February 2023
FEBURARY WITH THE FOUNDATION – HELP US SHARE THE LOVE
Did you know that to bring such a wide variety of community programs to you, the Kentlands Community Foundation must engage in a lot of fundraising? While we are a not-for-profit and try to keep our activities free or low cost to participate, putting on these events is not free, and we do not have a substantial endowment fund like other Foundations to provide ongoing financial support. A great deal of our fundraising is accomplished through annual direct requests to local businesses and organizations to support what we do and by asking for donations from participants. The Foundation also requests grant support from private foundations, as well as state and local government. While the Foundation receives annual funding from the Kentlands Citizens Assembly, the funds available cannot support all we do and mostly help cover a portion of the general administrative operating costs of the Foundation.
One of the long-term tenets of the Foundation is that all programs are self-supporting. What this means is that each program is responsible for finding funding for their program through membership dues, subscriptions, donations from residents, local business sponsorships and grants.
One wonderful way to help support the programs you love is to ask your workplace whether it offers a grant program or matching grants per donation. For many larger businesses, some will match any donation you make to a non-profit. Other businesses have grants they will make to non-profit organizations their employees support through volunteering or donating. Grant applications often include a question asking whether any of their employees participate in the event … with your help, we can say “yes” and hopefully get much needed support.
Needless to say, fundraising has become more challenging as our programs grow, become more complex and additional programming is added, and we are always looking for any way to help our programs with obtaining the funding they need to provide great activities for our community. If you have any experience in fundraising or can help us, please send us an email at kentlands@kentlands.org.
KENTLANDS COMMUNITY PLAYERS will perform the one-act play, Skin Deep by Mary Lynn Dobson. The Players have entered into the Maryland Theatre Festival in Hagerstown and are scheduled to perform February 10 – 11, 2023. We wish the KCP the best of luck at the festival, please join them if you can!
GAITHERSBURG ARTIST COLLECTIVE will be raising funds this February for the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation through an online auction. If you would like to help them with their efforts, please check out the link on their page at our website: kentlands.org.
The Foundation’s New Urbanist seat is open on our board. Past holders of the seat have been an important part of helping to educate the community about New Urbanist principles through the presentation of quarterly lectures, tours of the community and other activities. According to the bylaws of the Foundation, eligible candidates should specialize in urban planning, or design or municipal governance. If interested in finding out more, please contact the Foundation at kentlands@kentlands.org.