| Support La MICA Biological Station |
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19 January 2012
Dear Amigos –
On Tuesday (17 January) I checked my email to find some upsetting news regarding our fiscal sponsor, which allows us to raise tax deductible donations. Effective the 16th
of January they have dismantled their organization. Their Web site (www.ihcenter.org) had already been taken down. This has come as a complete surprise to us and no
previous notice was given that such an event was about to occur. I have attached their letter so you can read the details given to us.
La MICA has just entered our third year of operation. It started as my dream, but now is the dream and lifeline of so people in Panama who give so much when they are far
from the position of being able to do so. Furthermore I think that everyone who has visited us or donates holds a place in their heart for this small project fighting for
conservation and humanity and making huge strides against all odds. Our continued progress was possible because of our 501c3 status and donations from people like you.
Obviously this new development puts us in a huge bind.
Upon reading the letter from our sponsor you will see that they do not have the necessary funds to distribute the balance of accounts to their member organizations. We
recently withdrew money from our account, but have nearly $600 still remaining. This amounts to about two months of general operation for La MICA, including maintenance
and projects to help keep our local people afloat between visitors. We have no idea when or even if we will receive that money. We have some cash on hand, but this will not
support the project for long.
As you may imagine morale is now low among my staff in Panama as they know how important 2012 was going to be for the advancement and survival of La MICA. We need
to repair our 4wd car. We need to redo the shower and improve the water situation at La MICA. We have to replace some boards that have been water or termite damaged.
We need to continue our research projects and our outreach educational opportunities in the local schools. Moreover we have three groups interested in visiting between
March and May and we more than likely have to turn them away because we will be unable to prepare for their arrival.
In the next days I will explore our options. Some potential ideas include finding another fiscal sponsor or taking steps to set up an independent nonprofit. However, both of
these processes can take months. In short we will probably have to close the entire La MICA project until a solution is reached. I hope that if this occurs it will be temporary,
but as you can well imagine, it is difficult to recover from a blow like this one.
I very much welcome any suggestions from you. Most importantly, my biggest concern lies in taking care of the Panamanians who are so dedicated to this project. If you
could in any way contribute to our project (with the understanding that your contribution will not be tax deductible), please click on the Make a Donation button below. Every
single dollar will go directly to help La MICA and our local people survive over the next couple of months as we try to find a solution to this mess that was dumped upon us. I
hope that if we are able to buy some time then I can find a viable alternative to closing. We have all fought so hard for this project and I would like to believe that nothing can
knock us down, but I also must be realistic for the sake of our local people. At the very least, we will enable our staff time to find alternative opportunities unlike what was
provided to us as a project.
Thank you very much and we hope you will continue your unyielding support through this difficult time.
Julie, Pablo, Macedonio, and all of our part time employees
Attention Amigos Support La MICA donors: If you have not received a letter for your taxes from previous donations, please advise me. If you have donated in 2012
please check to see if your donations have been returned to you. If you are donating an amount each month automatically, please check to see if anything is deducted in
January and especially come February. Certainly by February your account should no longer be charged.
09 February 2012
An excellent article has been published Rick Cohen in Nonprofit Quarterly that outlines what some of the organizations who were sponsored by IHCenter have been going
through. It also shows just how murky the story is.
Dear Amigos –
On Tuesday (17 January) I checked my email to find some upsetting news regarding our fiscal sponsor, which allows us to raise tax deductible donations. Effective the 16th
of January they have dismantled their organization. Their Web site (www.ihcenter.org) had already been taken down. This has come as a complete surprise to us and no
previous notice was given that such an event was about to occur. I have attached their letter so you can read the details given to us.
La MICA has just entered our third year of operation. It started as my dream, but now is the dream and lifeline of so people in Panama who give so much when they are far
from the position of being able to do so. Furthermore I think that everyone who has visited us or donates holds a place in their heart for this small project fighting for
conservation and humanity and making huge strides against all odds. Our continued progress was possible because of our 501c3 status and donations from people like you.
Obviously this new development puts us in a huge bind.
Upon reading the letter from our sponsor you will see that they do not have the necessary funds to distribute the balance of accounts to their member organizations. We
recently withdrew money from our account, but have nearly $600 still remaining. This amounts to about two months of general operation for La MICA, including maintenance
and projects to help keep our local people afloat between visitors. We have no idea when or even if we will receive that money. We have some cash on hand, but this will not
support the project for long.
As you may imagine morale is now low among my staff in Panama as they know how important 2012 was going to be for the advancement and survival of La MICA. We need
to repair our 4wd car. We need to redo the shower and improve the water situation at La MICA. We have to replace some boards that have been water or termite damaged.
We need to continue our research projects and our outreach educational opportunities in the local schools. Moreover we have three groups interested in visiting between
March and May and we more than likely have to turn them away because we will be unable to prepare for their arrival.
In the next days I will explore our options. Some potential ideas include finding another fiscal sponsor or taking steps to set up an independent nonprofit. However, both of
these processes can take months. In short we will probably have to close the entire La MICA project until a solution is reached. I hope that if this occurs it will be temporary,
but as you can well imagine, it is difficult to recover from a blow like this one.
I very much welcome any suggestions from you. Most importantly, my biggest concern lies in taking care of the Panamanians who are so dedicated to this project. If you
could in any way contribute to our project (with the understanding that your contribution will not be tax deductible), please click on the Make a Donation button below. Every
single dollar will go directly to help La MICA and our local people survive over the next couple of months as we try to find a solution to this mess that was dumped upon us. I
hope that if we are able to buy some time then I can find a viable alternative to closing. We have all fought so hard for this project and I would like to believe that nothing can
knock us down, but I also must be realistic for the sake of our local people. At the very least, we will enable our staff time to find alternative opportunities unlike what was
provided to us as a project.
Thank you very much and we hope you will continue your unyielding support through this difficult time.
Julie, Pablo, Macedonio, and all of our part time employees
Attention Amigos Support La MICA donors: If you have not received a letter for your taxes from previous donations, please advise me. If you have donated in 2012
please check to see if your donations have been returned to you. If you are donating an amount each month automatically, please check to see if anything is deducted in
January and especially come February. Certainly by February your account should no longer be charged.
09 February 2012
An excellent article has been published Rick Cohen in Nonprofit Quarterly that outlines what some of the organizations who were sponsored by IHCenter have been going
through. It also shows just how murky the story is.
| Donations made through this Web site will not be tax deductible, but will help La MICA and our Panamanian employees through this difficult period. Thank you. PayPal allows you to make a donation via your credit or debit card or through your own PayPal account. However, you do not need to establish an account to make a donation. |
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| La MICA Biological Station El Copé-La Pintada ● Provincia de Coclé ● Republica de Panama US Mailing Address: Julie Ray ● 12458 132nd Street ● Chippewa Falls, WI 54729 www.lamica.org ● la.mica@yahoo.com ● t: (011.507)6707.8900 (Panama) |