And now we wait...

Finally, after the new year, we received the stamp of approval from the State of MN on our Articles of Incorporation, which launched us forward to review our mountain of paperwork required by the IRS to become a 501(c)3 with a fine tooth comb.  We made sure that every "t" was crossed and "i" was dotted and with a big sigh... we had done it! It was signed, stamped, delivered and mailed on February 28th and now we wait...

Again, it is hard for us to believe that after a two year journey of researching our community, finding out what needs are going unmet or under met, visiting numerous social service agencies to explore partnerships and networks, raising funds to help pay for our $800 filing fee to the IRS, and to now seeing our vision of Neighborhood Connections, Inc. come together on one document feels like quite an accomplishment and a huge burden lifted.  However, this is just the beginning of yet another journey down the path of starting a non-profit and ultimately finally helping our neighbors through the challenges of life. 

The four of us feel so thankful and passionate for having this opportunity to help those right in our small community.  We continue to seek more people to join us in this endeavor in helping to care for those in crisis  in our community.  At this time we are still looking for Board Members, volunteers and individuals with skills in marketing, web design and fundraising to help Neighborhood Connections move forward and begin to provide services to those in need.

There are two information meetings scheduled in April for anyone interested in learning more about the mission of Neighborhood Connections, Inc and ways you can get involved. 
Saturday, April 13th at 9am at Saddie's Coffee Shop in the Colonial Mall, St. Michael
Monday, April 15th at 7pm at Alleluia Lutheran Church office in the Colonial Mall, St. Michael

If you'd like more information about Neighborhood Connections, Inc. or ways you can help, please contact us at neighborhoodconnectionsmn@gmail.com

Thank you for your ongoing support!

The Journey continues...

As we all know, Life is a journey with many celebrations and challenges to appreciate, learn from and overcome.  We have discovered that starting a non-profit from the ground up is also a journey and one the four of us passionate women are so thankful to be on.  We continue to celebrate the people that we have met along the way and have offered their guidance and expertise in this non-profit world.  We are hopeful that more will join us in this journey to start Neighborhood Connections, Inc in St. Michael, so we can begin helping those neighbors in need. 
How you can help us now: 
We are in need of board members! If you are at all interested or have a professional skill set that could help move Neighborhood Connections forward, please let us know!  We are coming to the end of our 501(c)3 paperwork and plan to file it by the end of 2012!  We anticipate the year of 2013 to be filled with many celebrations as we look for funding sources, promote our mission in the community and begin to providing transportation, mental health and resource information to people in need!    We greatly appreciate your support and look forward to an exciting new year!

LOOKING FOR BOARD MEMBERS

We have exhausted ourselves over the last 9 months visiting various non-profit agencies. I feel we have a clear vision of what our agency will be. It is our hope that as a client walks through the door in crisis, we can address that immediate need and give them hope beyond this current hurdle. We have a location picked out and a real estate agent working on the details of turning our vision into 4 real walls. We are attempting to hammer out the 501(c)3 paperwork, but have to admit--we do need some help with that daunting task. We have kicked off our fundraising with the sale of our "Neighborhood Connection Necklace" ---I will have Char post a picture :) and let you know how you can purchase one.

We are in need of board members. Anyone interested in joining our board and sharing in our mission, please contact me at carlahabeck@charter.net. We specifically need anyone with experience in accounting, legal work, computers and web design, marketing and networking, and fundraising.

I look forward to sharing and connecting our community!

Carla

Who we are....

We are a group of five women, from all walks of life, that came together around a kitchen table to share a common vision and mutual passion that began with a stirring in each of our hearts to start something.....to make a difference in our own community, just one person and one family at a time.

So here we are, about a year into our journey and it has brought us to this point.... founding Neighborhood Connections, a non-profit agency dedicated to the mission of "empowering individuals, supporting families and strengthening communities."

We would like to invite you along on the rest of our journey to form Neighborhood Connections and to make a difference in the Wright County, Minnesota communities one step at a time.