2020-787-E Social Svc-Interfaith Council outside agency agreement

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DocuSign Envelope ID:74211493-D876-4700-813D-OA9F75861508 fc fIG!YG�FI TN Ckb`+eClt 6GR SOSfkf.iFgYi£^ January 14, 2020 Dear Outside Agencies Partners, As IFC respectfully submits our 2020-21 funding application, we felt it was important to share with you the context of our increased request. Later this year, IFC will move non-residential services and agency offices to our new building in Carrboro. The new site will provide a dignified space for IFC members to gather, eat together, shop for groceries for their families, and engage with volunteers and other community representatives in meaningful ways. When construction of the new building is complete, it will be the first time in 57 years that all of IFC's programs are operating out of spaces that are purpose-built for the services offered. It will also be the first time in a decade that IFC is not dedicating resources to plan or execute a capital project. As a result, staff and board leadership have proactively turned our focus to projecting the financial resources needed to sustain these vital community programs in permanent, IFC-owned buildings with appropriate staffing levels. As you might expect, IFC's annual operating costs have increased over the last five years due to several factors, including the addition of the new Community House building in 2015, increased requirements from funders (eg. more complex documentation, cyber liability insurance, compliance with best practices), and other expenses necessary to keep up with information technology advances, staffing and facility needs. Unexpected one-time gifts and bequests have covered additional expenses to date. Costs will immediately jump again when we move the Community Kitchen and Food Pantry out of the Old Town Hall, since the Town of Chapel Hill has enabled IFC to serve more low-income residents and workers with available resources by providing utilities and building maintenance at no charge for the past 30 years. Leaving Old Town Hall will be a divestment of$48,000 per year of in-kind, public support, a cost that IFC will now incur. To sustain current operations in fiscal year 2020-21 and beyond, IFC will require additional commitments of dependable, annual support from government and private funders. IFC's annual budget totals almost$2.4 million, of which 8 percent comes from local government. We work to raise more than 75 percent of funds from private donors, and IFC also leverages significant in-kind support to meet people's basic needs.Your neighbors volunteer almost 30,000 hours of staffing each year, and nearly all of the food distributed at the Food Pantry and served at the Community Kitchen is donated. While IFC has increased non-governmental funding, private funding cannot cover the increasing cost of operating 24-hour shelter services in two locations for 90+ people on a given day; serving nutritious, balanced meals every day of the year; and providing groceries and emergency financial assistance every weekday. Ultimately, this request asks you to consider increasing the allocation of public resources to build an equitable community by making sure people can meet their most basic needs for food and shelter. Orange County has one of the highest income disparities in the state.When adequately funded, IFC makes Orange County more affordable for low-income residents and workers,who make this a diverse and desirable place to live.We appreciate the task ahead of you. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration and dependable partnership confronting the causes and responding to the effects of poverty in our community. Sincerely, Jackie Jenks Executive Director 110 W.Main Street•Carrboro,NC 27510•Phone 919-929-&380•fax 9,1 g-929-3353•www.ifcweb.org