A CENTER FOR 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT:
Where the wisdom of the past, present, and future of leadership comes together for the dignity and benefit of all.
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Your Donations are Tax Deductible.
January 2024
First Nature Notes: Please Forward
Dear Friends of First Nature Foundation,
This is the year we fly! We built our First Nature Ranch facility from scratch, I mean literally from the ground up, from 2018 to 2020. We were ready to offer programs just as the pandemic hit its first big peak, in July 2020. We had to wait until late 2021 to start offering in-person programs and spent the following two years gearing up our slate of offerings so we could gather photos, videos, and testimonials about the value of what we offer. And we’ve been doing it on a tiny shoe-string budget! 2024 is the year we use the program data we’ve gathered to focus heavily and strategically on revenue to support all that we are doing. A huge shout out of thanks to those of you who have offered your financial and moral support, as well as your ongoing encouragement!
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To that end, we are asking that each of your dear and cherished supporters share our newsletter with just 3 other people whom you believe would find our work interesting. Would they be willing to work with us? Or volunteer with us? Or maybe support one of our programs with a sponsorship? It’s as simple as forwarding this email with a short note about what they may want to check out. We’ll remind you again near the end of the newsletter! ;)
We’ve also had interest in a membership program! So we’ve spent the month of January developing one. A number of consistent monthly donations, even in small amounts, will mean that none of our beloved programs are in danger of being canceled due to lack of funding. Anyone can get awesome membership benefits by supporting us for as little as $12 per month! Click here to check out our NEW membership program. Look at some of our membership swag! And if you can’t afford $12 per month but still want to make a smaller monthly donation, let us know and we’ll get you set up. $5 a month still makes an impact!
It’s hard to believe we’re almost a month into 2024. We hope the start of your year has been healthy, easy, and happy. Remember our little Galoshes Fundraiser from November? The weather here has been so unseasonably rainy (and windy and chilly!!) this winter that the facility is consistently muddy. So, we’ve had pretty much every one of our Horse Sense for Teens programs supported by your help via the new pairs of rain boots we got in December with revenue from the Galoshes Fundraiser. Thank you!!
CHECK AT THE END TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOW YOU CAN HELP US!
In some personnel news, we want to congratulate Allyn Carnahan (she makes these newsletters pretty and gets them out to you, as well as having many other FNF responsibilities) who has been our Promotional Director, because she has recently been promoted to Assistant Executive Director!! She is a treasure we cherish at FNF, and we are so lucky to have her. We’re excited to announce that she’s also starting to co-facilitate some of our programming!
In our last newsletter we welcomed Kristina Bozanich as Community Outreach Director, and Bill Gusler as our development professional, and since then our little team has been strategizing how to best leverage our big Nonprofit of the Year Award win. One of the ideas came from a colleague (thank you, Alice Kitchel!!): put a banner announcing the win on our front gate. Also because of our win we are allowed to have a table at the Lake Nona Regional Chamber of Commerce during breakfast and lunch events, so we now have generated collateral for these and other events, perfect for promoting our win amongst potential sponsors, clients, and donors! We are stoked!
We started our first Horse Wisdom for Heroes cohort earlier this month with 12 men from The Transition House – what an amazing group of souls! And we are already 1/3 of the way through their program…and we still need a sponsor. Our other programs, including Horse Sense for Teens and Parents and Spouses of Suicide continue on as well, and we are still looking for sponsors for them. We also need sponsors to start our program for women who are survivors of domestic violence – we call that program Horses Healing Hearts.
How Can You Help?
Everyone has a talent or resource that is valuable. It could be time, money, contacts, or a love of horses. Every little bit helps, and your support can make a big difference in our mission. Here are some easy ways to help:
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Volunteer: Your time and skills to help with our horses, facility, or programs. Or are you interested in serving as a board member for our nonprofit? We are still looking!
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Donations: You can make a one-time donation, set up a recurring donation, or donate in-kind gifts, such as treats or equipment that can assist us with our programs and serving our clients. You can donate here!
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Advocate: Spread the word about First Nature and share our mission to equip our community with leadership skills for the 21st century.
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Sponsor a veteran or a teen: It takes $500 to sponsor just one veteran for their 6-week Horse Wisdom for Heroes program, or $300 for one session for the Horse Sense for Teens program. Consider donating and sponsoring a veteran or teen.
Simply reply to this email to get started with one of these items today!
With gratitude for you, always,
Kerul and Crew
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First Nature Ranch / First Nature Foundation
“Where the past, present, and future of leadership come together for the dignity and benefit of all.”