS: | AMOUNT: |
| Friends Committee on National Legislation | Peace, Equality | Priorities set every two years as new Congress convenes in order to focus time, energy, and resources. | Audits, IRS Form 990 and pie charts published yearly online. Almost all revenue goes directly to lobbying efforts. | $500 |
| American Friends Service Committee | Peace, Equality | Promote lasting peace with justice as a practical expression of faith in action. Extensive field work in US and overseas. | Audits, pie chart and annual report published online. Bulk of money spent in operational costs. | $350 |
| Friends General Conference | Outreach, Community | Provides services and resources for individual Friends, meetings, and people interested in the Quaker way. | Audits and annual report online plus a "learn what your donation does" page online. Most money spent on salaries and educational publications. | $250 |
| Friends Journal | Education | Communicate Quaker experience in order to connect and deepen spiritual lives. | Publishes IRS Form 990 online; approx. 28% of revenue derived from subscriptions; there is an endowment. | $200 |
| Pendle Hill | Education | To create peace with justice in the world by transforming lives. | Website provides one pie chart showing that admin costs are less than 20% of overall budget. | $100 |
| William Penn House | Community | Offers education, organizational and service opportunities and hospitality for those who seek a better world. | Website provides annual report and financial data | $100 |
"LOCAL" ORGANIZATIONS:
| NAME OF CHARITY: | TESTIMONY: | MISSION/GOALS: | FINANCIAL FACTORS: | AMOUNT: |
| Talbot Interfaith Shelter (TIS) | Equality, Community | Dedicated to providing safe temporary shelter to men, women, and children who lack adequate housing; and to increase community awareness of the issues faced by the homeless in our community. | Budget available on request; most of funds are spent on operations. | $300 |
| Chesapeake Multi-Cultural Resource Center (ChesMRC) | Equality, Community, Integrity | Coordinates services and informational programs to empower people from different cultures to become engaged members of the community. Education is a major focus of programs. | Financial information available on request. Most of funding goes directly to costs. Large State Education grant administered by Talbot County School System. | $300 |
| ESS Carepacks | Stewardship, Integrity | Foremost goal is to provide a backpack filled with nutritious foods for our most vulnerable students, including homeless students and other families in crisis. | Funds are handled and audited through Mid-Shore Community Foundation. | $150 |
| Neighborhood Service Center (NSC) | Community, Equality | Works to improve the quality of life both socially and economically for low-income residents in Talbot County. | Publishes IRS Form 990 online; approx. 28% of revenue derived from subscriptions; there is an endowment. | $150 |
| Good Samaritan Fund (GSF) | Community, Equality | Fund helps people who have fallen through the cracks. GSF serves as a clearinghouse for all Faith Groups. Individuals are referred by Faith Groups. | Funds will be handled and audited through Mid-Shore Community Foundation. | $500 |
| BAAM (Building African American Minds) | Community, Equality | Helps children in Talbot County in an afterschool setting teaching values, homework skills, and providing educational opportunities. | Has annual budget of $150,000 with over $125,000 used in direct benefits. | $100 |