Dear President Trump, Governor Pritzker, Mayor Lightfoot, and Members of the Philanthropic Community:

We are a group of Chicago-based nonprofit Founders, Executive Directors and Board Members representing grassroots and small nonprofit organizations serving some of the most vulnerable populations and communities in the city of Chicago and throughout the State of Illinois. We as nonprofits are small businesses and the communities we serve have distinct, unique and crucial needs. In some cases, those needs have been severely exacerbated by the challenges presented by COVID-19.

At a time when the full impact of COVID-19 is still to be determined, we know that the needs of those we serve will be increasing. Adding to greater demands on our organizations is the recognition that private sector funding and our ability to activate new donors will be severely limited due to economic uncertainty.  It is for these reasons that we are reaching out to you to request help.

We applaud the immediate efforts our city and state leaders, and, Philanthropic Funders have taken to meet the needs of the current crisis. We agree with the actions of larger, national nonprofits in quickly asking for relief. However, we fear that as grassroots and small nonprofits, we may be overlooked.  Furthermore, some of the proposed efforts are focused on loans and not grants, which would provide greater relief for our organizations at this time.  Some of us may not survive until the end of this crisis, and, if our nonprofits fold, not only will our employees be negatively impacted, those who depend on us for what are often life-saving services will have nowhere to turn. The needs we meet will not disappear once the crisis is over; these needs will intensify.

In America, 1.3 million nonprofits like ours - who employ 12.3 million people - feed, heal, shelter, educate, inspire, enlighten, and nurture people of every age, gender, race, and socioeconomic status, from coast to coast, border to border, and beyond. Our concern is that funds being made available will bypass grassroots nonprofits (budgets under $1 million) and small nonprofits (budgets between $1-5 million) which might not be on the radar of these grant-making organizations.

We need everyone’s help now. 

We ask:

- That our civic leaders take immediate and direct action to provide a stimulus package to the grassroots/small nonprofit sectors, who are at great risk of extinction without timely financial support

- That our civic leaders understand the crucial need for nonprofits to access grants, not loans, during this time of lost funding

- That our civic leaders and Philanthropic Funders ensure that previously available funding is not diverted but rather that the funding remains for nonprofits to continue to provide important services through this crisis

- That our civic leaders and Philanthropic Funders remove barriers to accessing available funding sources during this time

- That our civic leaders ensure continued and increased support for our employees 

 

If you have ever served or currently serve as a Board Member, an Executive Director, a staff member, a volunteer, donated to, and/or received services from a nonprofit like ours, please join us in signing this petition. We can be partners in fighting this crisis, but we need your help to make sure that our Chicago area grassroots and smaller nonprofits survive.

 

Signed:

Valerie Groth, Founder & CEO - Ryan Banks Academy (https://www.ryanbanksacademy.org/donate/)

Char Rivette, Executive Director - Chicago Children's Advocacy Center (https://www.chicagocac.org/donate/)

Rebecca Darr, CEO - WINGS Program, Inc (https://wingsprogram.com/donate/)

Board of Directors, Between Friends (http://www.betweenfriendschicago.org/get-involved/donate/)

Lynda Schueler, Executive Director - Housing Forward (https://connect.clickandpledge.com/Organization/housingforward/campaign/EmergencyResponseFund)