I'm posting on behalf of Beth McCaw, President and CEO of Washington Women's Fdn, who is sharing WaWF's initial responses and ideas.  Thanks, Beth!

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First, a great resource, if you are wondering how to respond to the Coronavirus as a grantmaker https://www.philanthropy.com/article/Coronavirus-6-Steps-for-Grant/248202 

Even if you don’t have a rapid response fund, there are still some things your organization or giving circle can do to support your grantees and your nonprofit community at this difficult time.

Lessen the burden!

1. Extend deadlines for submissions of LOIs and/or proposals.

2. Consider substituting short phone call check-ins with grantees instead of impact assessment site visits.

3. Consider alternatives to grant committee site visits such as short video conferences.

Think creatively about making more resources available!

1. Purchase an online video conference license so your organization can host meetings with grantees and member meetings. Offer to share the license with grantees that don’t have funds to purchase their own technology solutions.

2. For grantees receiving grants in multi-year installments, consider asking them if they need for you to accelerate payments.

3. For grantees receiving grants for restricted purposes, such as specific projects, consider releasing the restrictions so funds can be used for general operating support.

And don’t forget to advocate! Any government relief or recovery programs must include the nonprofit sector. It’s a critical contributor to the economy.

Deborah, thanks for getting this topic going.  Everyone, hope you and all of your loved ones are physically distancing in relative comfort, though certain some of them are on the front lines of this.

Would it interest folks to climb on a Leadership call next week? If so, ping me at 

pliang@catalistwomen.org 

No formal program, just Q and A about how we are all working through this

Here's  a survey a Florida Community Foundation is sending out to it's grantees as a sort of check-in and quick assessment of greatest needs. https://form.jotform.com/200724347415046

Also, remember to "Subscribe" to topics to get emails when someone else posts!

Be well!

Paula

I just finished a call w/ several other Impact 100 leaders with great challenges and ideas as they quickly approach their annual meeting.  ONe thing that sticks with me is to think about what your org’s response is:  Immediate, Intermediate, or recovery?  

There’s probably a place for each of our org’s in those areas.  Where is your org uniquely positioned to help? (Thank you Clare B, Impact 100 Cincinnati)

One group may move their pooled funds into a community funders COVID-19 rapid response consortium, one may do one large grant and several other smaller grants to more applicants.  

Many options - get your members input tho, as this is critical to building trust

Here's another great resource, a article in Giving Compass about how giving circles can respond: https://givingcompass.org/collective-giving/covid-19-resources-for-giving-circles/?utm_source=newsletter144&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly_email

And if you don't follow Giving Compass, which aggregates articles about philanthropy and also provides exclusive content, now would be a good time to check it out.  

Hi all - Thanks to Philanos and today's presenters for the excellent webinar on affiliates' responses to the coronavirus crisis in their communities. Thanks also for the many helpful discussion threads. I'm finally getting around to posting about what Impact100 Philadelphia has done.

We announced changes on March 25 in separate letters to members, applicants, and grantees. We summarized and posted the changes publicly on our website here, Impact100's Grants Process Changes for COVID-19.

One of the links in that summary document takes you to comments we heard from a nonprofit leader in mid-March. Hearing a report from someone working at the heart of the crisis was very powerful, and we felt that it helped us make better decisions. You can get straight to those comments here, A Nonprofit Leader's Comments about the COVID-19 Crisis.

Last, I want to say how helpful it has been to stay in touch with many of you via Philanos programs or other means. The mutual support and sharing of ideas has been wonderful. Thank you and stay safe.