Dear Grantee Partner:

The Board and staff of The Nelson Foundation hope that you, your staffs, and the communities you serve are doing well. This year has continued to be a trial for so many, but there appears, finally, to be light in the distance. Jenny and I continue to work remotely and are very busy, so realizing that it’s been a while since you have received an update about what is going on at the Foundation, I wanted to take this opportunity to share what’s new.

Facilitated conversation on systemic racism with Board and Staff: In June, the Board and staff pledged to “engage in self-reflective work so as to understand how historically the Foundation has approached and carried our its mission, and to identify improvements the Foundation can make in pursuit of ending America’s structural racism.” So most importantly, I wanted you to know that in mid-December, Board and staff will participate in a consultant-led conversation that will:

  • Provide us with a shared lexicon and understanding of race
  • Equip us with skills and tools to have uncomfortable conversations
  • Understand what our commitment to social and racial equity looks like, and
  • Create a pathway to our strategic planning in 2021

Mission-Aligned Investing Cohort: In addition, the Foundation has committed resources, including a significant amount of time from me and one of the Foundation’s Directors to participate in a year-long funder cohort on Mission Aligned Investing (MAI), organized by Philanthropy Network. This involves the development and implementation of a project, numerous learning and working group sessions and individual consultations. Currently, the Foundation is in the process of finalizing its MAI project, which will be the focus and capstone of our 12-month participation, and is deeply connected to social and racial equity and our upcoming strategic planning work.

2021 Core Grantmaking: The Foundation is happy to report that Core grantmaking will return to its normal timing and process. The letter of inquiry (LOI) phase will open on January 1, 2021 and nonprofits may submit LOIs until January 22, 2021 at 5:00 PM. Full applications, if invited to apply, will be due on February 27, 2021 with grant award notifications expected to be made in July. The Foundation will be accepting LOIs from existing and prior grantees as well as new applicants.

Emergency COVID Funding: Just a reminder that the Foundation has set aside $25,000 in 2020 for emergency needs related to the Pandemic. In addition, the Board of Directors has authorized similar 2021 COVID Emergency funding. For requests that the Foundation already has received, turnaround from request to approval was less than five days. Here is a link to a useful Q&A about the Foundation’s Emergency COVID funding.

Philanthropy Network’s SPARX Conference: This year’s conference, Justice: From Moment to Movement, will be held virtually on four consecutive mornings, December 8-11. There will be a wide range of activities available including keynote speaker events, panel discussions, and small group networking opportunities, all focused on working together to build a more just and equitable Greater Philadelphia. The registration cost for nonprofit representatives is $50 and includes access to all conference content for 12 months. For more information visit the Conference home page here.

Again, while we expect that the next couple of months will remain challenging for many of us, personally and professionally, there is encouraging news on the vaccine front! In the meantime, the Board of Directors, Jenny and I send our best to you. And, Jenny and I continue to encourage you to contact us for a friendly check in or if your organization needs assistance.

Stay safe, stay healthy,
Mindy