Logo


Small talk leads to big talk.

- Helen L'Annunziata
   First 5 Humboldt
 
Speaking about the under-rated value of "pure sociability" at a gathering at the Humboldt Area Foundation this week.
 
Coming Up
Topical Conference Call
 
Neighborhood Resource Centers:  Adding Action with Traction to Grassroots Grantmaking

Tuesday, June 2
3:00 ET

Click here to register
Big Thinking This Week
Foreclosures - Is There a Silver Lining?
 
This week Janis reported on a symposium that she attended in Minneapolis last week, Neighborhood Response to the Foreclosure Crisis, and reflected on the important role of block level work by neighborhood residents can play in turning the tables on the destabilizing impact that foreclosures are having on many neighborhoods.
 
Check out what Janis has to say about the need for resident action and a possible silver lining to the foreclosure crisis.

Spaced Out?
 
If you are an Outlook 2007 user, our emails may appear "spaced out" with too many spaces between paragraphs. We're working on a solution to a quirky conflict that we're experiencing between Outlook 2007 and our email template.  In the meantime, you can view the newsletter in its intended format by clicking the "having trouble viewing this email" link at the top.
 
If anyone has also experienced this problem and has a solution, please contact us!
Our Listserv

Forward this email
Join Our Mailing List
Wednesday
Your Weekly Update from
Grassroots Grantmakers

May 20, 2009
Question of the Week
What do you do to let grantees know that they have met or exceeded expectations associated with their grant? 
 
Are you using the period at the end of the grant to help grantees take stock of what they have accomplished and learned, and to imagine what they might do next?  

Send us a quick email to share what you are doing or planning.  We'll share what we hear.

Sarah McCarthy on Confidence
Building Confidence, Building Capacity
 
Sarah McCarthySarah McCarthy, the Neighborhood Resource Center of Colorado's Executive Director, has seen the power of using $100 grants to build the confidence of new leaders.
 
Read what Sarah has to say about building confidence as a way of building capacity.
Hot Link of the Week
Asset Based Community Development Institute  
 Visit their new and improved website

What is Friendly Listening?
Wisdom from Our Archives
 
Friendly listening means not getting in the way of a group exercising its own problem-solving skills, and not getting in the way of a group taking responsibility for its own decisions and actions.  It means scrupulously avoiding voicing judgments or telling people what to do.
 
Friendly listening is just one key way that a funder can help people and groups find their own way - a guiding principle for effective capacity building help.
 
Read more in this excerpt from a classic grassroots grantmaking resource - David Scheie's Helping Neighborhood Groups and Leaders Grow Stronger.
Good Question!
What You're Asking

A recent question of the week was about questions you ask let residents know that you're working from a "we begin with residents" perspective.

Click here to see the list that we've compiled from your responses.

Save the Date!
October 21-22, 2009
 
On the Ground with Grassroots
Grantmakers in Ohio's Mahoning Valley
Building a Strategy for Change from the Ground Up
 
In Partnership with
Youngstown and Warren, Ohio

Registration will begin early this summer.

On the Calendar


May 21  Spokane
Especially for Funders workshop presentation at the 2009 Neighborhoods USA (NUSA) Conference.
 
June 2  Topical Conference Call
 
July 8-10  Nova Scotia



Our Website:  www.grassrootsgrantmakers.org
Logo
Contact Us:    361-798-1808
                     info@grassrootsgrantmakers.org