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The W.O.W Hall Celebrates its 40th!

12/20/2015

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Welcoming new client, the W.O.W. Hall (Woodmen of the World Hall), celebrating it's 40th anniversary in 2015.  Check out the performances, shows, concerts, events, classes, and educational programs available at: http://www.wowhall.org/.

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Partnering with Two New Southern Oregon Organizations!

9/27/2015

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FWEC is excited to be collaborating with two amazing southern Oregon organizations starting on October 1st. I actually started my grant writing back in 2002 with the Sugarloaf Community Assocaition, so this feels like a completion of a synchronistic circle! Building and renovation projects will include: driveway, bathroom, classrooms, irrigation system, fencing, permaculture plan, community center, solar power system, pond, and audio/visual systems.

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New to FWEC is the Woodlands Charter School in Murphy, OR. The mission of the school is "to kindle a life-long love of learning by providing a developmentally appropriate, arts-integrated curriculum which engages the whole child: head, heart, and hands.  Rich academics interwoven with human and nature studies foster a sense of belonging within the human community and a reverence for the beauty of the natural world. Our school will thrive with on-going family involvement and inspire the support of the greater community. Our nurturing learning environment will awaken each child’s thinking, creativity, and emotional sensibility."  We will seeking funding for projects similar to the SCA's priorities.  Welcome to both organizations!

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Help Support My Friends Struggling with Chronic Illness

6/7/2015

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Passing this on for my friend and high school alum, Jamie Riley. We grew up right outside of Alpine Valley, WI, where I saw my first Dead show. Purchasing this is amazing print helps to assist Jamie in supporting his partner, Jennifer Stokes, who is bravely working to heal Pseudotumor Cerebri (aka Intercranial Hypertension) and a myriad of other associated illnesses (seehttp://www.gofundme.com/beating-brain-surgery). Jamie has had to miss work to care for Jennifer and their four boys, and is slowly releasing his amazing photographic prints to help with their mounting medical bills. From Jamie:
“One from my vault... Commemorating 50 years of touring and playing incredible live shows around the world, I've dug into my film archives and created this unique montage of two back to back images I made at one of the Alpine Valley concerts while shooting for the Walworth Times Newspaper in the late 80's. These negatives have been scanned at a very high resolution and are beautifully rendered on 13x19 Epson paper and archival ink by me in my home studio. 500 signed and numbered copies are all that will be created. $75.00 plus shipping & handling.”
You can contact him at jrileyphotos@gmail.com. I got #1---get yours!
Only blessings and happy trails,
Ahavah


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Coming Soon: Quamash Consulting Group

6/7/2015

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More information to be posted in the near future!
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Whole Earth Nature School Summer Camps

5/28/2015

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Whole Earth Nature School believes that outdoor play and exploration is critical to kids growth and development. Click here to read more about what makes Whole Earth Camps awesome! Summer Nature Camps are offered for kids ages 4-16. All age groups receive locally made Whole Earth Nature School t-shirts, a nature journal, and pencil for attending camp. Those campers in the 6+ year-old groups also receive a pocket field guide (a different guide for each week).

Day Camp Hours: Check-in begins at 9:00 at the camp location.
Pick up is between 3:30 and 3:45 for 6-16 year olds; between 1:00 and 1:15 for 4-6 year olds. (Please read section below about late pickups.) After-camp care is available until 5:30. Please note that camp ends for all groups at 1 pm on Friday. On Fridays we’ll host a special potluck that you and your family are invited to attend, which will begin promptly at 1pm! Bring a dish to share and your own plates/glasses and eating utensils. The kids will share songs and stories with you before we eat. (Should your child need after-care on Friday or any time, we have after-camp care as an option. See our After-camp Care page here for complete details.) - See more at: http://wholeearthnatureschool.com/youth-nature-camps/summer-nature-camps/#sthash.1awLN7f8.dpuf
http://wholeearthnatureschool.com/youth-nature-camps/summer-nature-camps/

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Bags of Love

4/11/2015

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I will start writing grants for Bags of Love next week.  They are an amazing organization and worth supporting!
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Because children are fragile, especially when removed from their normal lives, a Bag of Love provides a sense of security and hope. The child now has something that is his/her very own to hang onto as a “security blanket,” while simultaneously providing them with age appropriate necessities such as clothing, toiletries, and toys.
http://bagsofloveinc.org/
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Helping Hands Around the World!

3/10/2015

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One of my new clients is Helping Hands Around the World, led by their Executive Director, Agbora Naanee (based in Portland, OR). Your tax deductible donation helps provide an education (and meals) to impoverished children in Biara, Nigeria. Agbora has been shouldering financing the Dookue Memorial School alone, and I will collaborate with him on grant writing and fundraising to expand this important project. Contact info is below, and please feel free to share on your FB pages! G-d bless!
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http://www.helpinghandsaroundtheworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=featured&Itemid=435
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Why It's Essential For Women To Empower Other Women  

3/6/2015

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The business world can be dog-eat-dog environment, and that takes a strong person to succeed. And traditionally, that strength has been associated with masculinity. A recent study now suggests that having authority to hire and fire brings an added burden of depression to women. I suspect part of the reason for that is the media's depiction of women's relationships as competitive, catty and marked by jealousy and manipulation. Too many women haven't learned yet how to be effective supporters of each other, but that's changing rapidly.

My mission is to help women connect with each other to make the world a better place. I have a vision of propelling the effort to build a global community of strong women, who will help one another succeed, and mentor girls ascending the ladder into adulthood. Women helping women: it can be a real movement to grow a sisterhood for a better tomorrow.

In the developed world we may forget the difference small gestures and connections can make. I recently joined an inspiring international women's empowerment program, which has shown me many things, including how just a little training and a microloan can help a woman start her own business. An additional lesson I've learned from this work? Well, we don't have to reach across an ocean to help another woman in her journey to success.

The same principles apply when we extend a hand across the room. And here's how you will benefit if you join me in this effort. Here are five specific reasons why all women should work to empower other women.

1. Helping one woman helps all women.

When someone smiles at us, we naturally smile back; when someone is in pain, our bodies also reflect that emotion and physical sensation. James Gross's research at Stanford shows that our wiring for empathy is so deep that, just by observing someone else in pain, the "pain matrix" in our brain is activated. They actually measured it.

Human rights activist and Leading Women contributing author Rebecca Tinsley writes that Western women often have difficulty responding to the needs in developing countries. They feel overwhelmed by the urgent sense of need, so they choose to turn a blind eye. However, Rebecca couldn't do that in her own work. When she met the refugees of Darfur, she wrote their stories, and founded her own foundation to educate the women and children who survived genocide. She advises Western women to choose a small population to start and see how much change you can create. One of Rebecca's programs has transformed 50,000 lives with everyone working to lift others up.

2. It's our nature and brings out the best in all of us.

Believe it or not, part of our survival instinct is to help each other. As a crisis team leader, I worked with others to help the victims of 911, Hurricane Katrina and other catastrophes. It always amazes me to watch people who have lost everything turn to help other people. The worst circumstances seem to bring out the best in us. But we shouldn't wait for a catastrophe to help others.

3. It is the greatest gift you can give (and it doesn't cost a dime).

When you show someone that you think she has value, you can transform her life.

Author Marcia Reynolds once told a story about the lowest point in her life, when she found herself in jail. She connected with a fellow inmate who shook her awake and challenged her to figure out who she was beyond trying to be the best at everything. All it takes is one person reaching out to another and giving the gift of self-worth. Kindness is portable, and always available to us. We just have to make the choice to tap into it.

4. You will live a longer and happier life.

We've all heard the adage, "It's better to give than to receive." Now science is backing that up. When giving is accompanied by selfless feelings, it actually activates the pleasure centers of the brain, releasing endorphins. This chemical reaction, in turn, reduces inflammation, which causes a number of life-threatening diseases from cancer to heart disease.

Beyond the action of giving your time, treasures or talents, the process of connecting with others is what gives us more longevity. Positive social interactions, such as "lifting each other up," actually add years of happy, stress-free living to our lives.

5. You can connect with others to transform the world.

The greatest feats of activist efforts throughout history, across the globe, have come from community and connection. It's time for all of us to get connected, reach out and lift up each other. You can start with a kind word, a helping hand or just remembering to connect and acknowledge the importance of the people you meet.

Are you willing to start now and use your power to ignite others to feel empowered? Let us connect to create a better world!

By Nancy O'Reilly

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I will be the Instructor for this training in May or June!  Keep checking back for date and location.

2/24/2015

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http://www.graysagegroup.org/grant-development-training.html

Training Opportunity Announcement We are pleased to announce our workshop The Essentials of Foundation Funding. Foundation Grant writing is a both an art and skill (and some luck).  This two day workshops will acquaint participants with the necessary steps in successful grant writing to private and public foundations and trusts.  Topics covered include:
  • Researching funders and being Grant Ready
  • Needs Assessment and Programming Priorities
  • Funder Research and Creating a Pipeline
  • Letter of Intent
  • Program Description
  • Mission and Vision Statement
  • Proposal Writing
  • Goals and Objectives and Measures
  • Budget and Budget Justification
  • Evaluation Procedures
  • Description of Facilities and Qualifications of Personnel
  • Importance of Collaboration
  • Appropriate Follow up: Thank You and Publicity
  • Grant Management and Reporting

Time and location to be announced soon!

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Purchase an Amazing Photograph to help Good People (my friends)

2/17/2015

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For details please see: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10203269792895125&set=a.1349384184180.2050344.1518612167&&theater
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WOW Hall Continues to Wow!

2/6/2015

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The Community Center for the Performing Arts in the historic Woodmen of the World (WOW) Hall sits at the West end of downtown Eugene, a pink but low-slung 1932 Art Deco building that once served as a venue for dances and gatherings of its era. 

In restoring the historic building and reviving it as an arts center, WOW Hall had received grants from the Lane County Cultural Coalition and Oregon Arts Commission, as well as the Kinsman Foundation and other prestigious groups. But FY14 marked the first time the intersecting arts and heritage organization received a Cultural Trust Development grant award. 

“There are organizations that have applied for Cultural Development grants multiple times, and it takes a few attempts to get their proposal just right,” said Trust Manager Kimberly Howard. “You're rooting for them and it becomes a happy occasion when they make it.” 

Such was the case with WOW Hall. As an Arts Commission and cultural coalition grantee, the group was familiar to the Trust. “(WOW Hall grant writer) John Pincus was like a celebrity in our office. He called frequently during the spring of 2013 – he was taking the application process very seriously,” said Trust Donor Relations Coordinator, Raissa Fleming. “When their grant application came in, 11 minutes ahead of deadline, we all cheered.” 

Cultural Development grants are awarded by panels of independent subject matter experts, and "the WOW Hall application was determined by the Heritage Panel to be a well-written application for a project that showed great merit," said Howard.

Staff had the opportunity to tour WOW Hall in April, two weeks in advance of National Heritage Month (May), and they were charmed and enchanted. The building acts as a performing and visual arts center, with notable Oregon bands playing in an intimate downstairs coffee house; various dance classes, community theatre and musical performances in the main hall, and monthly exhibits by local artists. Murals adorn the outside walls and landscaping brings cheer to other-abled patrons using the ADA ramp at the side of the building. Doors, gates, archways and most fixtures have been lovingly restored to their former glory. The Cultural Development grant helped WOW Hall restore the curved wooden built-in benches lining the main hall. 

Joining the tour, painting contractor Ron Saylor mentioned that his business has flourished with the restoration. “This was a big job for us,” he said. Saylor has also done work on the new Oregon Contemporary Theatre building a few blocks away and is gaining a reputation in the cultural community for his diligence and diversity of skill. 

“It's an important example of how heritage and the arts fuel the Oregon economy,” said Howard. “The money granted by the Cultural Trust stays in Oregon and helps local businesses grow – whether that be the arts venue itself, or the restaurant, hotel, retail shop down the street, the print shop who prints playbills, or the contractor and subcontractors who remodel and restore the buildings.” 

Meanwhile, WOW Hall plans to recreate the original streetlamps around the center, leading to more work for Lane County lighting, electrical and historic preservation contractors, enhancing the downtown experience and giving the community an ever more vital center for the arts. 

- See more at: http://www.culturaltrust.org/featured-grant/wow-hall-community-center-performing-arts#sthash.z53M1QNY.dpuf
http://www.culturaltrust.org/featured-grant/wow-hall-community-center-performing-arts
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Eugene Springfield Art Project General Meeting on Feb 5th

1/30/2015

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Please join us on February 5th at the NEDCO Hatch Program building in Springfield. This will be a great opportunity to:

- Learn about upcoming events and programs in 2015, including our new art curating program!
- Find out more about our upgraded membership program.
- Connect with other local artists and find out how to get involved in all the fun activities at ESAP.
- Meet the new ESAP board members and hear about the great ideas and skills they bring to ESAP.
- Give us your feedback and tell us ideas you have that support the ESAP mission.

To learn more about the Eugene Springfield Art Project visit our facebook page or website at www.eugenespringfieldartproject.org

We look forward to seeing you there!
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Healthy Beginnings + Healthy Communities

1/30/2015

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Over the next year, these communities will use their grant funds to organize themselves for five-year Community-Based Partnerships. Of the 25 Organizing Grant Communities, up to 10 will be selected for Community-Based Partnerships beginning in 2016. These partners will join NWHF in transforming institutions, programs and policies to deliver better outcomes in early life, equity and community health.

We look forward to working with all of the Organizing Grant Communities, who hope to impact everything from African maternal and child health, to families impacted by or at risk for family violence and sexual abuse, to rural Latino communities, and much more. With the support of our partners, Healthy Beginnings+Healthy Communities will help communities improve health, from birth to high school, by 2020.

http://www.northwesthealth.org/news/archive/2015/1/8/announcing-healthy-beginningshealthy-communities-organizing-grant-communities
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Overhead Does Matter to the Public

1/21/2015

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How much a charity spends on overhead can have a powerful impact on donors weighing whether to support the group, a nonprofit strategist and blogger writes in The Huffington Post, citing new research on giving patterns.

Brady Josephson notes a recent study in Science magazine in which researchers found that donors gave almost three times as much when told a group’s overhead costs were covered by an outside source, compared to a standard “ask”—far more than when matching funds or seed money is mentioned.

The study reinforces that emotion is a key driver in decisions to give, according to the writer, a critic of author and consultant Dan Pallotta’s argument that charities should spend more on administration and solicitation so as to grow and have a greater impact. Feeling that their money is going “to the cause” matters to contributors, who “care more about how impactful their donation is as opposed to how impactful  the organization is,” Mr. Josephson says.

http://philanthropy.com/blogs/philanthropytoday/opinion-overhead-does-matter-when-it-comes-to-giving/95635?cid=pt&utm_source=pt&utm_medium=en
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Hey folks, check out LEAN Nonprofit!

1/20/2015

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From Sarai Johnson's great website:

"People like you and me really can change the world.  You have good ideas. You have passion. You work for social good in all you do, right? 

But, are you getting the results you intend? 

Do you feel great at the end of every day - knowing the work you do makes a real difference in the world? 

Do your programs get rolling and launched without a hitch?

Do you have data to back up your assumptions about your program performance? 

Do you have enough money to keep your work on track?  

If you're like most nonprofit practitioners, board members and volunteers, you might only be able to say "yes!" to a few of these things. That's where Lean Nonprofit comes in. 

Lean Nonprofit is made for practitioners like you. So you can get the information and tools you need in order to do your best work for the community and the world. 

In short, our mission is to make your mission successful."

Check out her website at:
http://www.leannonprofit.com/
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    Author: Ahavah Oblak

    Mother, Jewish, Nonprofit Advocate, educator,  grant writer, curriculum developer, dual US/Israel citizen, friend, dancer, lover of life.

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Four Winds Educational Consulting, LLC
Eugene, OR
fourwindseducationalconsulting@gmail.com
541.441.2614

“Nothing is unreal as long as you can imagine like a crow”― Munia Khan

Photo used under Creative Commons from The Bearmaiden
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