Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | September 4, 2023 | Worcester Business Journal 25 and expanded the partnership to use ONE Worcester's volunteer consulting services for marketing and social media. "It really represented a leap forward for HeartWell," said Lashin-Curewitz. e consultation helped the organization gain focus with its marketing efforts to reach the right audience, she said. "Without that focus, you can expend your energy in a lot of different ways and not reach the audience you want to. e work is not done, but we have the tools and the experience and resources to fall back on," said Lashin-Curewitz. From 2020 to 2021, HeartWell Institute grew its annual revenues from $6,786 to $394,400 and now has assets totalling $235,110, according to Guidestar. With Segil now on board full-time, ONE Worcester is addings to its initiatives to help nonprofits build the networks they need for long term success, with particular attention to wrapping equity and inclusion into everything. "All business topics should include DEI training, and every topic can relate to making spaces more equitable," said Segil. Like any entrepreneur, nonprofit leaders need to be willing to accept setbacks and ask for help, said Waddell. A deep network, access to resources, relationships, and passion can help bridge the gaps. "You have to expect barriers. You have to have a real commitment," said Waddell. "Running a nonprofit at that level is no different than any business startup." skills training to area nonprofits to help them succeed as business entities. e organization is in its eighth year of operations, and in July brought on its first full-time executive director. Helen Segil, who now leads ONE Worcester, is reupping the organization's efforts to help nonprofits develop strategic plans, aiming to lower the barriers preventing less-experienced nonprofit leaders from accessing necessary resources. ONE Worcester has partnered with more than 100 organizations, Segil said. e organization is launching a new emerging nonprofit leader cohort later this year for up-and-coming nonprofit entrepreneurs who might otherwise be kept out of these kinds of group training because of finances. "Our hope is to focus on nonprofits and leaders in that space that might not have the access and aren't given a voice or space," said Segil. ONE Worcester's primary offering, free to 501(c) (3) nonprofits, is preliminarily consulting with experts in the field, which it values at $5,000 to $25,000 per nonprofit partner. "It has a really great long-term impact," said Segil. "So much of nonprofit work is done on the ground. What's overlooked is the backend of what it takes to run a nonprofit." ArtsWorcester is one beneficiary of ONE Worcester consulting, something that has been essential to its growth. e value of external consulting is tremendous in the nonprofit space, said Juliet Feibel, executive director of ArtsWorcester. Between 2012 and 2020, the contemporary and local art exhibitor quadrupled its operating budget and grew artist membership by 25%, Feibel said. "We could not have done any of that without external guidance," said Feibel. e market rate for consultants for corporate businesses and nonprofits can be extremely expensive and cost prohibitive, said Feibel. "at's why ONE Worcester is so important," she said. ArtsWorcester now has $342,805 in annual revenue and $1.5 million in assets, according to 2021 information available on Guidestar. Focusing on community, DEI ONE Worcester's mission to enable nonprofits to empower their communities is evident in its work with the HeartWell Institute, too, said Sandy Lashin- Curewitz marketing and administration operations manager at the Worcester community wellness center. e HeartWell Institute, founded in 2012 by Zayda Vallejo and Bob Lenhardt, exists to bring mindfulness practices to a wider audience and break down barriers to health and wellness for underrepresented communities.Vallejo for years led mindfulness classes and workshops and noticed a stark lack of Black, indigenous, people of color in attendance. e HeartWell Institute became connected with ONE Worcester through its webinar series on representation and access, said Lashin-Curewitz, D I V E R S I T Y & I N C L U S I O N F O C U S Helen Segil, ONE Worcester executive director Juliet Feibel, executive director of ArtsWorcester Sandy Lashin- Curewitz, staff at HeartWell Institute Public charities, annual revenue Annual revenue % of total U.S. nonprofits $0-99K ................................................................... 76% $100K-499K ........................................................... 13% $500K-999K .............................................................. 3% $1M-4.9M ................................................................. 5% >$5M .......................................................................... 3% Source: Candid, 2021 Key Facts on U.S. Nonprofits and Foundations report PHOTO | MATT WRIGHT Waddell built up Legendary Legacies, in part, by using his connections in the nonprofit and business communities. 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