Community Boat Project: “The people I love the best jump into work head first.”

There is a poem is written above the entrance to Community Board Project’s workshop. It is by
feminist, science fiction writer, and social activist Marge Piercy, called To be of use. The start of the
poem reads, “The people I love best jump into work head first.

Launched in 1993, the Community Boat Project jumped in head first. With a close affiliation with the
Puget Sound Voyaging Society and the NW School of Wooden Boatbuilding, boats and being on the
water are integral to their identity, but it is only part of CBP does.

As Executive Director Wayne Chimenti points out, “Over the last few years in particular we’ve become
more of an education and social center serving kids who couldn’t go to school or others needing to
learn skills and make connections to get a job.”

CBP teaches young people how to build boats and tiny houses while learning how to effectively work
as a member of a team. All of their programs are accredited and are free of charge for the young
people. It is important to ensure all young people can participate. As a result, though, as Wayne readily
admits, there is a continual need to find sources of funding.

JCF helps CBP do this in a range of ways. One is by facilitating connections to potential local donors.
JCF informs our donor network about great organizations like CBP and as a result, they have donated
$80,000 to CBP over the past few years. Another way we help nonprofits with resourcing is through
fundraising training and resources. CBP participated in a two-part workshop on foundation relations
and grant writing in recent years. Later, they used the national Foundation Information Database
housed at JCF, for which pays the subscription fees so that all local nonprofits can use it for free to
research potential new funders.

JCF also connects organizations to other potential funders. A few years ago, Wayne met a
representative from the Medina Foundation at a JCF event.??With Medina’s focus on funding programs
that create economic opportunities for youth and families, they and CBP paired up nicely. As a result of
that first meeting, CBP received an initial $10,000 grant from Medina. Last month, we learned that the
relationship has grown into a $200,000, five-year investment in CBP by Medina that will, according to
Wayne: “…allow us to greatly increase capacity and grow to the next stage of our development. We
wouldn’t have made that connection without JCF.”

JCF is proud to support change makers like Wayne and the young people who are jumping into CBP
work head first!