HomeMy WebLinkAboutNature of Words RequestEconomic Development Fund
Discretionary Grant Program
Organization: The Nature of Words
Organization Description: Established in 2005, The Nature of Words offers Central
Oregon residents opportunities to enjoy acclaimed writers visiting the region to share
their works, explore their own writing under the guidance of these writers and feedback
from peers. The organization has also expanded to include Creative Writing in the
Schools program. This is a year-round outreach program that serves underserved and at -
risk youth, as well as traditional middle school and high school students. More than 800
area students participated in the program during the 2008-2009 school year.
Project Name: The Nature of Words Literary Festival 2009
Project Description: These grant funds will be used to promote The Nature of Words
Literary Festival, underwrite scholarships, provide students with free tickets, offer seniors
a 50% discount and support the continuing development of the Creative Writing in the
Schools program.
Project Period: November 5, 2009 to November 8, 2009
Amount of Request: $2,000 (Estimated total cost = $104,100)
Previous Grants:
• September 2005 — $1,500 (Luke $500; Daly $500; DeWolf $500)
• March 2006 - $2,000 (Luke $1,000; Clarno $1,000)
• February 2007 - $2,000 (Luke $1,000; Baney $1,000)
• April 2008 - $1,000 (Luke $500, Baney $500)
(theNatureofWords)
August 5, 2009
Mr. Dave Inbody
Assistant to the County Administrator
Deschutes County
1300 NW Wall Street, Suite 200
Bend, OR 97701
Dear Mr. Inbody:
Enclosed please find our revised application for Deschutes County Discretionary Grant Funds.
We are directing this application to Commissioner Tammy Baney.
This application reflects the fact that the $2,000 in requested grant funds will be used to promote
fundraising activities, specifically the annual literary festival held the first weekend of
November. Funds raised by the festival are used to provide scholarships to the various festival
events for those who cannot afford access, free student tickets, discounted senior tickets, and
continuing development of our Creative -Writing -in -the -Schools program.
Further, many of the foundations we approach for funding prefer or require to see matching
funds from the community and local organizations.
Please contact us if you or Commissioner Baney need additional information to consider our
application.
Sincerely,
Ellen Waterston
Director
www.thenatureofwords.org • P.O. Box 56 • Bend, Oregon 97709 • Tel: 541.330.4381 • Cell: 541.480.3933 • Fax: 541.383.7406
Deschutes County Board of Commissioners
1300 NW Wall St., Bend, OR 97701-1960
(541) 388-6570 - Fax (541) 385-3202 - www.deschutes.org
DESCHUTES COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FUND
DISCRETIONARY GRANT PROGRAM APPLICATION
Direct Application to:
Commissioner Tammy Baney
Commissioner Dennis R. Luke
Date:
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Project Name:
Project Beginning Date:
Amount of Request:
Applicant/Organization:
Address:
Commissioner Alan Unger
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Date Funds Needed:
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On a separate sheet, please briefly answer the following questions:
1. Describe the applicant organization, including its purpose, leadership structure, and activities.
2. Describe the proposed project or activity.
3. Provide a timeline for completing the proposed project or activity.
4. Explain how the proposed project or activity will impact the community's economic health.
5. Identify the specific communities or groups that will benefit.
6. Itemize anticipated expenditures*. Describe how grant funds will be used and include the
source and amounts of matching funds or in-kind contributions, if any. If the grant will
support an ongoing activity, explain how it will be funded in the future.
Attach:
Proof of the applicant organization's non-profit status.
*Applicant may be contacted during the review process and asked to provide a complete line item budget.
Tammy Baney: Amount: Signature:
Dennis Luke: Amount: Signature:
Alan Unger: Amount: Signature:
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE
P. O. ` BOX 2508
CINCINNATI, OH 45201
Date:
FEB %- 7
THE NATURE OF WORDS
PO BOX 640
BEND, OR 97709
Dear Applicant:
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Employer Identification Number:
86-1167881
DLN:
17053363017036
Contact Person:
THOMAS C KOESTER
Contact Telephone Number:
(877) 829-5500
Accounting Period Ending:
DECEMBER 31
Public Charity Status:
170 (b) (1) (A) (vi)
Form 990 Required:
YES
Effective Date of Exemption:
AUGUST 16, 2006
Contribution Deductibility:
YES
Advance Ruling Ending Date:
DECEMBER 31, 2010
ID# 31116
We are pleased to inform you that upon review of your application for tax
exempt status we have determined that you are exempt from Federal income tax
under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions to you are
deductible under section 170 of the Code. You are also qualified to receive
tax deductible bequests, devises, transfers or gifts under section 2055, 2106
or 2522 of the Code. Because this letter could help resolve any questions
regarding your exempt status, you should keep it in your permanent records.
Organizations exempt under section 501(c) (3) of the Code are further classified
as either public charities or private foundations. During your advance ruling
period, you will be treated as a public charity. Your advance ruling period
begins with the effective date of your exemption and ends with advance ruling
ending date shown in the heading of the letter.
Shortly before the end of your advance ruling period, we will send you Form
8734, Support Schedule for Advance Ruling Period. You will have 90 days after
the end of your advance ruling period to return the completed form. We will
then notify you, in writing, about your public charity status.
Please see enclosed Information for Exempt Organizations Under Section
501(c)(3) for some helpful information about your responsibilities as an exempt
organization.
Letter 1045 (DO/CG)
Deschutes County Economic Development Fund
Discretionary Grant Program Application
August 5, 2009
The Nature of Words
PO Box 56
Bend, OR 97709
www.thenatureofwords.org
Contact: Ellen Waterston, Executive Director
Project: The Nature of Words 2009 literary festival
Amount requested: $2,000
Describe the applicant organization, including its purpose, leadership structure, and activities.
The mission of The Nature of Words is to foster an appreciation of the literary arts and
humanities in the High Desert region of the Northwest through community interaction with
celebrated authors and through creative writing programs for high school- and college-age
students.
Established in 2005, The Nature of Words (NOW) has become the premier literary event in
Central Oregon. As the only literary nonprofit, other than libraries, offering programs to the
general public, the annual literary festival offers not only the opportunity to enjoy renowned
writers sharing their writing through readings and panel discussions, but also the chance to
participate in small group workshops where emerging writers can improve their craft under the
guidance of the guest authors. NOW has become a critical provider of literary arts education in
Central Oregon and is relied on by the community and partner organizations to do so.
With the annual literary event well established, The Nature of Words is expanding
its scope through the Creative -Writing -in -the -Schools program instructed by regional
authors in traditional and nontraditional classroom settings. This year-round outreach
program serves underserved and "at -risk" youth, as well as traditional middle and high
school age populations. The Nature of Words is partnering with Caldera and Arts
Central, two Central Oregon arts organizations, to offer this program to area students.
More than 800 middle and high school students in Central Oregon participated in the
Creative -Writing -in -the -Schools program during the 2008/2009 school year. The Nature
of Words is currently in the process of identifying schools and educational
organizations where the program will be offered in the 2009/2010 school year. In
2008/2009, NOW received funding for this program from The Collins Foundation, The
Oregon Community Foundation, The Roundhouse Foundation and Caldera.
Describe the proposed project or activity.
The literary festival is a five-day event in a multi -venue format designed to appeal to avid
readers, those who support and appreciate quality writing and reading, as well as published and
emerging writers. Funds generated by the festival help to:
• Promote the event to the local community and inform potential participants about
free and discounted tickets
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• Underwrite scholarships for those who cannot afford to attend author readings and
workshops
• Provide students with free tickets to author readings
• Offer seniors age 65+ a 50 percent discount on reading tickets
• Support continuing development of the Creative -Writing -in -the -Schools program,
which includes targeting at -risk and underserved youth
The events held during the literary festival include: the Rising Star Creative Writing
Competition Awards, which recognize high-school and college-age writers throughout the
Northwest; the guest author readings where visiting authors read from their works at the Tower
Theatre; guest author workshops, where authors share insight and techniques with emerging
writers and literary enthusiasts; the author dinner and panel discussion, a lively moderated
discussion among the visiting authors; and the open mic, an opportunity for festival participants
to showcase their work in a public setting. The open mic is a free event held at the Bend Public
Library.
The Nature of Words 2009 literary festival will honor Oregon's sesquicentennial by
featuring talented writers from our state, including Jane Kirkpatrick who, as 2009's recipient of
NOW's annual Caldera Award, will be recognized as an author who has contributed to the
literary arts in Oregon. Award-winning poet and literary non-fiction writer Kim Stafford, humor
writer Karen Karbo, poet and essayist Charles Goodrich, and rising young poetry star Matthew
Dickman have also accepted our invitation to participate in the 2009 festival. Sherman Alexie,
Seth Kantner, Valzhyna Mort round out the author roster. Civil rights activist and writer Myrlie
Evers -Williams will keynote the author dinner on November 7.
The Nature of Words is committed to offering diverse perspectives, while raising the
profile of the literary arts in Central Oregon. The annual festival addresses the need for access to
literary events in a region of Oregon that is historically underserved and limited in its access to
other events, such as Wordstock in Portland and Fishtrap in Enterprise.
NOW strives to raise the level of discussion in our region regarding key issues — social,
environmental and historical. The literary arts give readers and writers the tools to examine and
articulate their place in the world. Through the literary festival, The Nature of Words seeks to
encourage self-discovery, promote critical thinking, help participants to become better readers,
thus better writers, and expose them to great authors and great writing.
Provide a timeline for completing the proposed project or activity.
The festival will be held during the first weekend of November (5-8, 2009) in Bend.
NOW's staff and volunteer Board work year-round to organize and promote the annual festival.
Summer and early fall will be devoted to festival logistics and volunteer training. November
(post event) and December 2009 will be spent evaluating the festival and thanking NOW's
dedicated volunteers and funders.
Explain how the proposed project or activity will impact the community's economic health.
NOW's 2008 literary celebration attracted a record number of participants, with 2,000
attending the readings, workshops, small group lectures, panel discussions and dinner. All events
were sold out. Participants from throughout Oregon, and from as far as Kansas and Alaska took
part in the one or more festival events. Attendance at the annual festival has steadily increased
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each year, from 1,050 in 2005. We anticipate this trend to continue and believe the festival
promotes cultural tourism in Deschutes County.
The community's economic health is positively impacted through visiting participant's use
of local amenities, including hotel lodging, restaurants and shopping. Local venders who are
contracted to provide goods and services necessary to conduct the festival also benefit. Festival
events are held in numerous locations in Bend, including the Tower Theatre, Central Oregon
Community College, Oregon State University and the Bend Public Library, thus exposing
participants to Bend and its beauty.
Identify the specific communities or groups that will benefit.
Festival participants come from throughout Oregon and a few from as far as Kansas and
Alaska. Participants range in age from 15 to 90 and represent several different ethnic
backgrounds. Because income levels among participants vary, scholarships and reduced event
tickets are made available, upon request, in an effort to promote participation by all who are
interested in attending.
NOW coordinates schedules and author selection with Fishtrap in northeastern Oregon, the
Deschutes Library's annual Novel Idea held in the spring in Bend, Portland's Wordstock and
Literary Arts, the High Desert Journal, Caldera in Sisters and Portland, as well as with other
literary programs in the region, to inform Oregonians about the festival and promote
collaboration with partner organizations.
Itemize anticipated expenditures. Describe how grant funds will be used and include the source
and amounts of matching funds or in-kind contributions, if any. If the grant will support on on-
going activity, explain how it will be funded in the future.
The total estimated expense for the five-day 2009 literary festival is $104,100. Deschutes County
Economic Development funds will be used to support promotion of the festival, a fundraising
event (as described earlier) that provides students, seniors and those with limited economic
means access to the various events of the festival; and to support continuation of the Creative -
Writing -in -the -Schools program. Further, Deschutes County funds also serve to demonstrate
matching funds, which are required by many of the foundations and organizations we approach
for support.
Project budget for NOW's 2009 literary festival:
Income
Sponsorships and individual donors
$42,750
Foundation grants
$18,000
Deschutes County Economic Development Fund
$ 2,000
Readings (2 nights @ 350 x $15)
$10,500
Featured Author Workshops (6x2x$45x20)
$10,800
Second Tier Authors' Workshops (3x2x$45x15)
$ 4,050
Author Dinner and Panel Discussion (200x$80)
$16,000
Total
$104,100
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Expense
Author fees
$31,000
Travel
$ 7,000
Lodging (in-kind)
$ 3,000
Venue & sound rental
$ 6,000
Publicity & advertising
$12,000
Catering & event coordination
$12,000
Ticket sales fee
$ 1,600
Materials, printing & souvenirs, etc.
$10,000
Scholarships, awards (Rising Star)
$ 2,000
Personnel expense
$14,500
General office expense
$ 5,000
Total
$104,100
Other funding sources:
To date, $50,000 has been pledged from major donors in support of the 2009 literary festival and
NOW's operating expenses. Additionally, grant submitted applications have been submitted to
The Oregon Arts Commission, the Samuel S. Johnson Foundation and the M.J. Murdock
Charitable Trust.
The Nature of Words continues to receive valuable in-kind and/or cash support from area
sponsors including:
• Central Oregon Community College - $4,500 + in-kind
• OSU-Cascades Campus - $6,000 + in-kind
• Shops at The Old Mill - $10,000 in-kind
• DVA Advertising - $6,000 in-kind
• The Bend Bulletin - $5,000 in-kind
• Cascade Publications — $6,000 in-kind
• Clear 101.7 FM - $7,000 in-kind
• The Source Weekly — $2,500 in-kind
The literary festival is annual event for The Nature of Words. To sustain the festival, funds
are raised from local and statewide foundations, area businesses and corporations, our dedicated
following of individual donors and government resources such as the Oregon Arts Commission
(which just awarded us $7,000 for operating support) and Oregon Cultural Trust. Furthermore,
earlier this year the Board and staff completed a strategic planning process to guide NOW's
growth for the next three -years. An important component of the plan is a fundraising
development strategy that will guide the Board and staff in their long-term fundraising activities.
The Nature of Words has broken even financially since its inception, due to the generous
support of funders and the ability of the organization to run a lean, hands-on operation.
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