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Benj and Jessica launched a nonprofit. Follow our journey as we built a 501(c)(3) and a web site, and now usher in an endless stream of worthy charity nominees and monthly grant winners!

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October 2022 winner The Nature Conservancy

Charitocracy's 74th check to October winner The Nature Conservancy for $1000

We have good news about October winner The Nature Conservancy, right after this important update...

Put OBX back in its place!

In the final days of October, the top two Charitocracy OBX contenders were still duking it out. The lead flip-flopped back and forth a few times. Both "sides" kept recruiting new donors, right up until the last hours last night. One took home the award grant, and the other is extremely well placed going into November.

Why am I telling you veterans of Charitocracy USA all this? Well, not just because all of the fun and excitement was happening on the other side of the web site. You could do the same thing over here. But even more importantly, Charitocracy OBX just passed USA for total donors last night. 242 vs. USA's 241. Are you okay with that?!

You still make larger, more impactful donations, on average. (I'm not saying "more generous" because I believe firmly that those who give $1/month are often more generous in truth when considering the percentage of their discretionary income it may represent.) So your monthly contributions exceed $900, whereas OBX's are still below $600.

Here are a few fun statistics to chew on:

  • 68% of you tip an average of $5.75 vs. only 29% tipping $5.09 at OBX. So thanks for keeping the lights on for everyone!
  • 8% of you contribute an average of $47.25 to our new endowment vs 10% of OBX contributing $41.46. Off to a good start, but LOTS of opportunity!
  • 33% of you had a vote cast before midnight last night, compared to 61% of OBX. Who's clearly having more FUN?!

So please let this inspire you to invite more friends to join the magic here and rekindle the excitement we're enjoying over at Charitocracy OBX! And for those of you new to OBX who also threw some extra Washingtons in the USA pot, come bring some of your enthusiasm over here, too. Where it took 50+ votes to win the October pot at Charitocracy OBX, a mere 16 would have won Charitocracy USA!

October 2022 winner The Nature Conservancy

Last night we named Charitocracy's 74th monthly winner. Congratulations to The Nature Conservancy nominated by donor chesaustin. They create a world where people and nature can thrive, impacting conservation on 6 continents. You can find their website here.

Now you have a week to further sweeten the pot with a special one-time donation of any amount, which we'll add straight to the check we write to The Nature Conservancy next week. And take a moment to watch this 1-minute video about our interconnection with nature. Then feel good about your part in our collective $1000+ grant to support their ongoing work.

Have a great November, and be sure to log into Charitocracy to update your votes or nominate a new cause! And consider investing in our future by growing our endowment!

OBCF 40th birthday $4000 grant recipient: Sea Change OBX

$4000 special OBCF 40th birthday grant recipient Sea Change OBX

We had a BLAST on Saturday at Outer Banks Community Foundation's 40th birthday bash at the Brewing Station! This is just a little cross-post for our USA donors about what's happening in OBX!

Making it rain on otherwise gorgeous day with $4000 grant

I couldn't believe the endless stream of new Charitocracy sign-ups at the event. Not to mention the scores of new donors joining without our assistance during the event and in the preceding weeks. But our card swiper was working non-stop throughout the afternoon, with the last donation received and vote cast just 3 minutes before the stroke of 5pm when we froze voting. I barely had time to escape from behind my laptop and get on stage for the final countdown!

Thanks to board members Lisa Nicholson and Sam Cortez for their assistance at the event, and to the entire team at Outer Banks Community Foundation for kicking off our partnership with such fanfare. And finally, thanks to co-founder Jessica Sands for MC'ing the event and being the darling face of Charitocracy for the afternoon. Also for lining up such talented musicians (Jonny Waters & KT Bender) to keep the party going!

$4000 grant recipient: Sea Change OBX

And did I mention, Sea Change OBX earned the $4000 grant by getting the most (44.5) votes? It only seems fitting that Jessica Loose pulled this off. The same legendary Charitocracy donor to go from zero to hero in February 2020, leading to the month-after-month local "hijacking" of Charitocracy, culminating in the spin-off of Charitocracy OBX from Charitocracy USA. I don't know about the rest of you, but I saw Sea Change OBX coming for this additional $4000 grant a mile away!

Now what?!

The day after the party we resumed the normal monthly schedule for our October grant, with a Top 10 announcement. Next, your votes will narrow down the playing field to the Top 3 contenders tomorrow night. No rest for the weary! So get your votes (re)cast and let's keep the momentum going strong!

Take a page out of Jessica Loose's playbook: don't be afraid to introduce new people to Charitocracy and convince them to support your favorite nominee. Friends, family, neighbors, random strangers on the street... They could all use a little more Charitocracy in their lives, right? And we could stand to have our monthly OBX grants grow a bit more, too. Win, win! To keep things in perspective, we're only talking $1 per month. What's that these days with inflation, a sip of coffee?

Your Charitocracy donations pouring into monthly pot
"Keep pourin'."

Spotlight on nominee Street Medicine Institute

Nominee Street Medicine Institute

Next in our series of posts about new Charitocracy nominees, we have nominee Street Medicine Institute, nominated by donor cperg814. They facilitate and enhance the direct provision of health care to the unsheltered homeless where they live. You can find their web site here.

A few words on Charitocracy

Firstly, for newcomers: here's how it works. Donors pool their monthly contributions, as little as $1. The cause with the most votes each month wins the pot. No matter how much or how little you contribute, each donor at Charitocracy gets one vote. This is where charity meets democracy. So please share this post (see social sharing icons at top of post) and ask your friends to join us and vote! That's how we spread the word and, as a result, grow the monthly pot. The bigger the pot, the bigger our positive impact on the world!

About nominee Street Medicine Institute

It is the VISION of the Street Medicine Institute that communities throughout the world are transformed through the delivery of Street Medicine practices designed to meet the unique needs of persons sleeping rough.

Our MISSION: Inspiring and equipping communities worldwide to provide Street Medicine services to persons experiencing rough-sleeping homelessness.

We hope to accomplish our vision through:

  • Customized, on-site consultation and training programs designed to assist communities establish or improve their own Street Medicine programs;
  • Documentation and sharing of best practices in the delivery of Street Medicine;
  • Encouragement of a global Street Medicine community primarily through the annual International Street Medicine Symposium; and,
  • Creation of service-oriented Street Medicine learning opportunities for students in the health sciences.

Our CORE VALUES: Non-profit inspiring and equipping communities worldwide to provide street medicine services to people experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

Go to the People – Street medicine is effective only when we meet people on their own terms in their own spaces.

Solidarity – We stand with our sisters and brothers sleeping outside, advocating for others to see them for the beloved human beings they are.

Authenticity – Being genuine, transparent, and honest allows our organization to maintain trust with people sleeping rough and the street medicine teams who care for them.

Transformative Disruption – We drive change in our communities and health care systems to achieve justice and health equity for all of us, no matter where we sleep at night.

Streets as a Classroom – People sleeping rough are our best teachers. In learning from them, we learn how to provide healing for others and ourselves.

Healing Community – In caring for people society shuns, street medicine workers can feel equally marginalized. We offer a place of refuge for people involved in street medicine globally to refuel and grow with each other.

NOTE: While the Street Medicine Institute is comprised of individuals with Street Medicine expertise, we are not engaged in the direct delivery of Street Medicine health care services. Rather, we assist and support individuals and communities wishing to start or improve a Street Medicine program.

So please visit the page of nominee Street Medicine Institute to vote for, like, or discuss this cause! And please watch this inspiring video about how SMI serves as an incubator to train providers and increase capacity worldwide to serve this vulnerable and often forgotten population.