Designing Daughters of Sarasota launches fall 2015 grant process

Designing Daughters of Sarasota (DesigningDaughtersSarasota.com), a charitable organization of young professional women dedicated to enhancing the community and cultivating the next generation of philanthropists through strategic granting, recently launched its fall 2015 grants process to benefit local nonprofits.

The goal of the grants process is to equitably spread the widest influence of good to the most organizations. Committed to bettering the local community, Kaiti Chambers, Designing Daughters of Sarasota’s grant chair, and her team will work with the membership to identify nonprofits with a program, project or need with tangible outcomes, allowing Designing Daughters of Sarasota to assess and report on the impact of granted funds.

“As a member of Designing Daughters of Sarasota, each member is given the unique ability to directly influence nonprofits in our community,” says Montana Taplinger, president of Designing Daughters of Sarasota. “All active Designing Daughters of Sarasota members were invited to submit one nonprofit for consideration. The group will vote on the final recipients this November.”

Once the recommendations are received, all nominated nonprofits will be asked to submit a formal grant application, requesting up to $5,000 for a tangible need, program or project of its choosing. The entire membership will have a chance to vote for one nonprofit within each of the six nonprofit categories, including humanities, education, animals, children, health and wellness and human services.

“It’s thrilling to work with the philanthropic Designing Daughters of Sarasota, who are passionate about making a difference for Sarasota’s nonprofits,” says Chambers. The grants process ensures every member has an equal voice in selecting deserving grantees, and we can’t wait to hand out the monies to impact change on our community this winter.”

The Designing Daughters of Sarasota grants, which are netted through fundraising events throughout the year, will be presented to recipients at a granting ceremony in winter 2015. For more information, visit www.DesigningDaughtersSarasota.com.

About Designing Daughters of Sarasota

Shelley Lister, then a Designing Women Boutique board member, founded Designing Daughters in 2009. The charitable organization was formed as a committee to attract younger supporters and to help the organization with its fundraising efforts. Along with founding President Nikki Taylor, past President Jane Thompson, current President Montana Taplinger and others, the committee grew far beyond expectations. As of January 2015, because of this growth, Designing Daughters of Sarasota partnered with the Community Foundation of Sarasota County to maximize its giving potential.

Designing Daughters of Sarasota’s goal is to give grants to several local charities each year and with almost no overhead, and the majority of its fundraising does just that. Designing Daughters of Sarasota is made up of an impressive list of local, young and influential women who are well connected in the community and have been very successful in forming strategic alliances and getting underwriters to cover the expenses for these events.