Posted by Miguel Huerta on February 27, 2018, 7:47 am
I was drafting a response to the previous thread posted by Gail. I decided to start a new thread because that one got more negative and then devolved into name calling. It's unfortunate how nasty things can get on here. Dogs on the beach is one things but this is a youth program.
Gail, while your requests are entirely valid as a past donor and on-going supporter, I have serious doubts about the appropriateness of these conversations taking place on the message board. However, Davison asked that I respond. I hope to move forward after this post. I will post such things in the future on the Tierralegre facebook page. I also hope supporters and donors will approach us directly.
In the future, please always feel welcome to email the project at tierralegrehuerto@gmail.com or email Davison at davison.collins@gmail.com and I am always open to emails at huerta0m@gmail.com
Please note that "El Huerto Escolar" is a project of Tierralegre with the mission of teaching concepts of ecology and organic growing practices to the youth of La Manzanilla for a sustainable future of this incredible community and ecosystem that we are all lucky enough to visit and experience.
It seems that misinformed, malicious, or merely false claims continue to circulate. If you did not thoroughly read our earlier thread, I encourage you to do so: http://members5.boardhost.com/lamanzanilla/msg/1518901704.html
Peter gave Davison an ultimatum that the entire team believed was contrary to the best interests of the project. I am no stranger to small town gossip and politics. I will show my values and intentions through the work. I will conduct myself in a way that exhibits the mission and values of Tierralegre. We're here for the kids. I'm here for the kids.
I want to take a moment to thank everyone who has stopped me in the street, sent me an email, or taken the time to sit down with me and offer warmth, encouragement, and enthusiasm for the ideas that I'm helping Antonio and Davison carry forward. The recent outpouring of support and encouragement from locals, year-round expats, tapatios, teachers, snow birds and everyone in between has been touching. It far out weighs any negative message board posts or passive aggressive slights. It emboldens me and helps me know to push forward. I truly appreciate all of the positivity and warmth I've received here and most especially in the last few weeks which have been very difficult personally and as a teammate of this organization.
Below please find estimated recurring costs, money spent on recent projects, eco fest financials, projected income and projected costs through the end of September 2018.
Please note that as I have only recently been put into the coordinator position, I have a lot to organize to sort through and organize. Due to lack of organizational capacity and established processes and tools, the financials and records of this organization are going to take some time to reconcile.
Please note that I do not yet have the main ledger of the organization that Lynda has been using as volunteer bookkeeper. We greatly appreciate the time Lynda has spent in this role and know it is a role she has been hoping to pass on. I have no historical data on the organization before Feb 1.
Also, please note that the Tierralegre Huerto financials are split up into grant funds which are in a bank account held by Davison and local funds which have been cared for by Lynda and Peter. Antonio and I are working to establish an official local bank account but this has been an on-going dilemma for the last 2 years as no one locally wants to fulfill the bookkeeping duties and have the responsibility of a bank account. As a team, we are currently assessing our options and believe we have a solution to be discussed.
On-Season Monthly Expenses
170 drinking water per month
400 grocery subsidy per month
3,000 grant funded salary for Garden Manager
2,000 Full time Garden Manager supplement
(unknown electricity monthly-on/off season)
$16,952 Composting project
(To be completed in next 2 weeks with no additional costs)
$6,169 Platform construction (To be completed by mid March)
$8,753 Platano and Piņa field (To be completed by end of March)
$665 Youth Council Ceviche
Eco Fest Financials
$31,965 Gross Revenue
-$5,385 Supplies
-$20,000 Muy Rico (100 people at $200/pp)
$6,580 Net Revenue
Funds raised allocated to:
$4,600 Youth Employment pilot to identify youth leaders
$1,980 towards Platano purchase
$4,795.50 Current balance
Projected income
5,000 to 10,000 from BasuraSHION 9/3 event at Magnolia's
3,500 weekly sales of 700/week through March 30
15,000 Miguel's goal for individual donors in his network to support
10,000 Goal for Individual donor contributions for summer program
(ICF funding not included)
$43,295 Total projected income through September 2018
Projected costs
3,000 Hose to complete platano and piņa field
4,000 End of year party with secundaria students (annual commitment)
5,000 Seeds and planting costs for 2018-2019 season
20,000 Full time salary supplement for Garden Manager
10,000 Youth employment stipends to support Garden Manager as needed May through September
$42,000 Projected costs through September 2018
Antonio and the team are very confident that the first harvest of platanos and piņas and their on-going value as a crop will put the program on a path towards self-sufficiency. We merely need to foster the organization through this summer. However, to position the program for maximum impact, we are also working towards diversifying our revenue stream and focusing in on what works and getting better at it.
Throughout 2018, Community Coordinator will be working with Executive Director to form a "Friends of El Huerto" individual donors group to deepen relationships and engagement of current and past individual donors. We have also discussed a potential crowdfunding campaign for a specific project to be decided by the team.
This is the last year the project is eligible for funding from the ICF. Through summer of 2018, I will work with Davison to find foundations and available grants to apply to for 2018-2019 funding. I have grant writing experience from 2 other projects.
Events in 2018-2019 season will be another focus with the goal of hosting at least 3 fundraising events October to March. And I learned a LOT from Eco Fest to improve upon. Thanks to all the encouragement and feedback on this.
We will also be exploring the potential for specific marketable products that can be youth produced such as Antonio's secret organic insect repellent, Moringa and mixed herb seasoning... just to name a few.
Seguimos!405
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