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Dates & Locations
| Funders Attending | Overview 2007--Spring
June 4-6, 2007 in Leadville
Mountain: (Pitkin, Garfield, Eagle, Summit, Clear Creek and Lake counties)
Since 1990, the Community Resource Center (CRC) and the Anschutz
Family Foundation have partnered with rural communities throughout
Colorado to produce Rural Philanthropy Days (RPD) events.
The following are the primary goals of Rural Philanthropy
Days:
- Increase the number of grants and the total dollar amount
of grants that are made to nonprofit organizations, community
groups, and public agencies in rural Colorado. The increased
revenue effectively improves the delivery of services and
stimulates development in rural Colorado.
- Improve regional collaboration among nonprofit organizations
and between the nonprofit sector, public agencies, and the
business community. The effect of collaboration is to encourage
the development of initiatives that benefit an entire community
or region.
- Increase the capacity of local organizations and agencies
to provide services for rural communities so that organizations
are run more efficiently and are able to attract more resources
for improved community services.
Typically, a Rural Philanthropy Day
Event involves funders from Denver and Colorado Springs
traveling to a rural region for two days of activities. These
activities include social gatherings, panel presentations,
discussions, and a series of Round
Table Sessions during which funders and grant seekers
have the opportunity to exchange information and search for
a "mutual fit" in an accessible setting.
For the purpose of RPD, rural Colorado has been divided into
eight regions. Regions comprise between five and ten counties
(of Colorado's 64 counties, 53 are considered rural or mostly
rural). With two RPD events being held annually, each region
has the opportunity to host an event once every four years.
Interested members of host communities can play a role in
helping to produce a RFD event by joining the Steering
Committee.
The Community Resource Center provides liaison with funders
and training sessions prior to the events. The Pre-event training
sessions are geared to help local organizations and agencies
understand how to prepare for and use Philanthropy Days to
their best advantage and how to increase their capacity to
compete for grants.
Philanthropy Days afford rural Colorado access to resources
that can help communities respond to challenges they face.
Philanthropy Days allow grantmakers to expand their visibility
across the state and familiarize themselves with rural communities.
Finally, Philanthropy Days offer both grantmakers and grantseekers
an opportunity to discuss application processes and common
interests for their mutual benefit.
In preparation for the Rural Philanthropy
Days event, CRC recommends that participants attend a three
hour training session. Pre-event training provides an overview
of the upcoming event, instruction on developing case statements
and/or elevator speeches, strategies for approaching and talking
with funders, and other valuable information designed to help
participants make the best use of their time. Pre-event training
workshops generally happen a month prior to the actual Rural
Philanthropy Days event and are held in several locations
in the hosting region. The fee for Pre-event training is included
in the overall Rural Philanthropy Days event fee.
The actual Rural Philanthropy Days event
extends over a three (3) day period, beginning in the evening
with a Funders' Reception. The next day the event continues
with Community Exchanges and other activities; and the evening
ends with a dinner. The event culminates the following day
with Round Table Sessions.
The Funders' Reception is the only event
that takes place the first evening. It usually happens in
the early evening (5:30 or 6:00 pm) as a way to welcome funders
and give them a low-key opportunity to meet members of the
Steering Committee and local leaders within the region.
During the Community Exchanges funders
have the opportunity to visit 2 -3 other areas of the host
region and to dialogue with the local nonprofits and government
representatives.
The Round Table Sessions are the core of
the Rural Philanthropy Days event. Each funder is assigned
a table and during five or six sessions, nonprofits rotate
from table to table. Each session begins with the funder introducing
her or his funding entity (foundation, corporation, or government
agency), its funding purposes and focus areas in 4-5 minutes.
The 8-10 nonprofit representatives at the table then have
roughly 90 seconds to present their nonprofit's mission and
program focus. Some exchange usually takes place, giving nonprofits
a sense of whether there is enough of a fit to move forward
with a proposal.
CRC wants to make sure that post-event
services are provided to stimulate necessary follow through
and will provide the following array of services within a
few months after and a Rural Philanthropy Days event:
- Training Workshops. CRC will return to host regions to provide training, in
particular, Grant Writing Clinics as a motivator to assist
nonprofits to produce winning proposals. Other training
workshops can also be offered following an event.
- One-On-One Consulting Services. A number of the organizations that participate in Rural
Philanthropy Days will benefit from customized consulting
services. CRC will provide an organizational self-assessment
tool and work with nonprofits to determine the services
what would be most helpful. CRC staff can facilitate board
retreats and work with boards to improve their organizations,
lead strategic planning processes, assess and improve financial
management systems and accounting practices, and assist
in the area of personnel management and supervision.
Rural Philanthropy Days events are coordinated
by a Steering Committee that is comprised of representatives
of local nonprofits, funding entities, public agencies, and
businesses. The Steering Committee is responsible for planning
and producing the Funders' Fair. Generally, the Steering Committee
decides as a whole the format, program, and agenda of the
event; the location where the event will be held; and the
overall budget and cost of registration. Subcommittees often
provide the information that serves as the basis for these
decisions.
For more information or to get involved
in the Rural Philanthropy Days in your region, contact Kelleen Zubick at (303) 623-1540.
655 Broadway, Suite 300, Denver, CO 80203-3426
303.623.1540
800.516.6284
f: 303.623.1567
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