Community Foundation Considers Grant Applications

— from Hilary Canty, OICF Director —

The Orcas Island Community Foundation (OICF) 2014 Community Grants cycle is starting to roll. Coleen O’Brien, OICF Grants Committee Chair, has gathered together a great group of 15 (3 OICF Trustees and 12 community volunteers) to serve on the committee this year. Each member will each be responsible for reviewing several proposals and conducting site visits with applicants to evaluate program strength and feasibility. Once all proposals have been vetted, the committee reconvenes and debates the merits of each proposal, ranks them and then recommends a prioritized list of opportunities for OICF Board approval.

After the Board votes, the list of opportunities is distributed to our Cornerstone contributors and Partners in Philanthropy with an invitation to fund those proposals that match their philanthropic passions. The list is then broadcast further- in the paper, online, and through word of mouth- to attract further funding. Last year, Partners contributed $100,000 through this process- truly remarkable support for our community. Once all the Partner funding is in line, the Grants Committee reviews the list and makes a funding recommendation to the OICF Board. Last year, every proposal ranked as highest priority received funding.

It is a rather complicated process, but it sure seems to work well, as our Community Grants really do involve just about the entire community. Broadcasting the list of proposals is a great way to distribute information about the many organizations and services available to the community. It is also helping us build a sound grantmaking process that will carry us through as our endowments and distributions grow. I am especially grateful to staff member Kate Long for championing the online capabilities that have transformed and simplified both the application and the donation processes.