Blue River Community Foundation and Shelby County Chamber of Commerce are partnering together to offer a “Nonprofit Formation [& Upkeep] Workshop.”
The workshop is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon at ECHO Effect Arts Campus, 102 E Washington Street, Shelbyville. This workshop is free to attend for all Shelby and Hancock County residents.
“Starting a nonprofit organization can have many advantages including opening grant funding opportunities. A roadblock that the Foundation and Chamber of Commerce have witnessed to people establishing a 501c3 status is intimidation by the formation process – how to file, what is expected to keep it active, what are the costs, etc. To help break down some of those barriers and to provide a space for people to ask questions, a beginner’s workshop has been developed,” said Jennifer Jones, Executive Director.
David J. Fry, Owner and CEO of Effective Advancement Strategies located in Greensburg, will co-present the workshop. Fry has over 25 years of nonprofit consulting experience and has founded five nonprofits, was employed in executive positions of two nonprofits, and has served on dozens of boards. He also led a series of nonprofit roundtable discussions in 2022 in Shelbyville.
Jody M. Butts, Attorney at Stephenson Rife LLP, located in Shelbyville, will be bringing legal expertise to the workshop and helping to navigate the landscape of the process.
The interactive session will focus on these key areas: how to successfully launch a nonprofit, discovering the benefits of having a nonprofit and pitfalls to avoid, navigating the minimum requirements and best practices for operation, key considerations in the formation of an organization, finding out about some of the basic logistics (applications, fees, etc.) and an overview of the planning efforts that should be commonplace.
“We want those with passion for their causes to walk away from this workshop with knowledge beyond formation,” Fry said. “It is a competitive sector now, and we want them to have the basics in place to enable successful outcomes.”
If someone already has an established 501©(3) but has questions, they also will find the presentation and Q & A time beneficial and are encouraged to come.
Residents from surrounding counties are also welcome to join the session for a $50 donation to Blue River Community Foundation to help cover costs. This is payable at the event -- check preferred.
To reserve a space, people can RSVP by emailing kyliemccrory@shelbychamber.net or registering online at shelbychamber.net (Events Calendar –> May 2, 2023).
Questions about the event can be directed to Laura Land, 317-392-7955 ext. 107.
