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What MUST an organization do before any initial grant
is given to
them?
It is critical for any person representing any organization that wishes to
be in our grant program to know that we have absolutely NO administrative staff and
therefore if the requirements stated on this web-site are NOT met, second
opportunities to apply for grants will most probably not be available, as we
have huge limitations on our time availabilities.
The criteria we use to evaluate
organizations who wish to submit to this Foundation a timely and complete
"request for grants" is shown below.
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Don't get discouraged by the number of our questions. Our review will
compare organizations, but the following two facts will also be important.
On one hand, consideration will be given to organizations who are most
forthcoming and do not give the appearance of withholding material
information or shading the facts with half-truths. But, on the other hand,
we will also consider the comparative sizes of your organizations and
longevity when reviewing grants request for completeness. See
also some reasons WHY we require the information we do at the link "why this info"
All organizations who submit requests using the following criteria
and
who make realistic attempts to respond to all requirements will receive
at very minimum a written critique of their
application. This may enable you, if appropriate, to submit better information the following year when
additional, but larger, grants are to be made to local organizations who
have been involved in this current year's grant request process.
A note to organizations who have
previously received grants from us: You will receive special
consideration appropriate to your past status with us and, if
applicable, you may be able to continue in the grant program at the grant level where you left off.
But, because our previous methods and program did not work as we hoped, you,
too, must now follow ALL requirements to continue. The
exceptions we made in the past almost destroyed this Foundation for not only the
guilty organizations, but also for every
grantee.
As you can deduce from the above, this process will be an ongoing one,
whereby we may continue to whittle down our "grantee universe"
and attempt to select fewer local organizations, who may receive larger
grants next year, and after a number of years finally select the still fewer
organizations who will receive the much greater annual grants which will
become available after the death of the founder when the distribution of his estate will create the major portion of
the endowment for our Foundation. (see funding)
Please supply us with as much of the following as you are able to supply.
For the first year, each applying organization MUST:
 | read and understand why this information is
necessary, most especially the reasons we require accountability. |
| provide an email application (as lengthy as seems necessary in your own opinion)
that lists responses to (and number-coded to agree with) each item in the below
list.
- read and understand our entire Eligibility
page and make a written statements showing you have met every requirement
under the heading "Each new grantee organization MUST:",
- a description of your purpose, mission, and/or goals (from your bylaws
or conception documents),
- who, exactly, are your past (and your proposed future) beneficiaries
and how do you maintain continuity with them, if indeed you do, in your own
grant programs,
- the background of your organization itself (its history),
- a discussion regarding your credibility in all relevant locales,
- a discussion of the stability of your organization,
- the background and relevant contributions of your founders,
- the background and relevant contributions of your current principals,
- what methods are used to ensure continuity and consistency of your
programs through re-invigoration and eventual succession of your current management?
- a discussion of, and all details regarding, your use of
non-monetary-type-benefits to compensate your volunteers,
- details regarding monetary compensation to all others,
- your financial status and past history (we strongly suggest you read
examples),
- your current financial structure (again, read examples),
- projections of future cash flow (both in and out),
(once again, see examples),
- a discussion of your past methods of (and future plans for) obtaining
funding,
- details supporting any claim of tax deductibility in Mexico and in
USA (see IRS discussion for the USA portion of this
response as well as IRS Narrative),
- details supporting your legality to operate in Mexico and/or in
the
USA,
- discussion of your internal controls, both financial and
other (see internal control),
- what, if anything, do you do to aid the mission of any other San
Miguel charitable organization,
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| help us maintain our level playing field, therefore do
NOT request additional information or instructions regarding the above
criteria. DO YOUR BEST in supplying whatever YOU think is requested. |
| provide contact information. We would prefer your email
addresses, or secondarily, your telephone numbers with times of
availability. |
| submit your organization's application for grants as
early as possible before
February 1, of any year. Requests received after that date may or may not
be retained for inclusion in next year's grant considerations. |
| complete
your grant request with the following statement, signed by the Chief
Executive Officer, AND the Financial Officer (if any), AND the preparer of
the request. |
"We
have examined this request for an initial grant and certify that to the best
of our knowledge it is complete, accurate, and truthful in all
respects. We promise that we will inform you of any material changes that occur in the
future that effect any of the above answers." (insert the name of your organization and names of officers).
We hope to hear from you as soon as possible and will contact you after
evaluating your grant request submission.
Additional credit will be given to organizations that:
| show that they have read and understand those pages of this web-site
that are pertinent to their current status with the Foundation, and at least one
of the signers of the above "statement" should state which pages
of this web-site he or she has read and understood. |
| show that they comply with the various goals and mission of this
Foundation as stated in various parts of this web-site |
| show that they are now ready to receive and deal with responsibly their
proportionate share of the income from an endowment that will exceed us$2,500,000 (see funding)
in the immediate future should this Foundation's founder die unexpectedly
(but not an unnatural death from dishonest hands - see founders will) |
One last thought:
If all of the above is too overwhelming for you, you might wish to enter
our grant request program using the Fast Track
method. But, we should tell you that you would be better advised to put in
the extra effort described above as the Fast Track method is a shortcut with
downsides (mostly that you will eventually have to go through the regular method
anyway before you are eligible for larger grants).
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