A Special Report
To Key Donors & Volunteers
How Prevent Blindness Mid-Atlantic is Weathering
the Storm
Tim Gresham
President and CEO
April 16, 2009
Some are
calling it a “collapse,” “the worst economy we have seen since the
great depression,” and still others, “a significant
correction.” What ever you want to call it, most of us are
experiencing some affect from the economic downturn
and as you might reasonably expect, Prevent
Blindness Mid-Atlantic is as well. As a key supporter of our
organization I felt that it was important to share with you the affects
we’ve felt, the corrections we’ve made to limit the impact of these
affects both on our organization as well as our public, and provide you
with our vision for the coming year.
In my efforts to provide you with this report it occurred to me, there
are just four things that come together to create a strong, viable,
stable nonprofit organization, particularly in difficult economic
times:
- A worthy
mission that has a history of successfully meeting the needs of a
community.
- Volunteer
leadership that is knowledgeable, committed and engaged in the business
of the organization and is focused on successful outcomes.
- Mission-oriented
donors who see value in generously supporting efforts and initiatives
that are truly succeeding in changing peoples
lives.
- Experienced
staff that, through their talents and high moral standards, put the
long-term success of the organization at the forefront of all decisions
and actions.
While we are experiencing
some significant challenges, we also recognize that we are
blessed. Yes, we are blessed! We have all of the
ingredients necessary to “weather the storm.” We enjoy an extremely
talented, dedicated, experienced Board of Directors and generous donors
that believe in and support our mission. And we have a dedicated staff
of 7 with an unbelievable combined 74 years of service at Prevent
Blindness Mid-Atlantic. And yes, we have a mission that is
meeting a critical need in communities from Baltimore to Emporia – from
Bristol to Annapolis and points in between, like Richmond, Roanoke,
Washington DC, Norfolk, Prince Georges County, Fairfax County and
Danville.
Our fiscal year 2008-2009 just ended March 31. While we fell
short of our fundraising goals and our investment reserves took a
significant hit, though we are well-diversified; our programs grew
during the year. More children in our region received our certified
children’s vision screening and more adults attended our Eyewatch
programs than ever before. We cut costs this past year by
about 14% by reducing expenditures over what we had budgeted.
Our new fiscal year, which just started (April 1) will be another
challenging year. Our Executive Committee approved a budget
that is less than last year’s budget, but in line with where we
actually finished the year. We will leave two positions
unfilled and will reduce other costs wherever and whenever possible.
Primarily as the result of bequests (estate gifts from donors who
remembered Prevent Blindness in their wills) and other planned giving,
we do have a healthy reserve fund. Some reserve funds may be
used to supplement our budget if needed. As a colleague of
mine said recently, “reserve funds are also called rainy day funds –
and it’s raining!”
It does bring to mind the important role we can all play by remembering
Prevent Blindness in our wills and through our estate
planning. Without a reserve fund in place, we would probably
be forced to make more drastic cuts to our budget right now, that would
directly impact our ability to provide services to those most in need.
Given all of the financial obstacles we’ve faced this year, I am
excited to provide an update on the services that we provided this past
fiscal year (April 2008 – March 2009). I am so proud of our
staff and volunteers. We provided our certified Children’s
Vision Screening to more than 340,000 children. We also
provided vouchers to children in need for eye exams and glasses
totaling more than $200,000. We have seen unprecedented
growth in our children’s programs. In fact, since 2001, when
we moved into the Titmus Center for Sight, our Children’s programs have
grown from screening 25,000 children per year to more than
340,000. That is an amazing accomplishment. And our
EYEWATCH program for seniors has reached a record number of people
thirsting for information about sight-threatening conditions like
Macular Degeneration, Diabetic Retinopathy, Glaucoma and Cataracts.
I am even happier to report to you that with the news last week of a
major Lions Club International Foundation grant, matched by Lions of
Virginia Foundation that we will be able to complete our “installation”
of our Certified Children’s Vision Screening program into every city
and county in Virginia (and Washington DC). A few short years
ago, we only dreamed of reaching every school in Virginia with our
programs. Now it will become a reality. This is a tremendous
accomplishment for which we are very proud, yet it does come with
significant responsibilities. Maintaining the program -
providing training for new nurses, recertification, re-supplying
screening kits and replacing kits will be quite a task. In
addition to maintaining Virginia and Washington, we are committed to
our expansion of these programs into Maryland and must be diligent in
securing funding sources in Maryland.
With your continued support and friendship, we will weather this
financial storm. Our mission is noble – we know that 80% of
what a child learns in a classroom is through his eyes and we know that
losing vision as a senior reduces independence and quality of
life. In order that children may have all the benefits of
good vision as they enter school and that adults can continue to pursue
life with independence and the ability to drive and read, we must be
successful. The quality of life enjoyed by our neighbors,
their children and grandchildren depends upon our success.
I have found great comfort and encouragement from our volunteers and
donors. We are so grateful to you for your support and your
encouragement. If you ever have comments, questions or
suggestions, we want to hear from you. Please write me
directly, email me at
Tim@TheEyeSite.org or call me at 804-423-2020,
extension 1. Thank you so much for helping provide “Vision
for Life.”
Tim Gresham
President and CEO
Prevent Blindness Mid-Atlantic
» What You Might Not Know...
About Prevent Blindness Mid-Atlantic
Prevent Blindness Mid-Atlantic
is the only local volunteer-based nonprofit organization whose sole
mission is to preserve sight and prevent blindness. The primary means
of accomplishing our mission since 1957 is through vision screenings
for both children and adults, providing support groups for seniors, and
supplying public and professional education and information. For more
information, or to contribute to the sight-saving fund, call toll-free,
(888) 790-2020, ext. "0." We also gratefully accept online
donations here at this web site!
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