“Will foundations fund operating expenses?”
Answer:
Some will, yes! It is all in how you package your request. Think about your organization in terms of what it offers to the community. You may want to compartmentalize those services into “packages.” Then you can pull from those packages to create funding requests which include operating expenses.
Example: A community service organization runs a soup kitchen. In order to run the soup kitchen and provide free lunches to the poor in the community, it takes time of the executive director, cook, several volunteers, donated and purchased food, and space. The program has been up and running, so you don’t need to buy the building or the chairs and the tables. Your request should include information about the need in the community for a soup kitchen, how many people you can serve in a year. In the budget you should estimate how much of the organization’s resources it takes to run the program (divide staff member’s time into percentages spent on the program), how many volunteers it takes to handle the program, etc. You should also divide the space used in the program by the annual utility bills to get the amount of utilities it takes to run the program. What you will have is a program budget which includes real and “in kind” expenses. This will be different than your accountant’s budget which will likely only include true income and expense and not volunteer time or donated food.
What you will have is a request for operating expenses (things that are planned in your budget, thus offer budget relief) with a program “face.” Make sure that you only pitch this type of proposal to funders that are willing to accept proposals for ongoing support. Sometimes a conversation is necessary to determine this.
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