Cat Friends Helping Friends

In light of the fire at Lilly Lu, Iris, Mu Shue, and Mom Laura’s apartment, we wanted to help. Unfortunately CFHF is only semi-set up and we can’t risk our future as a helping group by doing fund raisers in case of IRS or SCC problems. If they decided we had been out of line, it could risk the future of being able to help cat friends at all. So we have found a way we can do a little bit here, by letting you know how you can donate to Mom Laura. Any news available can be found at the Cat Blogosphere.

Just go directly to Lilly Lu’s website to their PayPal donation button at the top of the page.

This is a question in quite a few people’s minds as we work to get CFHF established as a 501(c)(3) charity. So we thought we’d tell you instead of having you guess.

At the moment, we’re working to raise the $750+ in fees that the IRS and other government agencies require to apply to get 501(c)(3) status. We have already raised the initial $75 required to apply for incorporation, and have applied, which we was our first important step. That’s why our first fund raiser, the Name the Logo Kitty Contest, is for administrative costs. Those fees are administrative costs. Not ones we’re crazy about, but necessary ones.

Starting April 16th, we’ll be doing fund raisers for general funds that we have agreed at the first Board of Director’s meeting will be spent this way. At least 80% of all general funds raised will go to help cat blogosphere critters in need, cats or possibly their woofies or other critter family members, and only twenty percent maximum for organization costs. We’re only able to do this because all of our Board members are unpaid volunteers. Every single one is offering their time, as well as use of their computers, office equipment, office supplies like pens and paper, at no charge to Cat Friends Helping Friends. Other volunteer workers are doing the same. Everyone on the Board is adamant about keeping it that way, because they all want to help out the kitties, and running as lean as possible on administrative and fund raising expenses as we move into the future will make it so.

Organization costs that comprise the small percent not directly for helping cats will be for fund raising and administrative costs. Fund raising costs might be things like prizes for contests when prizes are not donated, marketing fund raisers to other venues online in order to get more donations, paying for a Cafepress shop to sell items for donations, and similar efforts. Administrative costs, after all legal fees might include items that have not been donated such fees for web hosting, domain name registration, postage to send paper receipts to donors when necessary, or necessary adminstrative costs that are not covered by donations of services or items, which we will keep to the minimum possible in order to keep running and working to help the kitties. When you consider that many legitimate charities have to spend 50% or more of their budget on administrative and fund raising activities, the 20% max we have chosen is quite amazing, actually.

Special fund raisers, like the one for the Name the Logo Kitty contest which is for admistrative costs, or perhaps for a specific cat in need, may have different budgets, but we will be sure to tell you the budget at the fund raiser so that you know where your donations will be going.

That’s where the money is going and is going to go.

We’re sure everyone is curious about what’s going on at the new Cat Friends Helping Friends, so I wanted to give you  an update. A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes to get things worked out so we can really get going. The Board of Directors is having its first meeting this weekend, which is great.   Many of you have offered help of various kinds, and we really appreciate it! We’ve just been working so hard at the organizational and legal aspects that we haven’t had time to thank you properly or talk to you about how your help can be used. Very soon after our first Board meeting we will be getting committees going for fund raising, various business things and the like, and we’ll be letting folks know at the CFHF site as these things get going.
The site itself already has quite a few improvements. We have a new layout, which although not finalized, is a vast improvement from the initial very vanilla look we think. The About page has info and all Board members listed, so you know who all the current Board members are.  There’s a new FAQ page with a lot of info for everyone.  The Contact page is improved and has contact emails in addition to the contact form.  As we get roles such as committee chairs and such fleshed out, they will be added also so that people can be sure to contact the appropriate person.  There is now a general  Donation page in addition to the Name the Kitty contest. AND there is now a Link to CFHF page with badges anyone can use to link to the site.  We have quite a few things in the works for the site, which we’ll be rolling out over the next few weeks.
Thanks so much for all your offers of help and your patience while we get everything going!  We’re super excited to see this coming to fruition.
Robyn Harton, CFHF Secretary

Cat Friends Helping Friends is becoming a 501(c)(3) charity!

Now it’s time to vote on the name for our logo kitty!

Vote for your favorite Logo Kitty Name here.
Voting is open through April 21, 2008, Midnight EST.
One vote per person.

Polls are closed. Thanks for voting!

The Logo Kitty name was chosen by the Board of Directors from the top 3 favorites. See below for more information and see the Winner and meet our logo kitty who now has a name!

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Okay everyone: We really need to generate some income for this new charity. So, to make things just a bit more enticing:

This Harrods’ Cat Bag will be filled with special kitty goodies that will go to the winner of the following contest! Please tell all your friends to enter. This bag plus contents is worth over $50.00. You may enter as many times as you want.

To pay for incorporation fees and the fees to make Cat Friends Helping Friends a 501(c)(3) charity, we’re holding a contest to name the kitty in our logo. For a small donation of $2 you can submit a name to be considered for our logo kitty. The contest will close on April 15th, midnight EST - then we’ll open it up to the blogosphere to pick the top three names in voting that will last one week. After we have a top 3, the board members and officers will select the best name for our logo kitty and it will be announced on Friday, April 18th. The final chosen name will be posted, along with the blog name/person that suggested it, and that person/blog will get a “I Named the Logo Kitty” badge for their blog AND the Harrod’s bag above filled with . In the event that more than one person suggested the winning name, all will receive an “I Named the Logo Kitty” badge for their blog.

• To pay for incorporation fees and the fees to make Cat Friends Helping Friends a 501(c)(3) charity, we’re holding a contest to name the kitty in our logo.

• The contest will close on Tuesday, April 15th, midnight EST - then we’ll open it up to the blogosphere to pick the top three names in voting. After we have a top 3, the board members and officers will select the best name for our logo kitty and it will be announced on Friday, April 25th. If a name that was submitted by multiple people is chosen, a drawing will be done to see who gets the Harrod’s bag prize, and all will get a “I Named the Logo Kitty” badge. (Mini the cat has volunteered to do the drawing, if needed.)

• The final chosen name will be posted, along with the blog name/person that suggested it, and that person/blog will get a “I Named the Logo Kitty” badge for their blog and the special “Harrods Goodie Bag”.

Additional Information: Until we have the articles of incorporation finished and approved by the state, we cannot have our own corporate PayPal account, so Trisha Stephens, President of CFHF, has opened a PayPal account in her name to use for donations and disbursements, which is the one used here. All donations will be credited to and used for CFHF business. Any money received over the amounts needed to set up our organization as a 501(c)(3) charity will go directly towards helping kitties in need. Board Members are ineligible to win. Rules may be changed at any time; currently posted rules apply.

This is the new Cat Friends Helping Friends site. Keep an eye open for news as it comes out in the next few days. We’re excited!