DirectConnect is an online exchange that connects the people that have community changing ideas with the people and organizations that can and will support them.  The purpose of the platform is to provide a mechanism that provides organizational support to those with the grassroots ideas and energy necessary to make a change in their world.  It does this by giving individuals access to the funding, staffing and management resources necessary to transform their raw ideas into viable community service programs. The service also provides new funding and staffing avenues for existing charitable organizations; allowing them to expand their programs, migrate into new areas, or simply maintain their existing initiatives.  Our platform combines the technology, networking and collaborative innovations of leading internet websites such as Amazon, CraigsList, eBay, Facebook and MySpace.

This online exchange is a powerful tool that allows individuals and organizations to get directly involved in righting the ills of our world community in the manner they best are able – be it to Donate, Serve or Lead.  Using the platform, users can select the individual program (or task) to which they want to assist.  They are assured that their donation and/or service efforts are going exactly where they want them to go – no middlemen, no redirecting of funds to general purpose funds and no overhead charges reducing the value of their donation.  Additionally, individuals will receive feedback and status updates directly from the programs to which they have assisted.  This will allow them to directly see the impact they have been able to make on the lives of others.  Our exchange has exposure to thousands of potential donors and volunteers; enabling us to aggregate a myriad of resources into customized outreach packages tailored to meet the specific requirements of a community need. 

There is no charge for using the DirectConnect online service.

DIRECT CONNECT PROGRAM DETAILED OVERVIEW

Online Exchange Overview

The DirectConnect exchange (http://www.directconnect.org) links community changing projects with donors, volunteers and asset-based resources via an online exchange.  It serves the grassroots individual who has an idea they would like to transform into a viable and executable project, and provides a valuable forum for existing charitable organizations that have worthwhile programs who seek exposure to additional channels of support.  By listing their initiatives in our catalog, they will instantly gain exposure to thousands of potential donors, volunteers and supporters.

When using the exchange a user can easily browse and select from a wide offering of projects.  These projects are organized by locality and by themes such as health care, gospel outreach, youth development, and education.  Once a project is selected, detailed information  (including a mission statement and descriptions of project activities, desired impacts, expected outcomes, funding/resource requirements and volunteer activities) is presented to the user.

The interaction between a user and the information presented in the exchange depends on each individual’s interest and focus.  Most users interact with the exchange in one or more of the following roles:

1. •An project owner who is looking for support to develop an idea or execute an project
   

2. •An existing charitable organization wishing to list their programs and initiatives in the exchange – dramatically increasing the potential donors/volunteers available to them
   

3. •An individual donor looking for like-minded programs to which they can directly contribute via financial or asset-based donations
   

4. •A prospective volunteer looking to match their interest, skill sets and schedule with service opportunities in their community
   

Project Owner Interaction

Most community changing projects start as a simple idea in the mind of one person,   DirectConnect provides an invaluable forum and workplace for those with early-stage or smaller grassroots projects.  The online exchange allows these idea owners (known as DirectLeaders) to collaborate with like-minded individuals and to connect with the expertise necessary to transform their idea into a full-fledged program.  For many of these grassroots projects Elevate will provide assistance in project planning, management, documentation, accounting and execution.  Additionally, the DirectConnect exchange is an invaluable resource to an existing charitable organization that wishes to use it to increase their access to potential donors and volunteers.

No matter if the project is small and locally targeted (providing school supplies for a worthy local elementary school project) or much more complex (supporting a new feeding program for war-torn refugees in a far off community); DirectConnect is a resource that can be used to provide invaluable support in funding, resource acquisition and project management.  Great care has also been taken to ensure that the project submission process is not overwhelming to an individual with limited experience, while still providing the detail and functionality required by larger, established charitable programs.

If, for example, a Christian outreach organization wishing to provide support for an existing outreach program that focuses on wheelchair distribution they would first start in the “Create a Project” section of the system.  From there they click on “Submit a New Project” and enter all of the pertinent and required information, which includes [sample responses included]:

1. ‣Project Name:
   

2. •[Cristo de Vida Wheelchair Distribution]
   

3. ‣Location: 
   

4. •[Lima, Peru]
   

5. ‣One-Time or Recurring Project: 
   

6. •[Recurring]
   

7. ‣Date of Project Start:
   

8. •[Ongoing]
   

9. ‣Sponsoring Organization/Group:
   

10. •[In His Name Outreach, Inc., Washington, DC USA]
    

11. ‣Is the sponsoring organization a designated non-profit organization 501(c)3:
    

12. •[Yes]
    

13. ‣Desired Results:
    

14. •[The acquisition of 150 wheelchairs that can be distributed to handicapped community served by Cristo de Vida Church located in a small community just north of Lima, Peru.  Most of the affected individuals are currently unable to leave their residence and are community outsiders because of their lack of mobility.]
    

15. ‣Financial Donation Requested?:
    

16. •[Yes]
    

17. ‣Non-Financial Assets & Resources Requested?:
    

18. •[No, Wheelchairs will be acquired and/or manufactured in Peru]
    

19. ‣Asset & Resources Submission Details:
    

20. •[Not Applicable]
    

21. ‣Requested Funding Amount:
    

22. •[$3300 or $22 per wheelchair for 150 individuals]
    

23. ‣Is Partial Funding Acceptable?  Minimally Acceptable Funding Percentage %:
    

24. •[Yes] / [10%]
    

25. ‣Volunteer Opportunities?:
    

26. •[No]
    

27. ‣Expected Outcomes:
    

28. •[Distribution of wheelchairs and the restoration of mobility to 150 members of this Peruvian community.  This will allow many to (for the first time) attend school, attend church, work outside their home.  For some it will allow them to leave their place residence for the first time in their lives.]
    

29. ‣Key Milestones:
    

30. •[A: Acquisition of wheelchair materials]
    

31. •[B: Manufacturing of wheelchairs, by local volunteers]
    

32. •[C: Distribution of wheelchairs to individuals at their place of residence]
    

33. ‣Expected Date of Status Reports: 
    

34. •[Ongoing, depends on financing or project.  The most cost effective method is to build and distribute ten or more wheelchairs at one time]
    

35. ‣Expected Status Report Components (select from list):
    

36. •[Photos of milestone events, Summary Notes, Budget Overview showing how monies were used.]
    

Following review and certification from our Elevate staff, the project is placed into the active catalog and notifications are sent to all individual and corporate donors who have previously shown an interest in similar projects.  Additionally, if a worthy idea is submitted to the forum, but does not have someone committed to lead it or requires more work before it is ready for execution; Elevate will work to provide the skills and resources to solidify the idea and/or hand it off to a qualified and motivated group wishing to execute upon it.

Through the exchange’s integrated feedback system, those with project management or project execution responsibility, can gain valuable feedback from those who funded and/or served as volunteers on their project.  This feedback can prove invaluable in fine-tuning a project and in grading the effectiveness of the methods used during its delivery.

Donor Interaction

The potential supporter, known as a DirectDonor, can contribute any amount to an identified project using a credit/debit card, check, or PayPal.  Unless expressly designated by the donor, Elevate takes no administrative fees from any individual user donation.  This ensures that 100% of a DirectDonor’s donation goes directly to support their selected project; in fact a DirectDonor can even target his or her donation to a specific activity within a project.  For example, they can choose to designate that their funds should only be used during the “winter coat distribution task” within a larger “Help The Homeless” project.

Many projects have resource requests for non-financial assets such as computers, school supplies, clothing and foodstuffs.  Via the online exchange, donors can support these community initiatives by pledging the non-financial resources listed on each project’s “asset request registry”.  Similar to a wedding or gift registry, these lists identify the tangible (non-financial) asset requirements of each project task and allow users to commit to filling that need.  Once an asset pledge is made, the appropriate drop-off  or shipping information is provided to the DirectDonor.

All donations of funds and asset-based resources are fully tracked within the system, allowing users to view the current status of every funding request.  Tracked information includes: “Funding Need”, “Funding to Date”, “Requested Resources” and “Pledged Resources”.  Donations and resources pledged to projects go through Elevate International, Inc., a registered 501(c)3 entity, and are fully tax-deductible.

DirectDonors receive detailed progress updates on all projects to which they have donated.  These progress reports help a donor track the usage of their gift through every phase of a project: planning, funding, and execution. Upon the completion of a project, they can also perform “outcome analysis” on their funded projects.  This allows them to correlate the actual results of a project with the expected outcomes designated during the planning phase.  As part of this procedure, DirectDonors are encouraged to assign an overall “grade” on the guidance of the project leaders and the effectiveness of the project plan.  They are also reminded to leave suggestions on how this type of project can be improved in the future.

Each DirectDonor is strongly encouraged to create a “Giving Profile” within the online exchange; this allows the donor to identify project genres (such as (Youth & Family Development and Christian Outreach) that are of special interest to them.  Using this information, the DirectConnect exchange will notify them when projects meeting their preferences (in their local community) are added to the catalog.  The exchange will also allow them to see the top projects supported by donors who have identified similar interest and have comparable giving patterns. The purpose of this feature, in addition to increasing individual user donations, is to encourage the creation of a “giving community” among the users of the exchange.  This spirit of social networking is furthered fostered by the ability of each exchange user to create a “MyDirectConnect” portal, which is fully described later in this document.

Volunteer Interaction

The DirectConnect process strongly encourages groups and individuals to get involved in many ways other than financial.  Each project’s detailed overview outlines any volunteer service opportunities that may exist.  Prospective volunteers (known as DirectVolunteers) are one-click away from finding information that includes: description of volunteer tasks, task schedules, required special skills (if any), detailed directions to the volunteer locations and service commitment forms.

Through service, DirectVolunteers will strengthen the community and meet critical needs every day of the year by activities such as: teaching children the joy of reading, beautifying city parks and schools, spreading the Gospels via short-term missions, preparing meals for the homebound and homeless, distributing warm coats and holiday gifts to those who would otherwise go without, and so much more.

Each DirectVolunteer is strongly encouraged to create a “service profile” within the online exchange.  This profile will contain information on special skills they possess, physical limitations they may have, their desired service locations and other related preferences.  If desired, the DirectConnect system will automatically keep them informed of any new service opportunities that matches the information their profile.  This profile information is also used present users with a list of the top projects supported by donors who have identified similar interest and have similar service patterns. The purpose of this feature, in addition to increasing service on projects, is to encourage the creation of a “service community” among the users of the exchange.  This spirit of social networking is furthered fostered by the ability of each exchange user to create a customized “MyDirectConnect” portal, which is fully described later in this document.

Following the completion of all projects, DirectVolunteers are prompted to assign an overall “grade” on the guidance of the project leaders and the effectiveness of the project plan.  They are also reminded to leave suggestions on how this type of project can be improved in the future.

MyDirectConnect Online Community

In the past few years, online communities and social networks have exploded onto the worldwide web landscape.  These websites, which include Linked In, MySpace, and Windows Live Spaces, provide a forum for a group of people to come together around shared interests or causes.  As such, online communities have become a supplemental form of communication between people who may or may not know each other in real life; often building strong ties and deep friendships.

The purpose of our online community “MyDirectConnect” is to twofold: 1) to foster collaboration and the sharing of information related to projects and events in our catalog, and 2) to provide a sense of community that will generate personal relationships between the users of the exchange.  The exchange provides a collection of interactive services including a user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups discussion, chat, photo post and internal email.  Together these features create a virtual community that allows DirectConnect patrons to:

1. •Create groups where they can socialize and share charitable information with like-minded people
   

2. •Connect and collaborate online with people they know in the real world
   

3. •Network and work together online with people they don't know in the real world
   

4. •Connect with DirectConnect project sponsors, project leaders and charitable organizations
   

5. •Keep up with what their MyDirectConnect "friends" are doing
   

6. •Identify “top projects” or “top volunteer opportunities” in their areas of interest
   

7. •Create a fully customized portal into the DirectConnect exchange
   

8. •Create customize web spaces where users can share information about themselves or their organizations
   

Project Themes and Categories

While the type and quantity of projects in the DirectConnect catalog will vary at any particular time, the following represents common themes that are funded, staffed and/or managed via the platform:

1.     Community Building
   

2. •Building Restoration
   

3. •Park Creation
   

4. •Neighborhood Watch
   

5. •Park Cleanup
   

6. 
   

7.     Economic Empowerment & Development
   

8. •Debt Counseling
   

9. •Financial Education
   

10. •Micro-enterprise loans
    

11. 
    

12.     Education
    

13. •Adult Education
    

14. •After School Tutoring
    

15. •Career Counseling & Support
    

16. •Skills & Job Training
    

17. 
    

18.     Gospel Outreach
    

19. •Biblical Studies
    

20. •Evangelistic Rallies
    

21. •Local Crusades
    

22. •Prison Ministry
    

23. •Short-Term Mission and/or Outreach
    

24. 
    

25.     Health and Human Services
    

26. •Feeding Programs (in-home, mobile)
    

27. •Homeless relief programs
    

28. •Medical Screenings and Services
    

29. •Senior Care
    

30. •Legal Services
    

31. 
    

32.     Housing
    

33. •Building Projects
    

34. •Homeless Support
    

35. •Short-Term Shelter
    

36. 
    

37.     Youth & Family Development
    

38. •Mentoring (Adult and Youth)
    

39. •Parental Counseling
    

40. •Teen Counseling
    

41. •Youth Alternative Programs (Sports, Recreation)
    

Program Administration

Funding Process

At predetermined intervals, usually monthly, the system pools the project specific contributions from all DirectDonors.  If an individual project has received $250 or more in funding, that amount is transferred to the responsible organization or the assigned DirectLeader.  If a project’s donations have not yet reached $250, the funds are disbursed once they have reached that amount.  Asset resources are usually transferred directly from the donors to the project leaders.  However in cases where the donor wishes to use Elevate as a transfer point, asset based resources are shipped on a monthly basis to their designated projects.

Infrequently, a project receives more funding or asset resources than the project leaders had requested.  In such cases Elevate staff will contact the affected DirectDonors and work with them to reallocate their gift to a project with similar goals in their community.  Occasionally, there will be projects that receive only a small percentage of their requested funding.  If a project is pledged less than 65% of the requested amount, the Elevate staff will work with DirectDonors to identify an appropriate substitute project to which funds their can be reallocated.  As is the case with projects that exceed their funding goals, this occurs only rarely.   In certain cases, Elevate will use its discretionary budget to complete the funding of worthy projects that did not receive meet their funding needs via the platform.

Progress & Update Reports

Project progress and update reports are required of each funded project and are posted directly by DirectLeaders.  Upon posting of a completed report, all subscribed DirectDonors are notified as to their availability.  Each progress report may contain financial information, results against identified goals, pictures from a project task, and other information that clearly conveys the status of an initiative.  It should be noted that in order to protect the integrity of these progress documents, Elevate International, Inc. does not alter them.

Project Certification

It is the policy of the Elevate International, Inc. to post only projects that have undergone stringent compliance checks to make certain that they are for a bona fide charitable purpose.  All projects are validated to ensure that they are consistent with the focus of Elevate, the project’s sponsors have a track record of success and all activities meet applicable legal requirements.

Our due diligence process guarantees that the initiatives available in the DirectConnect catalog meet the highest standards of quality and accountability.  Each submitted plan is thoroughly reviewed by our staff to ensure that it conforms to the following criteria:

1. •The project’s focus is consistent with the goals and ideals of Elevate International, Inc.
   

2. •The project has clearly defined objectives as well as measurable and achievable results
   

3. •The submitted initiative has a complete project plan with identified activities and milestones
   

4. •The project team has expertise that will allow them to execute on the submitted project proposal (or is willing to work with Elevate to gain the necessary expertise)
   

5. •The project’s team leaders and their organizations agree to submit financial and progress reports throughout every phase of the project
   

6. •The project team leaders and their organizations are not in violation of any US or International law.
   

7. •The project is eligible for philanthropic donations – so that donors in the US receive full tax benefits.
   

It is possible for organizations that do not possess non-profit status to sponsor and execute projects funded by Elevate International, Inc.. However, these organizations must be compliant with well established guidelines for philanthropy, compliance entails either:

1. •501(c)3 equivalency determination: To ensure that the organization has 501(c)3 equivalency status, we review documentation such as annual reports, budgets, audited financial statement, references staff lists, and other relevant documents; or
   

2. •Expenditures reporting: organizations must provide clear evidence – including supporting documents (e.g. receipts) – that funds are being spent for charitable purposes and according to the submitted plan.
   

Once projects meet these criteria, they are officially approved as DirectConnect projects and are eligible for public listing in the catalog and for funding through Elevate International, Inc.

Individuals may have their ideas funded via the platform and executed without a sponsoring organization as long as they are willing to work under the direction of the Elevate International, Inc., who will act as the non-profit organization of record.

Additional Program Services

Customized Giving and Volunteer Service Programs

For those organizations who wish to have a branded website through which their constituents can volunteer their service and/or donate directly to projects, the DirectConnect platform can be customized to meet their needs.  For example, a local church could have a customized portal into DirectConnect (http://churchname.directconnect.org) that contains projects in their specific local area that focused on projects which coincide with the outreach and service goals of the church.  Similarly, a company interested in providing its employees with opportunities to support and volunteer on specific types of health care projects would have a branded portal that only lists projects that match their specific criteria.

Our program staff can also help an organization create or find existing projects that meets their needs in the local community.  This type of project sourcing is geared towards an organization that wishes to foster service from its members and to support worthy projects within their local community.