May 11, 2020 at 5:00 p.m.
NATH-Frederick Place benefits from #GivingTuesdayNow
NATH-Frederick Place benefits from #GivingTuesdayNow
By Stephanie Kuski-
To cite just one example, the Northwoods Alliance for Temporary Housing (NATH) - Frederick Place has been forced to cancel several fundraising events, leading to an approximately $30,000 budget deficit.
In an effort to recoup some of those lost funds, NATH-Frederick Place has teamed up with GivingTuesday, a nonprofit organization that encourages charitable donations from the public typically on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. However, in response to COVID-19 stress on nonprofits, they implemented #GivingTuesdayNow on May 5, 2020, as a new global day of giving.
Although May 5 has come and gone, the fundraising initiative runs until May 26 and actually began in late April. The funds collected through this initiative will be matched by the Firespring Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Firespring, a company that works to empower nonprofits to leverage their mission.
As of May 7, NATH has received $2,830 in online donations via #GivingTuesdayNow. Those funds will be matched (at an undetermined amount) by the Firespring Foundation and presented to NATH in June.
NATH Executive Director Tammy Modic said their initial fundraising goal was $5,000 but there is still more time for those funds to be generated. And, even so, meeting that initial goal will still leave a large gap in the budget.
Modic said the number of residents at Frederick Place has remained steady since the onslaught of COVID-19. She speculates those numbers could be lower than expected due to relief programs in place coupled with landlords being unable to evict tenants at this time. Still, the future remains uncertain.
"In all honesty, my fear is that the numbers will rise once some of this does lift, only because, although they can't charge late fees, the rent is still going to be due," Modic said. "I do fear that later in the year, the numbers could rise because of that. I could be wrong. I hope I'm wrong."
In response to the unprecedented circumstances, Modic said her staff are working with residents who may need help beyond the typical 90-day maximum stay.
"The board has given us the directive that as long as people are still following our rules and doing what's expected of them, we have a little more leeway in how to determine whether or not extensions are given," Modic explained.
She said house staff are also taking extra precautions to keep residents safe and healthy. In addition to increased sanitation and temperature checks, NATH is only accepting residents from the five counties they service (Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Oneida and Vilas Counties) to restrict residents who may have come into contact with the virus.
Many of the organization's annual fundraisers have been canceled due to both social distancing restrictions and lack of sponsorship. Because sponsorship is a large proportion of dollars raised - and because many of those sponsors are small businesses who are also hurting financially - Modic said they didn't want to burden those businesses by asking for the sponsorship they typically provide.
"We have already officially canceled the Brewer Bus and Budding Artist campaigns," Modic said. "We have currently postponed our Bill Miller Memorial Golf Scramble from May 31 to an unknown date yet. We hope to have that event still this year because it's an event that's been happening since before they opened Frederick Place. But I don't have any reason to think it will look exactly the same or will be able to raise the same amount of funds."
"We're hoping our Ride for the Homeless at the end of August will still happen," she continued. "We're hopeful that the Harvest Hoedown at the end of September will still happen."
The fate of their brat sales are up in the air as well, Modic added. Although dates are scheduled, it is unknown whether they will take place. In addition, she said they don't anticipate doing their summer raffle, which is typically ongoing from May to October. However, they are considering doing an online summer raffle instead.
In addition to financial donations, there are other ways to support NATH.
Individuals can sign up online to provide evening meals at the shelter.
Modic said they typically see 80% of their evening meals covered each month. But there has been even more outreach since the pandemic began in mid-March. She said there were only two days in April in which evening meals were not provided, while May only has one date open and over half of the month of June is already covered. In addition, she said many of these individuals are providing meals for the first time.
"A lot of those people who are covering the meals are utilizing small businesses for the meals versus preparing them on their own and dropping it off," Modic added. "So it's been a win-win in those circumstances."
In addition, NATH board member Eileen Daniel held an online cooking class in which the money raised was used to purchase food from CT's Deli to prepare a meal for NATH.
Members of RHS FBLA/DECA also contributed by ordering pizza from The Haven and delivering it to Frederick Place.
"It has like a multiple chain win-win-win effect to it," Modic commented. "(There are) different ways communities are stepping up to support not only the nonprofits, but also small businesses within our community."
"The giving of our community has always been amazing to me, but this has gone up a level," Modic added. "There's been so much more positive vibes going on in the community... When people say, 'Let's get back to normal,' I think there are many of us that hope it's a new normal; that this continued giving stays."
Funds raised on behalf of NATH-Frederick Place via #GivingTuesdayNow will be matched through May 26. Those interested in donating are encouraged to visit NATH's Facebook page or website for a link to the Firespring Foundation's donation platform. Mailed donations can be sent to P.O. Box 913, Rhinelander, although those funds will not be matched through the Firespring Foundation.
NATH also has a goal of getting 2,020 likes on their Facebook page by the end of 2020, so individuals can show support by liking the page or sharing it with their friends. The NATH Facebook page also has a wish list of items needed for residents in-house. Every bit of generosity counts.
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