Peace and all good! As we celebrate the season, we remember our grant partners who work tirelessly to make sure all have access to vital resources and services. You are a gift to us! Our staff and board wish you love, peace and joy in 2019! The following is our final newsletter for 2018.
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Anniversary Video Series - Impact Video
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Allegany Franciscan Ministries is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year serving as a compassionate and transforming healing presence within our communities. A series of four short videos have been produced to tell our story, demonstrate our impact, and recognize you, our friends and partners. This second video describes the impact the organization has made in the communities it serves. A special thank you to the grant partners who participated in the video. The first video in the series can be viewed on our
YouTube channel
.
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Brittney Frazier (second from left) with some of the other Next Gen Fellows.
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Congratulations to Brittney Frazier, our Public Health Program Specialist, for completing Exponent Philanthropy's 2018 Next Gen Fellowship Program. "It's not often you meet a group of millennials working in philanthropy that are truly passionate about what they do. The Next Gen Fellowship Program does a great job at bringing dynamic young leaders together to share experiences, create space for us to learn and be open about our challenges as emerging professionals" said Brittney Frazier.
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The Common Good Initiative
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Retreat participants enjoy a learning activity.
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Council Retreat - The Power of Community
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On December 6-7, the three Councils for the Common Good came together in Fort Pierce for their annual retreat. The purpose was to build and strengthen connections among Councils, learn more about equity and power, attributes of successful place-based initiatives and to understand the changing leadership role of Allegany Franciscan Ministries in the Common Good communities.
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Lincoln Park - Career Pathways Initiative
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Community residents and stakeholders identified quality jobs and livable wages as a priority for Lincoln Park. To address this need, Indian River State College, Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County, Treasure Coast Manufacturers Association, and the Lincoln Park Council for the Common Good partnered to create the Lincoln Park Career Pathways Initiative. The program provides career training at the Blackburn Center on Avenue D for Certified Production Technician (CPT), Certified Logistics Associate (CLA) and Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA). Funding from Allegany Franciscan Ministries will provide free tuition, classroom computers, student transportation, meal stipends, child care, a dedicated career consultant, marketing and outreach for Lincoln Park residents over a two-year period. Currently, recruitment is happening for classes starting January 2, 2019. "The Career Pathways Initiative is a unique offering for St. Lucie County, and allows residents of Lincoln Park the opportunity to become part of the skilled labor force and make a livable wage" said Upendo Shabazz, regional vice president for Allegany Franciscan Ministries.
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Overtown - Community Meeting
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In late October, nearly 100 residents and stakeholders came together to hear key updates and provide feedback on the Common Good Initiative. Cohort 1 graduates of the Fellowship for the Common Good were introduced to the community and given an opportunity to reflect on their experience in their year-long fellowship program, sharing the personal, civic and social visions and projects they developed while in the program. The evening also provided an opportunity for our partners to share results from the recent Uniting Community Voices Survey they conducted including data that showed 70% respondents felt their voices were not heard by local decision makers. And finally, the community meeting offered a panel discussion with key Common Good Initiative partners who shared their efforts to address the Overtown Common Good Initiative priority areas. Local residents and attendees provided constructive feedback to the process, with gratitude for new opportunities, and recommendations for ways to improve outreach to get more residents involved. Feedback from this community meeting will be used to establish new communication strategies with residents and organizations, as well as introduce educational and training programs to assist residents in becoming more effectively engaged in local activities. The Overtown Council for the Common Good will use lessons from the event for planning and implementation strategies.
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Wimauma - Party to the Polls
There are over 6,300 registered voters in Wimauma. In an effort to increase voter turnout, Florida Immigrant Coalition partnered with Enterprising Latinas and Wimauma CDC to host a day long event on November 4th to promote civic engagement and voting among residents in Wimauma. The event included music, games, information tables for voters, sign-up sheets for rides to the polls and voting guides. Prior to the event organizers engaged in canvassing, social media posts and phone banking to promote the event and encourage voter participation.
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Meet the Fellows for the Common Good - Cohort 1
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We reached out to recent graduates of the inaugural Fellowship for the Common Good to reflect on their experience. We're pleased to introduce you to these three Fellows, who were invited to join the Council for the Common Good in their communities. We are delighted to have them working more closely on the priorities and strategies for their community.
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Vennis Gilmore
Lincoln Park
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What did you enjoy the most about the Fellowship?
Vennis:
I enjoyed the bonding of the fellows from within each community individually; as well as across communities. We are fellows for life!
Myesha:
I enjoyed the personal life coach session the most. Ms. Judy really understood the person I was entering the fellowship, and the person I wanted to become exiting the fellowship. She helped sculpt me into the leader I wanted to be, without judgement, or taking away from my authenticity.
Enrique:
What I enjoyed most about the fellowship was getting together from different communities and trying to make a change to better our communities.
How has the fellowship changed your life so far?
Vennis:
The fellowship has provided me with a higher awareness of ways to lead my community into the future and improve myself. I have developed professionally through my leadership roles.
Myesha:
The fellowship has changed my life as a whole. I am not only a better leader, I'm a sharper individual. The skills I learned in the fellowship those last 12 months molded me into the best leader of all, to lead the individuals who will matter the most...my children! My leadership starts with them first.
Enrique:
Becoming a great leader.
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Updates
ACOR
- During our fall grant cycle, a total of 11 grants were approved. Funded projects included support for medical and lay missionaries in Bolivia and Jamaica, solar energy for schools in Haiti, job training, and clothing for the homeless.
Tau
-
Applications are now being accepted for the second cycle. The social determinants that will be addressed are social & community context, neighborhood & built environment, and health & healthcare. An informational webinar will be held
January 15, 2019
. Review
guidelines
here
.
Major
- LOIs are now being accepted for General Operating and Programmatic Support grants. Missed the informational webinar? Listen
here
.
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D
eadlines
Jan. 17
Major Grant LOI due
Feb. 28
Tau Grant cycle 2 deadline
April 1
ACOR Grant deadline
All deadlines are at 12 pm (noon).
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$379,000 approved for ACOR, Tau, St. Clare, and
All Region Grants so far in FY19
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NEW! Nonprofit Resource List Available
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Allegany Franciscan Ministries supports organizations across Florida that offer resources, training, or information to nonprofit organizations on topics ranging from advocacy and capacity building to health insurance navigation and hunger relief. View a list of these local, regional and statewide resources
here
.
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Grant Applicant Survey Results In
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T
his fall, Allegany Franciscan Ministries conducted a survey of organizations who applied for funding between July 2017 and June 2018. The intent was to get feedback on our grant processes and to better understand our impact. The survey was sent to 231 organizations and had a 52% response rate. Overall, the majority of those surveyed indicated the application process was easy (97%) the instructions were clear (79%), and that Allegany Franciscan Ministries is a valued partner in the community (96%). Constructive feedback was shared regarding communicating with applicants when declined. Read the survey report
here
.
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We want to hear from you...
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Review Us on GrantAdvisor.org
Did you apply for a grant with us recently? Visit
www.GrantAdvisor.org
to provide an anonymous review of Allegany Franciscan Ministries; we welcome both unfunded grant applicants and grant recipients to review.
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