Hey guys!

Together, we raised $238.00 to give to Growing Hope. After DoubleGiving, that’s $476.00. Not bad.

Hey Tundiggers,

Following the vote, your first mission, should you choose to accept it, is to Donate to Growing Hope. And there is a deadline for this donation in order to make it a DoubleGive : April 1st. Which is this Sunday.

Indeed, there’s currently a campaign in effect, so that the money that we, as Tundiggers collect by the 1st will be matched, dollar for dollar. So if we donate $100, it’s as good as donating $200.00. This principle of course extends to any dollar value we give.

You probably remember all the reasons why Growing Hope is worth our donation time and attention, but to recap, here are the programs they run:

• Growing Gardens Program
• Farmers’ Market
• Social Enterprise Program
• Youth & Schools Program
• Community Outreach Program

And finally, when you donate, remember that we do not have 501(c) status (yet), so the paypal is set up as an individual account. As always, I will acknowledge any donation you make in the form of an email so there’s a real person behind any donation you make– and that’s me!

This sounds familiar…

PhilaSoup is a monthly microgrant dinner meant to bring innovative and dynamic Philadelphia-area educators together, highlight the great work they are doing and fund some terrific projects. The vision for PhilaSoup is to be a monthly microgrant dinner that starts and ends with educators but is an access point to education for the whole city.

-PhilaSoup.com

The idea is that you go, spend $5.00 for a soup dinner, and the proceeds go to a project or microgrant that gets voted on at the dinner.

I’ve never been to Philadelphia, but this sounds awesome, and a lot like we might be trying to accomplish as a collective.

Link

Last night The Gang got together at The Corner Brewery in Ypsi to discuss nominees. We broke it down into late adds, “can we do stuff, not just give?” and the final seven.

Late Adds

Ypsi Velo

It was mentioned that this group, in its nascence, works with Common Cycle and puts on bike safety events. Nominated because they’re kid focused and they have an event called Tourde Taco.

Dawn Farms

“The goal of Dawn Farm is to assist addicts and alcoholics in achieving long term recovery.”

Great Lakes Protection Fund

“The Fund’s mission is to identify, demonstrate, and promote regional action to enhance the health of the Great Lakes ecosystem.”

“Can we do stuff, not just give?”

The comment got to the core of what we want this group to be about. Maybe as a group our bigger talent is our ability to organize ourselves on an afternoon or day of service. We also have a pretty diverse skill set among ourselves, ranging from a lawyer, an illustrator, an interaction designer, a biologist, and quite a few educators. Can we put these skills to use somehow?

We concluded that the final selection wouldn’t be about giving money to some arbitrarily selected group, since in narrowing it down it’s clear that all named are painfully worthy of our cash and service. So it isn’t about that. And thus, as a group, we made a decision, that come Tundig we’ll pick 3 groups, and give to one, volunteer our time and service to another, and “promote” another (the give/do/promote trifecta sounded pretty good to us).

We also observed that our nominations were kind of clustered into 3 areas: Ypsi/people stuff, Northern Michigan Environmental stuff, and statewide stuff.

Finally, we decided that while some of our nominations vaguely suggest a political platform of some kind, we aren’t attempting to get into the realm of political activism. We want to stick with philanthropy. However, because it was nominated before the discussion, one PAC stands.

The Final Seven

1. Equality Michigan
2. Gleaner’s Food Bank
3. Growing Hope
4. Habitat for Humanity of Monroe, Michigan
5. Northern Michigan Community Action Agency
6. Dawn Farms
7. Great Lakes Protection Fund

So okay, seven is not three. But we think we can find a way to find 3 groups among these during our vacation this fall; one for giving, one for doing and one for promoting. We are hopeful that this turn can help us learn what kind of organization we can be in the actionable future, and what kind of organization we want to become.

Hola everybody! These are the non-profits that have been put forth. Super excited about something that’s not listed here and want to let us know? No problem, there’s a comments section for that!

Cherryland Humane Society
http://www.cherrylandhumane.org/

“Mission:

• Working to provide a bright and positive future for all pets.
• Searching for and seizing upon opportunities to provide lasting help and a positive future for pets.
• Rescuing the lost, finding homes for the homeless, providing hope for the hopeless.”

Conservation Resource Alliance
http://www.rivercare.org/
“Conservation Resource Alliance (CRA) is a private, not-for-profit corporation committed to “sensible stewardship of the land.” Established over 30 years ago as part of a nationwide network of Resource Conservation and Development Councils, the organization serves a 13-county area in northwest lower Michigan.

Staffed with wildlife biologists, fisheries biologists, engineers and field technicians, CRA works with landowners to plan, locate funding options, cut through red tape, and implement programs to enhance the habitat value and beauty of the region.”

Equality Michigan
http://equalitymi.org/
“Equality Michigan works to achieve full equality and respect for all people in the state of Michigan regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression.”

Gleaner’s Food Bank
http://www.gcfb.org/site/PageServer
“Gleaners Community Food Bank, with broad community support, fights hunger in southeastern Michigan. In collaboration with our member agencies, the Feeding America network, and our program partners, we provide millions of pounds of donated and purchased food to people in need. In so doing, Gleaners is committed to distributing high quality food. Through education and advocacy, we will reduce reliance on the emergency food system. Gleaners adopts best practices and cost effective systems and procedures to achieve the highest possible return on its human and financial resources. Gleaners fulfills its role with a sense of compassion and urgency while nourishing, sustaining and advancing hope in our community.”

Growing Hope
http://growinghope.net/
“Our Mission: Helping people improve their lives and communities through gardening and healthy food access. Growing Hope fosters learning, improves nutrition, encourages self-reliance, and promotes positive community futures.”

Habitat for Humanity of Michigan
http://www.habitatmichigan.org/
“Located in Lansing, Michigan, Habitat for Humanity of Michigan (HFHM) is a statewide nonprofit organization that provides support to the 76 Michigan affiliates of Habitat for Humanity International through training, consulting, and fundraising.

The mission of Habitat for Humanity of Michigan, Inc., (“HFHM”) is to increase the capacity of Michigan Habitat for Humanity affiliates to build simple decent homes in partnership with people in need. Habitat for Humanity of Michigan, Inc. will develop resources; provide educational training and networking opportunities; and increase awareness of Habitat for Humanity for the benefit of affiliates throughout Michigan.

In 2010, our affiliates built or rehabbed nearly 300 Michigan homes. As of 2010, MIchigan affiliates have been building all homes using green and sustainable building techniques. Every home built will meet Energy Star energy efficiency ratings or above.”

The Leelanau Conservancy
http://www.theconservancy.com/
“We are the group that, since 1988, has worked tirelessly to protect the places that you love and the character that makes the Leelanau Peninsula so unique. Our organization has earned a reputation as one of the premier land trusts in the country, with projects touching lives and saving land in each of Leelanau’s 11 townships. Since our formation in 1988, we’ve preserved 8005 acres and over 27 miles of shoreline/stream and river frontage, and worked with 135 families to preserve cherished lands. We’ve launched a farmland preservation program, established a renowned water-quality monitoring program and created 20 Natural Areas and Preserves. Some of the best views, most sensitive wetlands, and biggest working farms have been forever protected because of the Leelanau Conservancy.”

Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency
http://www.nmcaa.net/
“NMCAA is a non-profit Community Action Agency serving ten counties of northwest lower Michigan and operates the home Weatherization program, the Senior Nutrition and Meals on Wheels programs, the Head Start/Child Development program, and the Community Services program.”

(Photo Courtesy of Aaron M Photography)