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Every day that goes by, every town we visit, every group of people we meet humbles and astonishes more, we are filled with gratitude for the jobs we have and the privilege it is to take a two-way street tour to this part of Oregon. The community spirit we are witnessing, the countless volunteer hours that are represented, the incredible dedication and commitment of everyone to their towns is just plain remarkable. And it just goes on and on... we are pumped!!
After posting our blog entry yesterday, we drove to La Grande and met with 25 people in the community room at the library. Again, a wide array of groups was represented. And as usual, each person is involved in several nonprofits and community activities: literacy programs, domestic violence, music groups, libraries, university, opera house, community service groups, parks and recreation, museum, early childhood, community playgrounds, rural fire district, family support, arts groups, Habitat for Humanity, mental health and family services.
In addition to La Grande, people had come from Cove, Elgin, Union, Ontario, and Malheur.
By this time we are beginning to see the questions that keep coming up. People are so interested in knowing exactly what happens at every stage after MMT receives their grant proposals, they like to be able to visualize the process. Note to self: we used to have some specific information about this on our website, make sure if it has been removed that it goes back up somewhere!
There are also a number of points of confusion for folks. For example, lots of people think that every grant requires them to have matching funds, and it discourages many from applying. Who started this rumor, anyway? People in small communities are also worried about applying because they're afraid foundations will think they are, well, greedy. They are concerned that too many proposals might come in from their community and they'll end up taking one another out of the game.
One generous soul shared the fact that in a recent discussion with Trust Management Services, he learned that they want MORE proposals from northeast Oregon. We observed everyone taking notes at this point. :-)
We realize by now you have come to expect us to tell you what we had for lunch. In La Grande, we ate at Mamacita's, just across the street from the library. Yum-mee! We shared the Guadljara tostada and the pork and shredded cabbage tacos. We HIGHLY recommend both!
Then it was on to Union, home of the Bobcats and a number of awesome looking buildings. Our Union meeting was at the Union County Museum. They really rolled out the red carpet for us, with a sidewalk board bearing a gigantic copy of our TWST flyer! The group was smaller (8) but made up for size in liveliness! We had a wonderful discussion and learned so much, as we do at every stop.
These folks are so involved in their communities, during introductions we had to limit each person to listing the top ten nonprofits they were representing. 
The list included museums, grange halls, county fair, senior meals, medical services, schools, youth programs, food banks, community action organizations, church groups, animal welfare, economic development, historical societies, chamber of commerce, municipalities, etc. etc.
Some random things we have learned so far:
--Doing this tour is a great idea! We should have done it long ago, and we need to do it all over the state, and come back in the future.
--The issue that gets raised most often as the most pressing need in the community: Jobs, jobs, jobs, esp. family wage jobs. The long term future depends on it! Rural residents want to know: would a foundation like MMT consider investing in communities by developing or providing backing for industries/businesses in the area that would provide jobs for local residents, and a return on investment for the foundation?
--People from organizations in these communities have no clue what the names of two of our grant programs mean: capacity building and technical assistance. Regular people don't talk like this and they are put off by jargon like this, it makes them feel unwelcome at MMT. They don't totally understand our definitions or descriptions of the programs. One suggestion: the nonprofit capacity building grant program should be named the "sustainable nonprofits" grant program.
--Foundations need to provide more help to organizations to maintain and stabilize programs rather than requiring them to keep starting up new programs.
--The lack of public transportation in rural areas presents all kinds of problems to the nonprofit organizations there, and increases their cost of doing business.
--As useful as a website is, it is not a substitute for meeting people face to face. It really encourages and empowers groups that have never applied for a grant at MMT to begin to plan to do so.
--When several organizations in an area are successful in getting grants, word of mouth plays a really important role in other organizations learning from these winners and trying for funding themselves. Especially since in any given small town, each person is involved in five or more organizations.
--These meetings are actually providing networking opportunities for folks in these communities.
--Getting that first grant from MMT truly does make an organization feel like a partner with us. We are seen as most aloof and mysterious by those who have no personal experience with us. Hence, we are so glad we're here.
This morning we had a lovely breakfast in the beautiful restored historic hotel where we spent the night in Union. We couldn't find Internet access; we hope to do so in Enterprise, where we are heading next, so we can post this entry. We'll catch up with you then.
Thanks so much for coming along with us on this wonderful trip: We enjoy your company!
Marie
Expanded comments re above:
a) matching funds needed. A rumor, yes. But, as stated on your website "MMT prefers to be one of a number of funders, and almost never provides 100% of a project's funding." This looks daunting to a small non-profit needing someone, anyone to step up to the plate and be "first". I understand this philosophy from the funders perspective; it looks quite different from the other side of the table.
b) names of grant programs. Your explanation helps a lot; I reviewed the website today. Our perspective as a provider of services to individuals w DD is that "capacity building" means the ability to serve more clients, because as we do we receive more fees and make progress against the bottom line. So I think the difference in nomenclature is clearer for us than it was previously.
c) help to maintain & stabilize. I stand up and cheer!!! As a small, growing agency we are approaching break-even as currently structured. It is really challenging to get desired assistance to cross the threshold. Even if we can demonstrate consistent financial progress it looks like 'just annual fund support' or the like. What's wrong with annual fund or general support for an organization 1) meeting a community need, 2)growing toward break-even, and 3) committed to maintaining #1 and #2?
And a question: It looks like PRIs have been rolled into the other grant programs at MMT and are not a "program" unto themselves. Am I correct?
Warren Rushold
President - PASS
www.passpdx.org
I can very much identify with three comments above: a) the need for matching funds [not a rumor], b) names of grant "programs", and c) helping non-profits maintain and stabilize. More in a forthcoming e-mail which you are free to distribute. OR, I'll do a longer comment if that is what you prefer.
Warren Rushold
President - PASS
www.passpdx.org