2023 Report to Friends of the Binky Foundation
Dear Friends:
2023 marks the third full year of our revised First Steps Grant Program, and the second full year of our follow-up Forward Steps grants. Our $1000 First Steps grants are awarded to those newly formed groups that meet our three basic requirements: (i) it received or applied for 501c3 status within three years of application, (ii) its principals and/or staff have appropriate training in the business of running an animal welfare group as well as in appropriate animal care issues, and (iii) it has a formal, thoughtful action/business plan mapping its plans to achieve long-term sustainability in its community. Our Forward Steps grants of up to $1500 are awarded to the prior year’s First Steps grant recipients that demonstrate the value and efficacy of their action/business plans, and success in striving for sustainability.
Through November 2023, we awarded 30 First Steps grants out of 79 applications, about the same number as last year. On the other hand, we awarded 19 Forward Steps grants this year compared to just 5 in 2022. This increase, in our opinion, is the result of applicants and grantees more fully understanding our program’s emphasis on planning and structure over addressing immediate needs.
The core of our program continues to be our action/business plan requirement, which also is the most misunderstood of our requirements. Apparently, it is hard for some applicants to recognize that we do not care so much for how they intend to use the grant funds. Rather we are trying to provide an incentive for new organizations to establish themselves on a proper foundation with a working plan for now and for its future sustainability. We continue to receive too many “lip service” action/business plans, seemingly designed to give us what the authors think we want rather than providing thoughtful guides for their own use moving forward. The value of our action/business plan requirement was succinctly stated by one of our First Steps grantees, Best Friends Together of Las Vegas, Nevada, in its submission for a Forward Steps grant:
“Our business plan served as a compass for our organization by clearly defining our mission and vision. . . Having our vision laid out in black and white served as a north star that guided our action while also ensuring our supporters knew what we were working toward.”
We are continuously updating our website and our communications with applicants in an ongoing effort to better explain the importance of our criteria. Our reward is hearing from grantees who value the importance to them of our requirements.
With appreciation from the Board,
Michalina Bickford
Kathleen Bickford Berzock
Peter Bickford