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 Dear Friends and NVC Supporters,
Because I believe that you care about BayNVC, about at least one of our trainers or staff members, about me, or about NVC more broadly -- I am reaching out to you with my whole heart and counting on you to read this letter and to respond soon.
Two weeks ago I wrote in this newsletter about the big changes afoot at BayNVC. You can find the full letter here, and I will share more below, but to recap briefly:
BayNVC is in a financial crisis unlike any we have known,
our administrative staff has been laid off, we are re-organizing our operations, and - more than ever - we need your care and support.
 Since I first wrote about this crisis, I have been moved and gratified by dozens of expressions of well-wishes and many offers of support from both near and far. We already have a number of donors who've stepped up and pledged $15,000. I am also celebrating the coming-together of BayNVC's collaborative trainers (pictured here) to begin to re-vision and re-structure BayNVC in ways that will be financially sustainable for the long-term and allow us to continue to contribute to you and to the world. BayNVC board members and friends have also jumped in to help. I am excited by the opportunities inherent in the challenges we are facing, and heartened by how we are facing them.
Yet it is vital for me to emphasize that this is a serious crisis. As I write, I am placing my hope and trust in you -- each and every person reading this letter. I am hoping that you will choose to pause, right now, and reflect on your relationship to NVC and to BayNVC. I know that  BayNVC has been a beacon of hope for many people around the world; I know that we have touched the lives of tens of thousands of people. So right now, more than ever in our history, we are turning to those of you who have been touched, those of you who believe in what we are doing and what we hope to do in the future, to rally to our support. Despite our best efforts, we are unable to honor our financial commitments without your help.
I want to give you a picture of what we are facing.
* Our trainers have been paid for only some of their work;
* One of our retreat centers will be owed money in October
* BayNVC owes me personally about $50,000
* And credit card loans are owed in my name The total of over $100,000 is not "faceless" debt: these are all people we are committed to supporting, myself included, so this appeal for your support is both organizational and very personal.
 While many factors beyond our control have played a part in getting us to this point (in particular, the economic downturn and the resulting decline in contributions and other income), we are actively taking stock of what we can learn from this situation about our organization, administration, and strategic planning -- what we can do differently, now and in the future.
 We are mourning choices we have made that did not work as we had anticipated, grieving the challenges that have resulted from those choices, and taking immediate, very difficult steps to mitigate the situation. We are doing all of this with NVC consciousness, continuing our commitment to living the values we teach in the world. One of those values involves the recognition that human beings are interdependent, and times of crisis invite us to lean into our community for support.
 So here we are: looking at how to move through this crisis interdependently, and in fact, how to use this crisis as an opportunity to deepen our relationships with our community, for now and for the future. That means holding with care all the needs we are aware of: our students, donors, community members - your needs. It also means sharing with you our needs, and inviting and requesting your practical support. In the midst of our sorrow and hardship, thinking of our community offers us a beacon of hope.
Our dearest wish is that every person reading this letter
will be moved to make a financial contribution.
We hope your financial contributions will be whole-hearted and generous, meaning that you will choose to give an amount commensurate both with your financial means and with your care for us. We hope that you will choose to contribute both right now, as soon as you possibly can, and that you will let us know that you're with us for the long-term by choosing to make ongoing, regular donations of whatever size. We need your financial support; we also need your vote of  confidence, your care -- what my sister Inbal calls your "love in action."
Please take a few moments to read the options below for how you can contribute financially and in other ways. And please respond.
With gratitude,
Miki Kashtan
Co-founder of BayNVC |
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| Ways in which You Can Support BayNVC |
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 1) Donate! Remember, this is both financial support and a much needed vote of confidence in what we are contributing to the world. Choose whether you want to contribute to transforming our current crisis, and/or become part of our ongoing circle of support. If you have the financial means to contribute a large sum, please consider giving more than your initial impulse and make a big difference. If you are currently financially stretched, please contribute what you
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An Amish community barn-raising
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can or consider other ways to support us. Any amount - $10, $10,000 - would be so deeply appreciated!
Consider this idea: Gift us with one day of your income, either one time, or annually (divided into monthly donations if you want).
If you teach NVC: Consider dedicating all or part of a workshop you are teaching to supporting us, or invite your students to contribute to us.
You can click here to donate online (one time or ongoing) or send a check to 55 Santa Clara Ave #203, Oakland, CA 94610. All contributions are tax-deductible, as BayNVC is a 501(c)3 organization.
If sending a check, please mark it as a donation. |
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Learn NVC!
2) Prioritize your NVC growth this summer and beyond: sign up now for classes, workshops, and retreats, even if they are taking place months from now. Seeing our offerings fill will offer us a great deal of peace of mind and trust that we are truly serving our community and can cover some of our basic expenses. 3) Participate in the upcoming NVC Telesummit that is being organized to benefit BayNVC by Francois Beausoleil, Estrella Brigid, and Mair Alight with collaboration from the NVC Academy. It takes place between July 2nd and 8th, 2012, featuring 3 calls a day with 20 different trainers. The organizers and the trainers are pretty much all volunteering their time. The topic of this Telesummit is interdependence, and each trainer will address a different aspect of interdependence from an NVC perspective. |
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More Ways to Contribute
 4) Volunteer: We are actively seeking support with accounting and bookkeeping; business planning; fundraising; marketing (especially to organizations); book publishing (graphic layout and marketing in particular); web development for benefit events others are organizing for us; volunteer coordination; and administrative tasks. If you are drawn to offering us some of your time and skills, please contact Dave at 510-433-0700, ext. 205 or dave@baynvc.org.
5) Pass the word: Think of who else may have been inspired by our work who may not be in direct contact with us and wouldn't know about this crisis unless you told them, and pass this letter along. If you are a trainer, consider including your students or mailing list.
 6) Increase our class sizes: Consider inviting at least one friend, or even a group of friends or colleagues, to any NVC training you plan to attend. Take 5 minutes to think of people in your life that could benefit from NVC and invited them now, or tell them about us and how our work might support them.
7) Organize an NVC event at your home or workplace: Host an NVC evening at your home or a daytime event at work, with your friends and colleagues, either as an introductory training and/or as a mini-fundraiser. Let us know if you'd like to set this up, and we will provide a trainer (you can also request a particular trainer).
8) Have ideas? We are open to additional creative suggestions about how to move through this phase and generate the funds and other resources necessary for stability. |
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Photos of BayNVC trainers from top:
Miki Kashtan, Roxy Manning, Meganwind Eoyang, Kathy Simon, Jared Finkelstein, Lynda Smith, Newt Bailey, Francois Bausoleil, Nancy Kahn, Lisa Montana, Ingrid Bauer, Mair Alight.
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