Community Resource Center: About CRC

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Overview and History

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The Community Resource Center (CRC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides training, technical assistance and consultation to nonprofits and community-based organizations in Colorado and across the country. CRC empowers nonprofits to fulfill their missions by building capacity, strengthening skills, and providing strategies for success. CRC serves as a convener of communities to expand resources and stimulate change. CRC's mission is to create opportunities, tools and strategies to develop nonprofits and community groups to strengthen Colorado.

CRC has worked with thousands of organizations in both urban and rural communities throughout Colorado. The role of CRC is to assist these organizations in addressing a variety of community issues and problems while building a network of partners and supporters throughout the state. CRC has a reputation for tackling difficult issues with its "hands on" practical approach to organizational problem solving and the development of strong and lasting community leadership. The goal of CRC is, in short, to help other organizations fulfill their missions.

Brief History of the Community Resource Center

The Community Resource Center (CRC) was founded in 1981. CRC's initial mission was to assist organizations that used community organizing to promote social change in Denver's inner city. By 1984, the mission expanded to encompass the broad range of nonprofit organizations and community groups that provide services throughout Colorado.

CRC continued its focus on innovation and community change throughout the 1980's. In 1986, CRC founded Community Shares of Colorado to challenge United Way's workplace giving monopoly and to provide fundraising opportunities for the vast majority of nonprofits. In 1987, CRC founded the Colorado Association of Nonprofit Organizations to provide a unified voice for the nonprofit sector.

CRC also served as a catalyst and advisor for a number of social change movements in the 1980's, including the Colorado chapter of of the Coalition to Save Rural America and the Yellow Brick Road (a movement to address homelessness in the Denver area that led to the "occupation" of vacant HUD-owned houses). In the late 1980's and early 1990's, CRC incubated the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition and the Domestic Violence Initiative (serving women with disabilities) and helped both organizations to become independent nonprofits that are leaders in their communities.

CRC has responded to the needs of the sector by continually developing new ways to serve Colorado's nonprofits.

In 1990, CRC organized the first Rural Philanthropy Days (RPD) event in partnership with nonprofits in Mesa County. Today, RPD events are held annually in two of the eight rural regions across the state.
In 1990, CRC initiated its unique Colorado Nonprofit Leadership and Management Program, which has trained more than 550 nonprofit leaders over the past 19 years.
In 1991, CRC published the first edition of the Colorado Grants Guide, providing the first comprehensive guide to funding sources for Colorado nonprofits. In 2001, CRC established an online version of the Colorado Grants Guide with a searchable database that is continuously updated.
In 1995, CRC received The Samaritan Institute Award from the Colorado Ethics in Business Awards Committee for illustrating the importance of ethical values in its community work.
In 1996, Rich Male, CRC's founder, resigned as Executive Director and Steve Graham was promoted to replace him.
In 2001, CRC took the lead in creating Save Our Section 8 (SOS 8), a coalition of tenants of Section 8 housing, to press for the preservation of current subsidized housing and the creation of new low-income housing initiatives. By 2003, SOS8 had become an independent 501(c)(3), led by a board of Section 8 tenants, with its own staff and office.
In 2002, CRC brought the Rural Philanthropy Days concept to counties with both rural and urban communities by organizing the first Funders' Fair in Boulder and Broomfield Counties. Since then, Funders' Fairs have been held in two additional Front Range communities.
In 2003, CRC launched NPower Colorado in 2003 as a technology resource center for nonprofit organizations. NPower Colorado is one of twelve affiliates of the national NPower movement, which aims to put technology know-how in the hands of nonprofits.
In 2004, CRC partnered with the Colorado Association of Funders to develop the first Colorado Giving Study. This document demonstrates both the growth and decline in giving from private foundations, corporate foundations, community foundations, and Federal funds in Colorado.
Also in 2004, CRC joined forces with The Denver Foundation in Expanding Nonprofit Inclusiveness Initiative to help Colorado nonprofits understand the importance of making their organizations more diverse and inclusive of that diversity. This initiative offered both training on making nonprofit organization more diverse and one-on-one consulting services to help organizations become more diverse and inclusive. CRC co-hosted day-long conferences with the Denver Foundation in both 2005 and 2007.
In 2005, CRC started offering professional coaching to nonprofit leaders by pairing them with highly qualified coaches.
In 2006, CRC, in partnership with the Colorado Rural Health Center and funded by The Colorado Health Foundation, organized agencies, elected officials, medical practitioners, and other key stakeholders in Trinidad and Leadville, Colorado to improve upon access to health care and health system failures.
In December 2006, Steve Graham, CRC’s Executive Director, passed away unexpectedly. Gabriel Guillaume replaced Steve as Executive Director in July 2007.
In 2007, CRC, in conjunction with the Anschutz Family Foundation and several funders of Rural Philanthropy Days (RPD), created a task force to increase the relevance of RPD by ensuring issue based discussions at the event in order to create recommendations and ongoing strategic partnerships.
In 2008, CRC, using funds created by the Steve Graham Memorial Fund, started a $105,000 Endowment through the Denver Foundation.
Through out this time period, CRC has gone from serving only a few dozen nonprofits to meeting the various needs of over 4,000 individuals and approximately 1,800 organizations throughout Colorado in 2007.

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655 Broadway, Suite 300, Denver, CO 80203-3426
303.623.1540 800.516.6284 f: 303.623.1567 Contact Us