Capacity-Building Grants: Learn to Be a Self-Sustaining Nonprofit, Part 2
Incredibly, with some assistance from Sutter, 3fold and other agencies in the area RCFB bought a place to relocate thanks to the funding programs it put in place during the grant and used all its learnings to build the organization into an even stronger one.
After the grant ended, RCFB continued to work with 3fold on a consulting basis, and in 2010 it was able to:
- increase its employee base from two part-time staffers to two full-time employees and one part-time employee;
- increase the goals of Growing Circles from $10,000 to $15,000;
- increase net proceeds from Empty Bowls by 61 percent.
“This kind of grant has made all the difference in the world for the way that we’ve progressed and the way that we’ve been able to grow,” Thomas says. “At the same time, there’s a danger in growing. You don’t want to grow in a direction that’s not mission-driven. We’ve been able to sustain our mission through both Sutter and 3fold — the health of our lower to moderate income population in Sacramento really receives all the benefits because we are stronger than we were three years ago.
