Big Promise of Little Things Change Comes From Everyone
The FLEXible FUNDING Makes all the Difference As the old adage goes, sometimes you need to spend money to make money. And that’s precisely what Hawai‘i Forest Institute Executive Director Heather Simmons did when the organization was awarded a Flex Grant for $28,000 four years ago. “We were able to launch our rolling campaign. ‘MAHALO ‘AINA: Give Back to the Forest Initiative,’ which to date has brought in $160,000 and counting,” says Simmons. “We also used our flex grant to hire interns and help with administrative and operations costs that aren’t covered by other funding sources, but that are absolutely critical to our mission.”
These funds empower nonprofits to use money where they need it most
And that’s the beauty of HCF’s Flex Grant Program, which was established in 2013 to benefit high-
how to maximize funding for the most impact,” says HCF Program Officer, Ophelia Bitanga-Israel. “The FLEX grant award says we trust the nonprofit to spend their resources in a way that best furthers their mission.”
performing nonprofits. Funds that flow through the program empower nonprofits to use the grant where they need it most, whether that be for staff salaries, utility bills, or the occasional car repair. These types of ‘unrestricted’ funds are notoriously difficult to come by in the nonprofit world, and are indispensable to these organizations. “Most of the grants we get are very limited in scope and don’t give us the discretion to spend on everyday business expenses, like staffing or utilities,” says Simmons. “These flex funds not only cover those costs, but we can leverage them to bring in additional funds.”
show financial stability, and are using their data to continually improve.
The FLEX Grant Program offers donors a unique way to support nonprofits doing good work in the community. HCF has identified organizations to receive these grants that are demonstrating the importance of their work in the community, can
“We realize that providing discretionary support to nonprofits requires a level of trust, so we spend a lot of time vetting these organizations to assure our donors that these really are highperforming nonprofits that know
Repairing equipment when needed, hiring staff and purchasing office supplies make it possible for non profits to strengthen our communities. That’s the big promise of little things.
DID YOU KNOW: 950 Flex Grants totaling $21.7 million have been awarded to local nonprofits since the program started in 2013. To learn how you can transform your generosity into lasting change, visit: HawaiiCommunityFoundation.org