Donor Dollars At Work

MIFA Opportunity Banc provides business development classes to people (primarily women) with low to moderate income and a desire to start a small home-based business the opportunity and knowledge to do just that. Their 12-week workshop is offered four times a year in small supportive group sessions. Graduates of the program can also apply for loans to start their business. The program, now in its fifth year of operation, has seen many successful graduates. Program Manager Carmen Mills has no problem telling just how the grant they receive from the Women's Foundation is put to good use.

Q: How do The WFGM grants assist your organization?

A: We have used the money from the Women's Foundation for programmatic support: to pay our trainer, to buy supplies for the program, to do marketing and outreach for the program and to make sure that we get training each year to make sure we can deliver up-to-date services.

Q: What type of changes have you seen in the students that benefit from these funds?

A: We are able to make sure that our students are able to get follow-up assistance. Every student gets one year of free business counseling. They are more confident knowing that once they complete the class and work to develop their business there's someone there to help support them and to help work them through any business issues they may have.

Q: Does WFGM offered other types of assistance besides monetary?

A: Yes. They have been there from day one to help get our program started. They were at the table fighting for us then and connected us with people who helped us to develop ourselves as professionals, as well as continue to develop the program. For instance, I have had the opportunity to work with an executive coach through the Coaching Initiatives and now our trainer is working with a coach and that has really helped us develop as professionals. It's helped us to focus our energy on what's best for the program and determine how to move forward. The Women's Foundation has also given us access to a researcher who does evaluation research, so that we can tailor our program outcome and figure out what we need to be measuring to prove that our program is working. Those kinds of things have helped to make the Opportunity Banc stronger.

Q: If you were speaking to someone about why they should assist the WFGM what would you say?

A: I would tell them by supporting the Women's Foundation you are able, financially, to make your dollars go much farther. The Women's Foundation is very focused on what they do, economic empowerment for women and helping women become self-sufficient, but there are so many different programs that they touch. So often we get focused on one program and we want to help that program build, but through the Women's Foundation, you can touch a lot of people's lives. They're good stewards of your money. They make sure that the programs they donate to are good solid programs that really make a difference, so you can trust that your money is going to be used wisely and used well.