TOTAL Ministries mission - assisting people in emerging from hurting, emergency situations by providing for basic needs and by creating environments which allow people to make positive life changes. The health and wellness of local people are affected when they have to deal with the stress of obtaining their basic needs of shelter, food, heat, clothing and medicine. TOTAL Ministries and Mary Black Foundation have the ability to partner together to meet these basic needs.

Our goals from this grant are:

1. a. Streamline the ability of volunteers to determine assistance based on past requests, current status of budget, and ability to achieve independence. Include use of risk factor screening to determine high need clients.
b. Improved reports management of database to determine annual, seasonal, and monthly requirements for assistance.
c. Reduce failed partial commitments by half of current numbers, achieved by better communications and improved measurement of demographics to determine ability to cope with crisis by client.
d. Finalize five-year analysis of client return rates and establish assistance policies designed to eliminate wants over needs.

2. Activities to be completed include attending the Performance Measurement for Effective Management of Nonprofit Organizations at the Harvard School of Business; consulting with Priority Metrics Group in database design and reports management; training with volunteers and board in risk factor screening for clients; and a board meeting to determine best course of action in eliminating repetitive requests and meaningful assistance to achieve success.

3. The Executive Director will have final responsibility for coordinating efforts. Board members will assist in the development of implementation and training for volunteers. Priority Metrics Group will be responsible for database management, revision, reports development, and training.

4. The timeline of events will be as follows:

Jan – March 2007, Priority Metrics Group will be working on the database development and reports management segment.

Jan – Feb 2007, Executive Director will implement changes to interview processing to develop standards of documentation in acquiring accurate data for demographics studies.

May 2007, attendance at Performance Measurement for Effective Management of Nonprofit Organizations, Harvard Business School.

June 2007, board and Priority Metrics Group will review data and accomplishments to determine continued implementation or allow time for information gathering over summer months.

Sept 2007, board and Priority Metrics Group will determine best course of action for implementation of new procedures, rejection of interview procedures not practical, best practices in providing assistance.

Nov 2007, establish new procedures for assistance, streamline reports management for further study of demographic information, implement assistance using new guidelines as determined by data, board, and volunteers. If possible, develop written guidelines to assist in establishing longevity to the practices of TOTAL Ministries for long-term sustainability.

5. Indicators will include: 90% stability of clients in the 90-day post assistance survey; reduction of year to year returns to 10% of assistance rendered; reduction of partial commitment failures from 66% to 33% for new clients and from 40% to 20% for established clients.