Our Proposal
Summary
Peaceheart Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that was founded in early 2007. It is the organization’s goal utilizing the vehicle of project “Terra words” to create a stream of consciousness amongst the people of the world in order to allow the world to educate the world. Located in University Park, Maryland the organization hopes to enhance the quality of life of all individuals by offering a public forum for people to share their thoughts, insights, and understanding of life.The primary goal of the organization is to provide a place where people can share their thoughts and find universal truths. The organization will offer this service through its project “Terra words” and a website bearing the name of the organization, www.peaceheartfoundation.org, youarewisdom.com and terrawords.com
The site will allow for website members and visitors to post contributions such as lyrics, insights, quotes, poems, and stories that they believe are most relevant. Each of these entries will then able to be rated by other members and visitors. The most highly rated posts would naturally be the most universally accepted posts. When entering the site the highly rated posts will be presented in presentation mode on the screen, scrolling much like the end credits to a movie. In this way we give these insights recognition and bring attention to the depth and vision of the thoughts that have been shared.
Another way these insights will be posted for the general public is through advertisement techniques. These will include billboard postings, digital billboard postings, projected in presentation mode on sides of architectural structures and eventually on large screen monitors in the center of cities. It is the organization’s belief that through this work the world will be able to educate the world, enable a universal understanding, foster tolerance, and facilitate a more universal culture.
The organization has been funded primarily through private donations. Fundraising is a continuous, ongoing effort. Any assistance from your firm would aide us in moving forward our core mission, giving birth to new projects, and in the further growth of the organization’s visibility and participation. This funding will be used for costs related to program, personnel, and administrative expenses.
Introduction
Peaceheart Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in University Park, Maryland. Founded in 2007, the organization was inspired by events in 1987. That spring, founder Richard Johnson awoke at four a.m. the night before his sculpture exhibit opening at the Priori Palace in Perugia. In the clarity of early morning, Mr. Johnson felt that he had to display the works and creativity of Perugia itself, allowing the people to express their creativity. His idea was to fill the gallery with large pieces of blank paper and tables with markers, charcoal, crayons, etc., in order to allow visitors to fill the pages with their thoughts and feelings. The idea of bringing people together to express themselves in words and pictures was the inspiration of a world forum for these thoughts which helped stimulate the eventual creation of peaceheartfoundation.org.The organization’s mission is to create streams of consciousness from the wisest of voices of mankind and reveal those universally accepted insights while creating a public forum for change. The website allows for individuals to submit and archive their thoughts, whether through insightful ideas, quotes, question and answer forums, stories, poems, lyrics, meditations, or prayers in order to share our understandings of the world.
Through its efforts the organization will shed a light on the many and diverse groups of people who will share their thoughts in ways that were not previously possible and there by begin to see the world from new points of view. This program allows for people to understand one another and the world around them at a deeper level. All thoughts that are submitted can be rated, translated or commented on, with those deemed most relevant shared on a larger scale. It is our hope to share the most agreed upon insights on public forums, such as billboards, on architectural structures, or large screen monitors in city centers.
The organization’s hope is for the people of the world to listen to as well as teach each other in order to bring about more inspiring cultural understandings.
Need Statement
Culture has many different definitions, however, it can be broken down as “the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving1.” Culture is brought about through communication of the previously stated subjects.The world is made up of a variety of diverse cultures, but in this world there are some universal truths. In a world where once we were separated by time and space, the Internet has brought about one place where the world can connect, share their thoughts, wisdoms, worries, fears, and stories. However, many of the media provided are for individuals, such as bloggers who share their everyday thoughts and visions using the Internet as a sort of journal. Blogs, a portmanteau of web log, usually share thoughts on everyday life, politics, and news<2. Blogging has gotten so popular that between May 2005 and May 2006 the blogger population grew 62 percent3. These are all public forums, and others are usually allowed the opportunity to comment, but these thoughts are not chronicled, rated, and posted on a world forum. These blogs are usually read by friends or spread via word-of-mouth spread.
Universal truths are insights and understandings that seem to cross borders, religions, and cultures; these are truths that are accepted worldwide because fundamentally humans experience the same things. As stated by Steven Robiner, “What is absolutely true is always correct, everywhere, all the time, under any condition. An entity’s ability to discern these things is irrelevant to the state of truth.4”
There is a lack of a place where the world community can come together to share their thoughts and understanding with one another as a means of then sharing them with the world; a forum where all thoughts are brought together and through commentary by many individuals the insights most universally believed come to the forefront. These universal truths and understandings can be shared in an array of media forms in order to reach even those unaware of the worldwide forum from which they come.
Objectives
The primary goal of the Peaceheart Foundation is to reach a worldwide audience, in order to enrich their minds, enlighten their thoughts, to expand their education through the interactions they will have through our website and other media. The organization plans to provide a worldwide forum on the Internet in order to bring about a way for the world to listen to as well as teach one another. It is a way for the world to become one and share universal truths. It is the organization’s belief that by thinking great thoughts we reveal the potential to live great lives. It is the hope to create a vessel that is a catalyst for new ways of listening to, and sharing, what is treasured in our hearts and minds. We need to communicate with each other, but we also need to share the beauty and greatness that exists within us all.In support of these goals the organization plans at its first and core activity to:
• Create a public forum on the Internet in which the world community can share thoughts, insights, quotes, questions and answers, poems, and stories of inspiration and revelation.
• Have Permanent Pearceheart Foundation’s “Terra words” installations in major cities throughout
the world.• Organize representation for the Peaceheart Foundation in many countries around the world, offer members mobile access through pocketsage.com (a URL already owned by the foundation).
• Hire a fulltime staff including journalists, editors, translators, and audio/video technicians.
• Establish an affiliation with libraries and schools around the world. In support of these goals the organization has set the following program specific objectives to be met in 2008:
• Have PeaceheartFoundation.org ready by July 10, 2008.
• Increase our participation base to 500 members by December 31, 2008.
• Contain at least 2,000 posts from members and other individuals by December 31, 2008.
Methodology
Through its programs, Peaceheart Foundation would like to provide and entrust a community’s elders, adults and children with a way of teaching and listening to the treasured insights of old and young alike. It is our conviction that a reserve of the world’s wisdom will reveal much needed answers to challenging questions as our children become adults. In order to accomplish the objectives stated in the previous section, the foundation will implement the following methods. It was decided to follow this course of action based on the vision of the Executive Director of the organization, Richard Johnson.The organization provides a world forum for the world to express their thoughts, visions, beliefs, understanding, and experiences of life. Its main goal is to provide a viable way to reveal the emerging global culture through the sharing of ideas and insights from people around the world, in order to help bring our thoughts together as one.
In order to achieve its mission, the organization will provide a world-wide forum for individuals to post their insights and understandings of the world. These may be submitted in a variety of forms, insights, quotes, questions, answers, stories, poems, lyrics, meditations, prayer, etc., creating a database of ideas brought to light by any willing to share their thoughts. These items will be archived, to be researched at any time as a way to find answers on any topic.
All individuals who are registered members of the site will be allowed to rate, comment on, and even translate the submissions. Rating is for purposes of sharing the information on a more worldwide basis. Those that are most frequently read and universally accepted will be advertised and made most visible. When visiting the site the most highly rated thoughts and insights will be presented in presentation mode on the opening page, much like the end credits of a movie. Our goal is to make this program accessible, interactive, user friendly, and an integral part of urban environments in the future. Another form in which these insights and thoughts will be shared on billboards, digital billboards, large screen monitors in city centers, and posted on the side of architectural structures within major cities.
The organization will also create a tier program for those who are interested in donating to the organization. Those who donate a certain amount will be acknowledged by a gift from the foundation. Currently it is the thought of the founder to gift these donors with sterling silver pieces, which he has designed to continue the spread of wisdom.
It is the organization’s belief that through this service, we and our members will bring light and clarity to this beautiful garden of life. It is our vision to one day walk toward Time Square, look up at the large screen to see a series of incredibly beautiful insights that have been shared by people all over the world, and watch as the world cultures find a way to teach one another, in order to be enlightened, understand one another, learn tolerance, and create a truly world culture.
Evaluation
At the end of each quarter the Executive Director of Peaceheart Foundation will review the current membership of the website, comparing it to enrollment records for the previous quarter. The administrator of the site will make a database that will gather electronic information. The information gathered will follow membership numbers, frequency of visits, a counter for the unique visitors to the site, the number of posts generated, and the activity of each of the boards provided on the site.Data on the forums and observations made by the forum administrators will be collected quarterly through meetings with program supervisors. Meetings between staff and the board of directors will afford the opportunity for discussion about the programs, decision making and suggestions for method modifications.
An annual survey will be administered in order to determine the level of satisfaction with the setup of the site, the ease of use of the site, and the information found on the site. Comments and input from donors and members will help guide this interactive global project as it makes its way in the future.
Once a year staff will reconvene to review the year’s progress, evaluate the success and any pitfalls, and plan for the following year of programs and events. At this time they will assess the resources, needs, and budget for the programs; evaluate the changes that need to be made on the website as perceived by the personal experiences of program administrators, feedback from participants, and input gleaned from other sources; and develop the programming and advertising schedule for the upcoming year.
The funders of Peaceheart Foundation will receive semi-annual reports during the award year, as will board members, the executive director writes or finalizes the report. Upon meeting our objectives for the first year, we will consider the new program successful. In the long term the organization defines success by a steady increase in the number of participants formally enrolled at the Peaceheart Foundation their participation level as the measured reflected above and the program’s success in the mainstream urban environment.
Sustainability
Peaceheart Foundation will continue to evoke tangible interest in funding the organization and its programs. In addition to these monies, the organization will increase the amount of unrestricted funds through direct mail requests and fundraising events, and through grants submitted to other foundations. The organization will ultimately increase and further develop donor relationships as well as other fundraising initiatives.Peaceheart Foundation is also funded through profits from sales by Peaceheart Productions, LLC products. Peaceheart Productions, LLC was created with the purpose of being a for-profit with a non-profit assistance objective. The founder has designed and realized 40 prototypes for the Peaceheart sterling silver jewelry collection, as well as the sky alchemy line of designs for beach wear, bags and hats.
The organization is also working diligently to generate in-kind donations as an additional source of revenue. In upcoming years the organization plans on seeking funds from foundations and corporate sponsors. In the past the organization has received many individual loans, and the growth rate of individual donors is also expected to rise exponentially. We plan on funding our organization in this manner for as long as it is necessary.
Income and Expense Budget
INCOME CATEGORIES |
AMOUNT |
|
Fundraising Income |
$ 20,000.00 |
|
Foundation Grants |
$ 150,000.00 |
|
Income from Program or Services - Membership |
$ 45,000.00 |
|
In-Kind Donations (donations of supplies, material goods, volunteer services) |
$20,000.00 |
| Total Income |
$ 235,000.00 |
EXPENSE CATEGORIES |
|
| Salaries: | |
|
Operations Manager |
$ 48,000.00 |
|
Web Master/Graphics |
$ 34,000.00 |
|
Secretary |
$ 28,000.00 |
|
Writer/Editor |
$ 34,000.00 |
| Total Salary Expenses |
$ 144,000.00 |
| Miscellaneous: | |
|
Consultant Fees |
$ 1,800.00 |
|
Professional Fees |
$ 1,200.00 |
|
Insurance |
$ 2,500.00 |
|
Facility Rent or Mortgage |
$ 1,500.00 |
|
Utilities |
$ 2,600.00 |
|
Telecommunications |
$ 500.00 |
|
Website hosting and maintenance |
$ 10,240.00 |
|
Printing and Publishing |
$ 600.00 |
|
Postage and Shipping |
$ 1,200.00 |
|
Office supplies |
$ 30,000.00 |
|
Marketing & PR |
$ 5,000.00 |
| Total Miscellaneous Expenses | $ 57,140.00 |
| TOTAL EXPENSES |
$ 201,140.00 |
| INCOME PROFIT / (LOSS) |
$ 33,860.00 |