Operation: Kid Equip Gains a Boost from Fiscal Sponsorship Under the North Woodward Community Foundation

Royal Oak, MI, April 19, 2009 --(PR.com)-- A considerable percentage of the more than 51,000 Oakland County children on the free and reduced lunch program go to school each day without the basic tools they need to learn, but a new fiscal sponsorship agreement between the North Woodward Community Foundation (NWCF) and Royal Oak-based Operation: Kid Equip will put more pencils, paper, erasers, and a backpack full of other supplies in many more of their hands come September.

As an all volunteer organization, the fiscal sponsorship agreement allows Operation: Kid Equip to minimize the expenses and resources necessary for back-office administration and fiscal operations. Bringing those services back to Michigan also gives OKE greater access to a wider range of local supports and services. Fiscal sponsorship was formerly under Congressional District Programs, Inc., a Virginia-based nonprofit.

"Continued fiscal sponsorship is cost effective and saves money,” says Menachem-Michael Kniespeck, co-founder of Operation: Kid Equip. “That in itself is important for emerging organizations like OKE. We also wanted to align ourselves with organizations that are right here, in the communities we serve.”

As a nonprofit program, OKE effects long term improvement in the community by providing kids with the core necessities they need to prosper in school and in life. The organization acts as a conduit for collecting and distributing tangible goods and supplies to school-aged children. OKE's biggest program is a free school supply program for low-income families. The organization receives most of its support through school supply drives and in-kind donations of goods from corporations, organizations and individuals.

The new Donor-Advised (Non Endowed) Fund Agreement with NWCF is effective immediately and allows Operation: Kid Equip to seamlessly maintain its nonprofit status. Donations to Operation: Kid Equip will be fully deductible under the NWCF fiscal sponsorship. The mission of the NWCF, formerly known as the Community Foundation of Troy, is to invest in citizen driven initiatives to enhance the quality of life in the community through philanthropy.

Under this new agreement, there are no changes to the leadership or operations of OKE.

"We are continuing on with business as usual...with access to a wider array of opportunities," says Mike McFall, co-founder of Operation: Kid Equip. “Not only does 95 cents of every dollar go right into our programs, but the other 5% administrative assessment will now remain in Michigan and help support our local economy."

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