Project Five-Star is in its initial stages of conception. Right now it is just a series of ideas I came up with while homeless myself. They are suggestions, really, of how a homeless shelter should be run and what it should do to a) help the homeless get off the streets, and b) help the homeless stay off the streets.
I’ve been working on these ideas for years, really, since my first bout with homelessness in 2005. Yet I’ve found that by myself I can’t accomplish much except give the appearance of complaining about so called free services.
So for Project Five-Star to really get off the ground I will need help. Here’s a list of things I need:
1. Legal counsel on how to set up a non-profit organization in North Carolina. I’ve done some research on the topic and all the research tells me that I really need a lawyer. This lawyer should be prepared to work pro bono, or at least get paid on a delayed basis, as I have no money to spare for a lawyer. This lawyer should help in getting all paperwork created and filed properly, including filing for tax-exempt status and any other status the project will need.
2. Once the Non-profit Corporation is set up, or even before, I’ll need a Board of Directors. All members of the board should be volunteers. I’ll start by volunteering myself. If I’m going to work as hard as I already have, and will should the project go forward, I want a say in how it’s run. I’d like to be the general manager of the complex, but I’ll step aside if the board wants to hire someone else. We’ll need other officers as well, all of whom should be prepared to volunteer their time until we get adequate funding to pay minimal salaries.
3. Office Space. I had thought that we could start with one small office, with me holding computer classes within it, but we may need more than one office. We should be prepared to pay for a year’s lease at the very least.
4. Since the members of the project will technically be working for the project, we’ll need an HR director to make sure we’re compliant with state and Federal regulations. This should probably be a paid position, but I’d still like to hire from the homeless or at least poorer population. This person should be prepared to train project members in the duties of an HR Director.
5. An accountant and/or a CFO who can keep track of the money. Anyone who has tried to run a corporation knows that we need to know where the money goes, and so does the state and Federal governments.
6. Someone skilled in fund-raising. I am perhaps a bit too blunt to be the only one asking for money. The project needs someone who knows who to call for donations of cash and equipment. This should probably be a paid position, and again, I’d like to hire from within the homeless community.
7. Once we have adequate funding, offices, personnel and equipment, I will start giving classes on computer training. We’ll need computers to do that. I plan to train 10 people at a time for 4 hours a day, two separate classes. That means 10 computers for them, one for me. We either need funding to purchase them or have them donated.
8. Once we have a track record of helping homeless get computer jobs, fund-raising should be easier, and the next phase of the project can begin. We’ll need land. We’ll need an architect, preferably one who will donate time, but if not, funding for it. I don’t know how much land we’ll need, but the more, the better. I have ideas of expansion, but I’ve covered that in another blog.
9. We’ll need building supplies, equipment, and someone willing to train and certify our members in the use of the equipment and supplies. I anticipate having at least one expert on staff to train in each of the categories we want to train.
10. We’ll need case-workers (or one experienced case-worker who can train members on the job) who will work with members on getting their needs met. This may include finding permanent jobs, and permanent housing. This should include meeting with the member in their charge to record success and failures. There should also be a record of money saved.
11. We’ll need a banking professional who can help us set up a credit union and train members on how to work in the banking industry.
12. We will need a web presence. I plan to set up an initial web site with basic information, but we need to train our members to build and maintain the web site, under supervision. We will need a domain name, and either a web site provider or a server of our own with the appropriate IP address. I would prefer the latter, as this gives our members some experience doing this on their own.
There will be other needs that come up as we start the process and build toward the inevitable outcome, but these are perhaps the most important to get us started. As I have stated before, this is an ambitious project and only by working together can we make it succeed.
I’ve been working on these ideas for years, really, since my first bout with homelessness in 2005. Yet I’ve found that by myself I can’t accomplish much except give the appearance of complaining about so called free services.
So for Project Five-Star to really get off the ground I will need help. Here’s a list of things I need:
1. Legal counsel on how to set up a non-profit organization in North Carolina. I’ve done some research on the topic and all the research tells me that I really need a lawyer. This lawyer should be prepared to work pro bono, or at least get paid on a delayed basis, as I have no money to spare for a lawyer. This lawyer should help in getting all paperwork created and filed properly, including filing for tax-exempt status and any other status the project will need.
2. Once the Non-profit Corporation is set up, or even before, I’ll need a Board of Directors. All members of the board should be volunteers. I’ll start by volunteering myself. If I’m going to work as hard as I already have, and will should the project go forward, I want a say in how it’s run. I’d like to be the general manager of the complex, but I’ll step aside if the board wants to hire someone else. We’ll need other officers as well, all of whom should be prepared to volunteer their time until we get adequate funding to pay minimal salaries.
3. Office Space. I had thought that we could start with one small office, with me holding computer classes within it, but we may need more than one office. We should be prepared to pay for a year’s lease at the very least.
4. Since the members of the project will technically be working for the project, we’ll need an HR director to make sure we’re compliant with state and Federal regulations. This should probably be a paid position, but I’d still like to hire from the homeless or at least poorer population. This person should be prepared to train project members in the duties of an HR Director.
5. An accountant and/or a CFO who can keep track of the money. Anyone who has tried to run a corporation knows that we need to know where the money goes, and so does the state and Federal governments.
6. Someone skilled in fund-raising. I am perhaps a bit too blunt to be the only one asking for money. The project needs someone who knows who to call for donations of cash and equipment. This should probably be a paid position, and again, I’d like to hire from within the homeless community.
7. Once we have adequate funding, offices, personnel and equipment, I will start giving classes on computer training. We’ll need computers to do that. I plan to train 10 people at a time for 4 hours a day, two separate classes. That means 10 computers for them, one for me. We either need funding to purchase them or have them donated.
8. Once we have a track record of helping homeless get computer jobs, fund-raising should be easier, and the next phase of the project can begin. We’ll need land. We’ll need an architect, preferably one who will donate time, but if not, funding for it. I don’t know how much land we’ll need, but the more, the better. I have ideas of expansion, but I’ve covered that in another blog.
9. We’ll need building supplies, equipment, and someone willing to train and certify our members in the use of the equipment and supplies. I anticipate having at least one expert on staff to train in each of the categories we want to train.
10. We’ll need case-workers (or one experienced case-worker who can train members on the job) who will work with members on getting their needs met. This may include finding permanent jobs, and permanent housing. This should include meeting with the member in their charge to record success and failures. There should also be a record of money saved.
11. We’ll need a banking professional who can help us set up a credit union and train members on how to work in the banking industry.
12. We will need a web presence. I plan to set up an initial web site with basic information, but we need to train our members to build and maintain the web site, under supervision. We will need a domain name, and either a web site provider or a server of our own with the appropriate IP address. I would prefer the latter, as this gives our members some experience doing this on their own.
There will be other needs that come up as we start the process and build toward the inevitable outcome, but these are perhaps the most important to get us started. As I have stated before, this is an ambitious project and only by working together can we make it succeed.
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