When Cathryn McGill assembled a volunteer coalition to create the annual New Mexico Black History Month Festival, the New Mexico Foundation became the fiscal sponsor for the Black nonprofit. Now, the New Mexico Black Leadership Council gives thanks to the Foundation that was there from the beginning.
As the year 2020 comes to a close, the New Mexico Black Leadership Council takes this opportunity to give a most sincere thank you to one of its most steadfast sponsors, the New Mexico Foundation (NMF). The New Mexico Foundation has been NMBLC’s fiscal sponsor since its inception as the New Mexico Black History Organizing Committee (NMBHOC) ten years ago. With the New Mexico Foundation’s support, NMBHOC had the ability to grow and flourish from a fledgling festival and summer camp vehicle into the hub organization it is today: hiring two additional full time staff members, assembling a Board of Directors, and providing fiscal and administrative support to other nascent organizations in the Black nonprofit sector.
What It Means to Be A Fiscal Sponsor
Fiscal sponsorship allows charitable organizations that do not have their own 501(c)(3) status to fulfill their mission. With fiscal sponsorship, the New Mexico Foundation (NMF) provided administrative services, oversight, and financial responsibility for NMBHOC, even though the Organizing Committee did not have a federal tax ID or official IRS status as a charitable organization. This relationship with NMF allowed NMBHOC to conduct fundraisers, apply for grants, receive private contributions, and pay vendors and contractors for services needed for events such as the Asante Awards ceremony, the Kumbuka celebration, and the Roots Summer Leadership Academy. For the past decade, the New Mexico Foundation has acted as the fiscal sponsor for not only NMBHOC, but also for the first year of the New Mexico Black Leadership Council.
NMBLC’s Black Nonprofit Goes to the Next Level
Achieving 501(c)(3) status is no small feat. The organization had to first set itself up as a corporation, with Articles of Incorporation and a Board of Directors. It then had to successfully complete the application process, an IRS form that is itself almost thirty pages long. That’s before the organizational docs that have to be included, such as the bylaws.
In August of 2019, The New Mexico Black Leadership Council received official 501(c)(3) status from the IRS.
NMBLC was then in a position to finally hire full time staff to effectively execute the organization’s robust new mission: serve as a hub to create a viable and sustainable Black nonprofit sector for the Black community in the state of New Mexico.
With growth comes change, and this is where the ten-year partnership with the New Mexico Foundation comes to a close. Because NMF does not offer the type of services required to administer payroll and reporting for W2 employees, NMBLC had to take the next step of sustainability. In October of 2020, NMBLC hired a local Black-owned CPA firm to handle the organization’s payroll and tax liability. While the New Mexico Foundation is no longer NMBLC’s fiscal sponsor, NMF has fulfilled its mission to help nonprofits achieve independence and self actualization.
A Statement of Gratitude from NMBLC’s Founder and Director
The New Mexico Foundation has been a huge part of our story for 10 years and we will always be connected to them. The Foundation has helped us through many rough patches and has been there to celebrate our success since inception 10 years ago. We know we have a long way to go, and we are grateful for all of the support that the Foundation has provided for us.
I am forever indebted to all of the people at the Foundation for believing in us and our mission. If you ever need me, as my grandmother used to say, “Lord willing and the creek don’t rise”, I’ll be there.
Asante! (“Thank You” in Swahili.)
–Cathryn McGill, NMBLC Founder and Director
The New Mexico Black Leadership Council extends deep gratitude and blessings to the New Mexico Foundation and all of its people.