More than 50 people have shared their love story with Frederick with Federated Charities as part of our Love Locks project. Check out recent coverage from the Frederick News Post!
News
You Can Be a LOCK Star!
Federated Charities launches a new public art initiative today. Modeled after the Love Locks on bridges in cities like Paris and New York, this hyper local project #LoveLocksFrederick is both a fundraiser and will become part of the Downtown streetscape. Architects use the term “third space” to denote places that are neither home nor work but that contribute to overall community well being. The 2024 renovation/restoration of the courtyard belonging to the Federated Charities Nonprofit Center will coherently blend two distinct historic properties and improve accessibility and safety for the community. Love Locks Frederick is our love letter to Frederick and a way for the community to contribute to the development of a new and beautiful third space. The project launches on Wednesday October 16th and every dollar raised will be matched. The full press release is below…
To become part of the #LoveLocksFrederick project, click here for more information
You LOCK!
2023 Annual Impact Statement
Our themes in 2023 were to invest, develop and preserve the work of nonprofits in our community. To those ends, we invested in an additional layer of free space through our Incubate+ program. We helped nonprofits develop programs and activities and we continue to build out our spaces so they work for the people who work here. Moving into 2024, we have an additional 5 infrastructure projects planned, including a front garden restoration and renovation. Things are moving at Federated Charities and we’re meeting the evolving work needs of community based organizations.
Open AI and Nonprofit Practice
Wondering how nonprofits like ours are using ChatGPT and other open AI systems? First, you’re going to have to take a look at each of these pictures because all 4 of them were created with open AI using a series of prompts about black dogs (like #CharityDogFrederick) and just seeing what happened. Obviously we weren’t very good at this until the 4th time we tried and ended up with the black dog using crutches. But the point is that Federated Charities and other nonprofits are using the technology in their organizations and like the rest of us, wondering what it means for our practice. According to a Forbes article from 2021, there are several practical applications for AI in our sector, including helping us with the kinds of tasks that are repetitive and take attention away from programs. Higher efficiency in the nonprofit space leads to greater impact, and less time spent on time consuming administrative tasks means more resources for mission-based services. As a nonprofit center, we can relate to that philosophy. Many organizations are already using it to help with employee development, fundraising and marketing.
How will we use it at Federated Charities? We’re envisioning a new wall in our lobby highlighting our corporate sponsors through creative and colorful art. As spacemakers, we want our nonprofit tenants and their clients to walk through beautiful space as they make changes in their lives. We’ve also used it to write a poem about Charity (our favorite dog). You can read it here.
How will your nonprofit use AI?
In the Know
You might have walked past our building recently and noticed something new (other than the dog missing…again). Federated Charities has partnered with The Housing Authority of the City of Frederick to install one in a series of meditation murals. Envisioned by the artist Karen Pollard and brought to mural form by local artists Anthony Owens and Jack Pabis, the mural on our building is one of three planned for installation in our community.
The new public art demands and invites communication and the engagement of others.
Thank you to our sponsors…
The Delaplaine Foundation, Inc.
The Ausherman Family Foundation
Southway Charitable Trust
Jason & April Lee
The Miner & Feinstein Families
Plans Interrupted!
Someone tried to take away a piece of us. After more than 20 years without incident and less than 6 months after completing a major restoration project on our iconic statue, Charity was vandalized this week and torn from his pedestal in the early morning hours. The good news is that the police caught the vandal. The bad news is that we face another period of time with an empty front porch. We will be working with the original restoration company to evaluate the extent of the damage and bring him back home again.
