Damascus Way has been blessed by many partnerships over the years and during this last year in particular. These partnerships create vital webs of support and networking on a larger scale. This is especially important for smaller non-profits, because it provides resources that would otherwise be inaccessible.
In the world of non-profit organizations, an international group named “United Way” is known as a premier networking collective for the fundraising of and the distribution of grants to various non-profits across the globe. In short, United Way houses financial donations and distributes them to a myriad of smaller non-profits. These monetary grants are dispersed to a wide array of communities and groups. United Way typically has chapters in states and various cities or counties. Olmsted County, where Rochester is located, has its own. Through the county, United Way has provided grant opportunities that include cohort style learning courses for organizations with BIPOC leadership. This is of course as as result of the Damascus Way Rochester campus and its presence in Olmsted County and the local community.
Damascus Way was recently selected to be one of four organizations in Olmsted County to receive funding for culturally specific cohort training. There were seventeen organizations that applied. Through something called CPC (Culturally Powered Communities), United Way will be partnering with Damascus Way Reentry Center. One element of this partnership will include a monthly mentorship program for our Executive Director, Tierre Webster, who will be sharing more about this opportunity soon. Speaking of their relationship to Damascus Way, United Way of Olmsted County stated emphatically that, “we’ve been consistently impressed with the work they’re (Damascus Way) doing to make a difference in the lives of people in Olmsted County.”
The primary program goals of CPC are twofold. Firstly, to “Strengthen communities by supporting the organizations that serve them,” and secondly, “to reduce inequities in the nonprofit sector.”
If you are interested in reading more about the work United Way is doing in Olmsted County, visit their website!