Lift Mentoring

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Executive Summary

Lift Mentoring is a nonprofit in Nevada that matches children and teens with caring adult mentors for a year or longer. Each mentor is screened, trained and supported by staff. Pairs meet at least four hours a month to do ordinary things together, such as cooking, walking, doing homework or visiting a library, and they join group events throughout the year.

Young people do better when they have steady, caring adults in their lives. Many children in our area have a parent who works long hours, a family that has recently moved or a hard year at school. A mentor is one more person who believes in them and shows up. But matches fall apart when mentors are not screened or supported, so our work focuses on safety and on staying in touch.

With this grant we will recruit, screen and train about 60 mentors in Year 1 and match them with about 60 young people ages 8 to 16. Mentors complete an application, an interview, reference checks and a national criminal record check, and a short training. Mentors never take a young person overnight, never meet alone with a child in the first three months outside of approved places and do not give counseling. We do not promise any particular result for a young person.

Our Year 1 budget is about $174,500, growing to about $266,000 by Year 5. Each year's budget is planned to balance, with a small surplus each year. We have 3 paid staff in Year 1 and 4 by Year 2, supported by volunteers.

We are asking the Silver Ridge Youth Fund for $58,000 for our Program Manager and for mentor screening and training. Schools, juvenile services, businesses and donors also give, so this grant is one part of a shared funding plan.

I am Keisha Brandt, the Executive Director. The numbers in this proposal are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end, not promises.

Company Description

Lift Mentoring is a small, independent nonprofit in Nevada, organized as a 501(c)(3) public charity. We serve young people ages 8 to 16 in our city and the towns around it, who are referred by schools, families and agencies.

Our mission. To connect every young person who wants a mentor with a caring, trained adult who stays.

What we believe. A mentor is a friend, not a fixer. Young people need adults who listen, show up and respect them. Mentors should be carefully chosen and well supported, and young people and their families should feel safe and respected. We do not label young people. We ask what they want to do and build from there.

What we offer:
- One-to-one mentoring. A matched pair meets weekly or at least four hours a month for a year or more.
- Mentor training and support. Training before the match, monthly check-ins and yearly refreshers.
- Group events. Monthly activities, such as a hike, a service day or a games night, so pairs can meet others and try new things.
- Family connection. A family orientation and regular contact with parents or guardians.

Who we serve. Children and teens ages 8 to 16, with priority for those who are on a waiting list, who have moved often or who have an adult in their life who is absent or stretched thin.

What we do not do. We do not provide counseling or therapy, take young people overnight, allow private social media messaging between mentors and young people or allow a mentor to give money or gifts. We do not promise a result in grades or behavior.

How we are run. A volunteer board of seven governs the organization. I am the Executive Director. The Program Manager screens, trains and matches mentors. A Match Support Specialist joins in Year 2, and a part-time mentor recruiter finds mentors.

Where things stand today. We have letters of support from two schools, a youth services office and a community college, a list of about 50 adults interested in being mentors, a donated training room at a church, a quote for the screening service and a mentor agreement and safety policy under review by an attorney. (Replace this with where you really are.)

Problem & Opportunity

Many young people go through childhood without enough steady, caring adults. Parents may work long hours or several jobs, may be ill or may be absent. Families may move often. Young people may feel invisible at school. An adult who listens can make a difference.

But mentoring can go wrong. Matches can end early when a mentor is not prepared, loses interest or moves away, and a young person can feel abandoned. Safety is also vital. Mentors must be screened and supported, and young people and families must know what to expect and how to raise a concern.

Schools and agencies often have long waiting lists of young people who could benefit from a mentor but not enough trained volunteers or staff to make matches and support them.

For a small nonprofit, the hard parts are finding enough mentors who will stay, screening and training them well, matching them thoughtfully and keeping in touch with everyone.

We want to be clear about what we know and do not know. Mentoring is most helpful when matches last and are supported, and we will use the most recent local numbers on young people on waiting lists and adults interested in mentoring in our final plan. We do not know exactly how many mentors will stay a full year, so our plan uses a first-year goal and will report what really happens. We do not promise results in school or behavior.

Products & Services

Lift Mentoring will match young people with carefully chosen mentors, and support them for as long as the match lasts.

How it works, step by step:
1. Referral. A family, school or agency refers a young person, and a staff member meets the family to explain the program and ask what the young person likes.
2. Mentor recruitment. We recruit adults through churches, workplaces, colleges and clubs.
3. Screening. Each mentor completes an application, an interview, reference checks and a national criminal record check, and a driving check if they will drive.
4. Training. Mentors complete a short training on listening, boundaries, safety, communication with families and what to do in a crisis.
5. Match. We match by interests, location, schedule and personality, and the family and the young person agree to the match.
6. First meetings. The first three months, pairs meet in public places or at program events, with a staff member checking in after each meeting.
7. Ongoing support. The match support specialist contacts the mentor, the young person and the family every month, solves problems and offers ideas and events.
8. Celebrate and continue. At one year, we celebrate and ask pairs whether to continue. If a match ends, we help both sides say goodbye well and offer a new match if the young person wants one.

Why this approach is strong. Careful screening, training and regular contact keep young people safe and matches strong, so more young people have a mentor who stays.

Market Analysis

Who we serve: young people ages 8 to 16 in our city and nearby towns who are referred by schools, families and agencies, and adults who want to mentor.

Our primary group is young people on waiting lists and those who would like an adult friend. Our secondary group is mentors from churches, businesses, colleges and clubs. We will use the most recent local numbers on young people, waiting lists and adults interested in volunteering in our final plan.

How we sized our plan. We plan to recruit about 60 mentors and make about 60 matches in Year 1. We grow to about 100 matches in Year 2 with a Match Support Specialist, 130 in Year 3, 170 in Year 4 with a second specialist and about 200 matches in Year 5. Our Year 1 budget is about $174,500 and our Year 5 budget is about $266,000.

Demand data. Letters of support from two schools, a youth services office and a community college, and a list of about 50 adults interested in being mentors, show a clear need. We do not count on any single referral source.

We do not serve everyone. We refer young people who need counseling, crisis help or other services to the right provider, and we do not match a young person with a mentor unless the family agrees.

Competitive Landscape

Other choices for young people and families, and what makes us different.

- Large national mentoring organizations. They offer structure and name recognition. We offer a local program with local mentors and a staff that knows each pair.
- School-based mentoring. It helps many children during the school day. We offer community-based matches that continue over the summer and last longer.
- After-school programs and sports teams. They offer group activities. We offer one-to-one attention.
- Faith community youth groups. Many do good work. We add screening, training and match support.
- Friends and relatives. They are best when they can be there. We help when they cannot.

What makes us different.
- Careful screening, training and monthly support for every match.
- Group events so pairs meet others.
- Safety rules for mentors, young people and families.
- A match support specialist who stays in touch.

What we do not claim. We are new. Larger programs have more mentors and a longer record. We plan to earn trust one match at a time.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How we will reach the people we serve.

Schools and youth services. We will meet principals, counselors and youth services staff, explain the program and ask them to refer young people. Families can also sign up directly.

Mentors. We will recruit mentors through churches, businesses, colleges, civic clubs and retired groups, with a short, honest description of the commitment: at least a year, at least four hours a month and a training before matching.

Businesses and civic clubs. We will ask employers to support mentoring by giving employees time, and ask clubs to sponsor a match or a group event.

Online. A simple website and social media tell our story and make it easy to inquire as a mentor or parent.

Families. We will hold a family orientation before each match, in English and Spanish, so families know what to expect and how to raise a concern.

Cost to the family. Free. We never charge families or ask them to pay for activities.

Keeping mentors. We will thank mentors with small, regular gestures and a yearly recognition event, and ask experienced mentors to help new mentors, so that people stay and young people have steady friends.

Operations Plan

How the program will be carried out.

Timeline for Year 1:
- Months 1 and 2 (summer): Sign partner agreements, set up the screening service, buy equipment, finish the mentor agreement and safety policy and begin recruiting mentors and young people.
- Month 3 (late summer): Hold the first mentor training and family orientation.
- Months 4 to 6 (fall): Make the first 30 matches and hold the first group event.
- Months 7 to 10 (winter and spring): Make 30 more matches, hold monthly events and check in with every pair.
- Months 11 and 12 (summer): Celebrate the first matches, survey families and mentors, report to funders and plan Year 2.

Space. Training and group events are held in a church hall and community centers donated by partners. Our small office is shared space in a community building.

Equipment. We buy about $7,500 of equipment once at the start: three laptops and a secure match database ($4,200), a tablet, printer and locking file storage ($1,800) and a training room kit with a projector and screen ($1,500). Later years replace or add a few items.

Staffing. In Year 1, I serve as Executive Director. The Program Manager, paid $46,000 a year, screens, trains and matches mentors. A part-time mentor recruiter, paid $22,000 a year, finds mentors. A Match Support Specialist, paid $40,000 a year, joins in Year 2, with a second in Year 4.

Safety. Every mentor passes the screening and signs the mentor agreement. For the first three months, pairs meet only in public places or at program events. Mentors never take a young person overnight, never meet alone in a home before the family has agreed and never use private messaging apps. A staff member contacts every young person and family monthly. Staff follow the law on reporting suspected abuse or neglect of a child, and a written plan names 911 and the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

Privacy. Files are kept in a secure system and shared only with the young person's family and the school contact the family agrees to.

Costs. Mentor screening and training is about $12,000 in Year 1, a match activity fund paid to venues and vendors about $9,000, group events and celebrations about $6,000, evaluation and surveys about $5,000 and administration and insurance about $11,000.

Management & Organization

The people who will carry out the project.

Keisha Brandt, Executive Director. Fourteen years of nonprofit work, including eight years running a youth mentoring program. She oversees the program, partnerships, fundraising and finances. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Program Manager (from Year 1). Screens, trains and matches mentors, and manages safety and partners.

Match Support Specialist (from Year 2). Stays in touch with every pair, solves problems and plans events. A second joins in Year 4.

Mentor recruiter (part-time, from Year 1). Finds and welcomes new mentors.

Mentors. About 60 trained volunteers in Year 1.

Board and advisors. Seven volunteer board members, including a school counselor, a youth services staff member and a former mentor, who meet every quarter. An attorney reviews our mentor agreement and safety policy.

Staff pay in this plan is a full year per person: Executive Director $56,000, Program Manager $46,000, Match Support Specialist $40,000 and part-time mentor recruiter $22,000. Replace them with the pay you can offer where you live.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals for each year and how we will measure them.

- Year 1: Recruit, screen and train about 60 mentors and make about 60 matches. A balanced budget of about $174,500, with a small surplus of about $6,000. About 3 paid staff.
- Year 2: Add a Match Support Specialist and make about 100 matches. A balanced budget of about $218,000, with a small surplus of about $7,300. About 4 paid staff.
- Year 3: Make about 130 matches and add a summer program for pairs. A balanced budget of about $220,000, with a small surplus of about $7,000. About 4 paid staff.
- Year 4: Add a second Match Support Specialist and make about 170 matches. A balanced budget of about $263,500, with a small surplus of about $8,000. About 5 paid staff.
- Year 5: Make about 200 matches and share our screening and training materials with other programs. A balanced budget of about $266,000, with a small surplus of about $8,100. About 5 paid staff.

What we measure:
- Mentors screened, trained and matched.
- Matches that last at least six months and a year.
- Hours each pair meets each month.
- Young people and families who say the match is a good one.
- Group events held and attendance.
- Safety concerns raised and how they were handled.

How we review results. The Program Manager reviews numbers every month. Twice a year, staff and the board review all results and share them with funders and partners. If a match ends early, we find out why and change the way we match, train or support. Every number in this plan is a goal, and we will report what really happens.

Funding Request

What we are asking for, and how the money will be used. Our request: $58,000 from the Silver Ridge Youth Fund for a Program Manager and mentor screening and training, for July 2027 through June 2028.

The request is spread across these budget lines:
- Personnel: Program Manager salary, $46,000.
- Other: Mentor screening and training, $12,000.

Other money in the program. This request is about 49% of our Year 1 grant income. Other grants and the income lines below pay for everything it does not cover.

Year 1 budget: about $174,500, planned to balance with a small surplus (about $6,000 after the yearly wear on equipment). Year 1 money coming in: grants $118,500 (this request plus other grants we are applying for), school and juvenile services partner support $26,000, businesses, civic clubs and individual donations $30,000. Year 1 costs: executive director $56,000; program manager $46,000; mentor recruiter $22,000; mentor screening and training about $12,000; match activity fund (paid to venues and vendors) about $9,000; group events and celebrations about $6,000; evaluation and surveys about $5,000; administration and insurance about $11,000; about $2,400 a year for the wear on equipment.

One-time startup costs. Startup costs of $15,300 are paid once from startup money, not from the yearly budget: $4,200 for three laptops and a secure match database; $1,800 for tablet, printer and locking file storage; $1,500 for training room kit with a projector and screen; $1,800 for mentor handbooks and welcome kits; $2,600 for attorney review of the mentor agreement, safety policy and privacy policy; $1,500 for banners, flyers in two languages and a simple website; $1,900 for background check service setup and first insurance payment.

How we got our startup number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds the startup costs ($15,300), the cash the program uses before it balances (about $0) and a cash cushion of about $41,800, which is about three months of Year 1 costs. The cash used before it balances and the cushion come to about $41,800. In all, that comes to $57,500. We start with $11,000 of our own savings and $49,000 in startup support from a local youth foundation and our board, $60,000 in all, which covers that amount with room to spare.

The next five years. Our budget grows from about $174,500 in Year 1 to about $266,000 in Year 5. Grants are planned at $118,500, $150,000, $140,000, $171,500 and $162,000 in Years 1 to 5. Other income grows: school and juvenile services partner support from $26,000 to $50,000 and businesses, civic clubs and individual donations from $30,000 to $54,000. We add a Match Support Specialist in Year 2 and a second in Year 4 as the program grows. Grants fall from about 68% of our income in Year 1 to about 61% in Year 5.

Savings. We plan to keep several months of costs in savings. The lowest year-end balance in the plan is about $53,000, at the end of Year 1. Some grant payments and partner payments arrive after we bill, so we plan for about $6,980 owed to us at the end of Year 1.

After the grant. Schools, youth services, businesses, civic clubs and individual donors grow every year, so grants become a smaller share of our budget. Mentors and young people share their stories, and sponsors can underwrite a match or an event by name.

Risks and how we will handle them:
- A mentor harms a young person. We screen carefully, train, supervise, follow strict safety rules and follow the law on reporting.
- Matches end early. The match support specialist stays in touch and fixes problems early.
- Not enough mentors. We recruit steadily and ask current mentors to bring friends.
- Not enough staff time. We limit the number of matches for each specialist.
- A grant ends. We keep savings and grow school and donor support each year.

If you are just starting. A new organization can begin before it has its own 501(c)(3) status through a fiscal sponsor: an established nonprofit that receives grants for you and passes them to your program, usually for a fee (commonly around 5% to 10% of the grant, sometimes more; ask before you agree). Another way is to start smaller: one school partner, 20 matches and one program manager, tracked carefully. Strong results from a small start make larger grants easier to win.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach with this proposal:

- Your IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter, or your fiscal sponsor agreement.
- Your most recent financial statements and your current year budget.
- A list of your board members and what each one does.
- Signed letters of support from schools and youth services.
- Your mentor application, agreement and safety policy.
- Your screening and training plan.
- Your family orientation materials in English and Spanish.
- Your privacy policy and emergency plan.
- Quotes for the screening service and equipment.
- Resumes for your Executive Director and key staff.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Grant Revenue: $118,500 in Year 1, then $150,000, $140,000, $171,500 and $162,000.
- School and Juvenile Services Partner Support: $26,000 in Year 1, growing to $50,000.
- Businesses, Civic Clubs and Individual Donations: $30,000 in Year 1, growing to $54,000.
- Pay (a full year, per person, including payroll taxes and workers' compensation): executive director $56,000, program manager $46,000, match support specialist $40,000 (from Year 2), mentor recruiter (part-time) $22,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: mentor screening and training $12,000, match activity fund (paid to venues and vendors) $9,000, group events and celebrations $6,000, evaluation and surveys $5,000, administration and insurance $11,000. These grow between 4% and 5% a year.
- Equipment: $7,500 at the start, then $1,000 to $1,500 a year.
- Startup costs: $15,300, paid once from $60,000 in startup money.
- Matches: about 60 in Year 1, growing to about 200 in Year 5. Mentor screening and training costs about $200 per mentor.
- About 4% of each year's income is still owed to us at year end.
- Tax: none, as a nonprofit.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and real budget.

Startup Costs