20060514 KDDC May 16, 2006 is the Carroll Non Profit Center Dedication

Tuesday, May 16, 2006 is the dedication the Carroll Non Profit Center

May 10^th, 2006 by Kevin Dayhoff ©

My column in this week’s Westminster Eagle is: “Celebrating the dedication of the county's splendid new guinea pig: Carroll's Non-Profit Center .” Please be aware that the Westminster Eagle does not use permalinks, so if you may need to find the original column in news archives: http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?show=archivelist&pnpID=978&om=1

Below please enjoy the unedited, album-cut long version of the column:

After more than four years in the making, the “Carroll Non Profit Center” in Westminster will have a grand opening dedication on Tuesday, May 16, 2006.

Many have wondered about the $4 million, 40,000-square-foot three-story brick building built by Anverse, Inc., that is located on a 3.15-acre parcel on Clifton Boulevard (near Wal-Mart and the Westminster Post Office.)

Once again, Carroll County, Maryland is on the cutting edge.

The idea seems simple enough; however, multi-tenant nonprofit centers like the Carroll Non Profit Center (Center) are a new concept. There are only one or two other such centers in the country.

As a matter of fact, Marty Sonenshine, the executive director of Anverse calls the project “our guinea pig.”

According to the “Nonprofitcenters Network,” multi-tenant centers increase visibility, lower overhead costs, enable cross-organizational collaboration and synergy and create new hubs of economic activity in the community.

Audrey Cimino, Executive Director of the Community Foundation of Carroll County, Inc. one of the grateful tenants of the Center, expressed it this way:

“The gift that Anverse, Inc. has given our community will have ramifications far into the future. They have provided a platform for growth, enrichment, cooperation and partnerships that we are only beginning to realize. The clients who receive services and benefits, the donors who support our various projects and the general public of Carroll County are the beneficiaries of a most extraordinary good deed.”

Many of the non-profits that are located in the Center receive support for their operations and work in the community from the Community Foundation of Carroll County, Inc.

If you would like to contribute to this great community based organization or learn more about the Center, please call (410) 876-5505 or visit their Web-site at: http://www.carrollcommunityfoundation.org/.

Anverse Inc., a Cartersville Georgia-based foundation was formed in 2000 and purchased the property in 2002 for $690,000. According to published accounts, the foundation reported $871,317 in expenses on its 2002 tax return “for the purchase of land and initial planning for a ‘non-profit center in Westminster.’’’

However, much of this story begins when in around 1984, Prestige Communications began a new era in the quality of life for a coach potato and cable television service in Carroll County was born.

After sixteen years of operation, the company “and its 118,250 subscriber accounts in North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland were sold to Adelphia for about $700 million.” (This, according to a 2003 Baltimore Sun article written by Mary Gail Hare and Jennifer McMenamin.)

Wanting to give back to the community from which it had so profited, Anverse, “the country's eighth-largest grant-making operating foundation in 2001;” was formed from “4,000 shares of stock in Prestige Communications, valued at $191.1 million, according to Anverse's 2001 tax return.” (Baltimore Sun 2003.)

Once the decision to build the Center was made, Anverse hired Mark Krider, who had worked for Anverse family for a number of years to be the mid-wife for the project.

“Mark Krider has been patient, hard working, diligent and effective in making this innovative community investment happen,” complimented Ms. Cimino. “Our community owes Mark a debt of gratitude.”

The Carroll Non Profit Center broke ground in November 2004 and opened its doors to approximately 20 tenants in January 2006.

Some of the tenants include: Carroll Technology Council; Catastrophic Health Planners; Child Care Choices; Community Foundation of Carroll County; Habitat For Humanity; Head Start of Carroll County; Carroll County Branch # 7014 of the NAACP; United Way Community Partnership of Carroll County; and the Joanna M. Nicolay Melanoma Foundation.

The non-profit organizations in Carroll County are the conscious of our community and play a vital functional and leadership role in the social fabric of our society.

Like many areas of the country, non-profits in Carroll County have an increased presence in our community for various reasons including decreased public support for services.

According to an article in the Daily Record, last fall by Kara Kridler: “Maryland nonprofits added more than twice as many jobs as their for-profit counterparts in 2003, part of a five-year run during which the nonprofit sector has largely kept the state's job market afloat, according to a new study.”

“A Johns Hopkins University report found employment growth among nonprofits was nearly 2 percent in 2003, the latest year for which data is available. Meanwhile, the larger for-profit sector, which employs nearly 1.8 million people, grew just 0.1 percent,” wrote Kara Kridler.

Carroll County has always been a generous community and in the past. Much of the generosity was the result of individual community stepping up to the plate to extend a helping hand.

Examples of individual generosity in difficult times are numerous and the stuff of legend in Carroll County.

In the very early 1950s, when the Ward Avenue apartments in Westminster, burned to the ground, local business leader and Westminster city councilman, Scott Bair Sr., let it be known to the displaced tenants that they could go to Mather’s on Main Street and buy clothes - and he paid the bill.

In days gone by, many of the community leaders that were members of the service clubs or the fire company, for example. They were also the captains of local industry and elected officials.

Increasingly, many elected officials, not all to be sure, are disconnected with the rest of the community as they squabble over issues of “inside baseball” and bitter partisan politics which has little relevance to the day-to-day quality of life of Carroll Countians.

“Who said what to whom and when,” “white hats” and “black hats, accusations of “secret meetings” and who has the latest version of some bizarre conspiracy theory fills the pages of the local papers as local families struggle to raise their children, put food on the table, pay their utility bills and provide meaning to their lives.

Ay caramba.

Meanwhile a new leadership class is evolving in Carroll County. It is the folks like the executive director of the Community Foundation of Carroll County, Audrey Cimino; Jeff Sprinkle, director of the Carroll County YMCA; Carroll County Children’s Chorus director, Diane Jones; president of the local NAACP Branch President Charles Harrison, Virginia Harrison, with Carroll Citizens for Racial Equality, the local scout leader, and PTA/PTO president...

But getting back to more of the positive and Carroll’s experiment with a multi-tenant nonprofit center; often real estate is not a core competency for non-profits. Most do not own their own space, which leaves them vulnerable to the vagaries of the real estate market. This eats away at financial resources and impedes the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization.

According to Nonprofitcenters Network, “more than 80% of nonprofits do not own their own space. These organizations typically must allocate 20% (second only to personnel) of their expense budget to rent, thereby exposing over 1/5 of their cash assets to the profit driven fluctuations of the real estate market.”

Carroll County United Way director Pam Zappardino agreed, “In terms of importance, not only does it give the non-profits low cost space for their offices but this allows the organizations plow more money back into the community where it is needed.”

“And the center also gives the non-profits a chance to work together, network and be more effective in delivering even better services to the community. “For the United Way the center provides a much more visible place for us to do our work,” elaborated Dr. Zappardino.

Dr. Zappardino said that she “expected to enjoy the better space but has found it fun to be there.” Instead of being in an isolated office all to herself, she “enjoys talking with the other folks in the hall.” Recently she stayed late into the evening to help another organization. “The people here are just great.”

Charles Harrison, president of the CC Branch of the NAACP #7014 called the Center:

“Terrific. This unifies our efforts. Because we are all volunteers, for many years the local branch operated out of homes and we had meetings where we could. Now we have one place to maintain our files, records and documents. This provides stability and community focused point of contact.

“Everyone in the community knows where we are. This provides credibility as a viable part of the CC community this is evidence by increased memberships community based inquires.

“Being in the Center allows us to network to be around other nonprofits and community leaders who have the same concerns. The NAACP’s issues are the community’s issues. Diversity continues to be a hidden asset in our community and the NAACP is taking a leadership role in exploiting this asset to move the community forward.”

Not only does the Center provide stability, it also facilitates all the advantages of one-stop shopping for targeted populations, increases visibility and allows individual organizations the strength of numbers to work together and accomplish more than they could by themselves.

The Center serves as one big incubator of ideas, efforts and cooperation in order to help other nonprofits throughout the county and ultimately serve the community better.

A written statement provided by Ms. Cimino highlights that “Anverse’s commitment to the nonprofits of Carroll County is not limited to the occupants of the Center.”

“Anverse maintains both the building and the property on which it sits and has provided a Project Manager and Maintenance Engineer who are available daily to the tenants.

“Seminars on various non profit topics are being planned and will be offered to tenants and other Carroll County non-profits as well, to build and improve skills,” wrote Ms. Cimino.

Everyone interviewed for this column raved about the two thousand square foot meeting room and the grant research library for organizations that typically have little access to professional advisers, accountants and lawyers.

The resource library and meeting room are available to all Carroll County non-profit organizations and are already being widely used.

A recent Harvard Business School article discussed “the factors that contribute to successful high-performance social enterprises.” It established “a connection between enterprises that link economic value with social value.”

To take a picture of this success, one need look no farther that the Carroll Non Profit Center at next Tuesday’s dedication - the guinea pig that could.

Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster Maryland USA.

E-mail him at: kdayhoff@carr.org

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20051206 More on Jan Historical Civil Rights Tour

20051206 More on Jan Historical Civil Rights Tour
By Kevin Dayhoff, December 6, 2005 11 PM

This coming January, local Carroll Countians, Dr. Pam Zappardino and Dr.
Charles Collyer are headed south. Are they "snow-birds" looking for an
escape from the cold and the snow? No - but we certainly couldn't blame them
if they were. This writer finds that the older I get, the more I find myself
increasingly intolerant of the cold.

Actually, their annual pilgrimage to the south has a greater, more important
meaning than their personal comfort.

For the sixth January in a row, Drs. Pam and Charlie, as they are
affectionately known, are leading folks on an Historical Civil Rights Tour
called: "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around!: Retracing the American
Civil Rights Movement."

The Ira and Mary Zepp Center for Nonviolence and Peace Education, a program
of Common Ground on the Hill, a nonprofit organization that brings different
people together through traditional arts and music at McDaniel College,
helps sponsor the tour.

The Zepp Center is named for two longtime Westminster teachers. Ira and
Mary Zepp have had a long association with McDaniel College and with the
promotion of justice by peaceful means The Zepp Center is directed and
staffed by Drs. Pam and Charlie.

Ira and Mary Zepp have also supported and advised Common Ground since its
founding over a decade ago. Walt Michael, the director of Common Ground and
a person who really "gets" nonviolence both personally and artistically, has
been a partner in creating the Zepp Center and introducing it to the
community.

This year's Christmas season; when we take time to celebrate family,
community and our religious foundations; there has been much attention to
the increased intolerance and sharp divides in which we currently find our
nation.

Good grief, this year the recent debate over whether or not we can say
"Merry Christmas," has reached a new level of unpleasantness. Memo to the
politically correct lexicon warriors - give us a break and take your petty
squabble somewhere else, why don't ya?

The purpose of celebrating the Christmas season is to take time out to share
and give thanks to that which makes our community and our country great.

Syndicated columnist Larry Elder recently wrote "rudeness plagues America."
He called to our attention a recent Associated Press-Ipsos poll that
revealed nearly 70 percent of Americans consider people "more rude" that 20
or 30 years ago. Americans are engaged in a "great sorting-out," causing
folks to stake out "well-defined, even intolerant, ideological camps."

Yes, I plead guilty to being an eternal "pollyanna," but I insist that all
problems in our great country and community could be solved by an outbreak
of something truly bold - be nice about it.

If you will recall, "Pollyanna" was a children's novel written in 1913 by
Eleanor H. Porter. As a result of this classic work, the term "pollyanna"
has become part of language to describe someone who is always cheerfully
optimistic. Wikipedia says that "pollyanna" has become a derogatory term for
a naïve person who always expects people to act decently, despite strong
evidence to the contrary.

I think that all behavior modification in our great nation starts at the
grass roots level. It starts with how we treat each other right here in our
own homes, in our own community. In a meeting a number of years ago, one of
my harshest critics, assessed my take on a particular challenge as a
"pollyanna" approach. He meant the criticism in the most mean-spirited
manner. It made me proud.

This is a great example of where folks like Drs. Pam and Charlie come into
play; helping us find meaningful solutions to the challenges we face through
the practice of nonviolence. Aided by taking classes with Dr. Ira Zepp and
Drs. Pam and Charlie, I was able to ignore him. Drs. Pam and Charlie stress
that practicing nonviolence often involves finding the hidden humor,
opportunities, and "silver linings" in the problems we face.

Their mentor (and mine) is Dr. Bernard LaFayette. He has visited
Westminster several times, and is remembered at McDaniel for his remark
that, as an approach to solving problems, violence is "cute, but not tough
enough," because it usually creates even more problems. I had the pleasure
of attending a class with Dr. Bernard LaFayette, a few years ago. Dr.
Bernard LaFayette worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther King and along with
the likes of Dr. Ira G. Zepp, is a beloved figure among this generation of
nonviolence educators.

Most of the violence and hostility in the world does not occur in isolated
patches; it happens in cycles and chains of back and forth retaliation.
Whether from impulse or conscious choice, people use violence as a way to
respond to violence, and so it is not surprising that violence goes on and
on. Breaking these chains could prevent a lot of violence and human
suffering. But it is often not obvious how to bring in a creative
alternative to violence, and this is where nonviolence education can add
value. Learning to replace violence with truly successful ways of solving
our problems will help us to build a better world.

Which brings us back to the January History Civil Rights Tours that The Zepp
Center helps to sponsor each year. The tour takes folks to locations where
nonviolence was used to achieve gains for African Americans and to open up
the political process to wider participation in some of the darkest days of
our country's fight out of the intolerance of segregation.

The purpose of studying history is not to take us back to these dark days
but to bring the past to the present and capitalize on the positive lessons
learned - and apply them to our day-to-day problem solving.

The Ira and Mary Zepp Center for Nonviolence and Peace Education continues
the American tradition of nonviolent problem solving associated with Martin
Luther King, Jr. It provides workshops and resources to the community on
the skills, philosophy, and history of nonviolence, from the personal level
up to movements such as those of Gandhi and King. Opportunities such as the
January Civil rights tour teach us how the traditions of nonviolence have
developed over time and how they are relevant for folks today.

For more information about the January Civil rights tour or the
opportunities provided our community by the Zepp center, contact the Zepp
Center through the Common Ground office, 410-857-2771 or e-mail e-mail
Pamela Zappardino at paxwarthog@aol.com. Tell her Pollyanna Dayhoff sent
ya. And oh - Merry Christmas.

Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster. E-mail him at: kdayhoff@carr.org
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