Curry Ford West's 2022 Annual Letter
Download the PDF version of this letter HERE
Dear CFW community:
It has been some time since we addressed the masses directly with a comprehensive introduction, so I apologize for the delay. For many residents, we often hear the comment, “I had no idea you were even here.” That’s what we’re actively working to change; to become a household Main Street name (like our peers) at least in the households closest to our district.
We also frequently refer to ourselves as a “small but mighty team” because our numbers have diminished since our founding in 2018 (for obvious economic reasons). Given that underdog-style fight, we accept the challenge and face it head-on. We’re excited to show the people of our community how much is just around the corner, whether that’s us or another local small business.
We enormously appreciate the support that so many Curry Ford West volunteers and businesses provided, which was pivotal in helping it get off the ground. As our community continues to grow, we want to make sure that anyone interested has a chance to hear what we’re up to and have the opportunity to influence those decisions.
On a personal note, since I joined the organization in November of 2021 as Executive Director, there was a lot to learn about the Main Street program as well as the nuanced workings of our own CFW organization. While there were definitely some bumps along the way, our team stayed positive, recruited additional volunteers, and took risks which also came with more valuable lessons learned.
Over the course of 2022, Curry Ford West was awarded a grant from The Awesome Foundation for our first ever stand-alone Little Entrepreneur Fair and promoted multiple big entrepreneurs, too, through our social media channels and email newsletters. We restarted the Future of the Ford which is similar to a “State of the Union” update and provides an opportunity for people to engage with the organization. Finally, we launched the Way Out West Night Market (@cfwwayoutwest on Instagram & Facebook) which supports local pop-up vendors and changes regularly to create a new shopping and dining experience at every bi-weekly installment. (Coming up: April 11th and 25th!)
With all of this in the works, we know we’re just getting started; it feels like a “reboot” of a classic show and you know how much we love nostalgia! Our first priority for 2023 was simple: recruit, both volunteers and additional business members. The strength in these numbers will help to reduce burn-out of current, dedicated, volunteers and will also result in additional benefits for the business owners themselves. Just like the fantastic team at Oxenfree Film and Motion helped us communicate in this exceptional video: Curry Ford West is better with you. (watch it here!)
Our values are: Family, Unity and Legacy. Whether it’s an event or initiative, we want to make sure it all aligns with those at the core. They also guide how we run our organization; making sure to put family first, understand the value of unity, and operate in a way that keeps us going for generations to come. We’re always eager to hear more about what would help you as residents and small business owners—get in touch via social media or [email protected].
Our mission is: “Curry Ford West exists to provide residents and businesses the opportunity to help beautify, connect, promote and improve our district.” To achieve that, our organization operates with a 501c3 nonprofit Board of Directors and numerous passionate volunteers on our four main committees. These are what we hope to be known for:
Connecting local residents and small business owners to foster conversations that inspire or educate
Partnering with larger organizations to support the long-term growth of our organization
Streamlining assistance to small businesses whether that’s prompt communication, financial assistance, marketing support, or access to resources
Hosting large-scale events that act both as fundraisers and gather the community to have more organic interactions for those in our district to get to know one another (and have FUN!)
In this letter, we’ll show how we’re working towards these four categories and talk about how you can play a part in CFW’s success, too.
Organization
You will often hear us refer to our organization as a “501(c)(3) nonprofit” and that’s because we’re proud of that status! You can read the full definition of what that means for us on the IRS website, but in general it means that we don’t have deep pockets, only full hearts.
Helping us create a larger impact, despite our size, we partner with the City of Orlando’s Orlando Main Streets program who provide organizational support and financial resources. To maintain this partnership, our team provides comprehensive Quarterly Reports of our progress and programming as well as undergo a rigorous annual evaluation that determines our Accreditation / Affiliate status. We’re also proud members of the national Main Street America program where we take guidance on the tried and true Four Points Approach to revitalize communities.
When we think of Curry Ford West, we don’t feel alone. We think of the vast network of 12 Orlando Main Streets and the over 2,000 communities across the country who are doing this alongside us. This designation makes us a formal organization and we love getting to participate in these networks where we share ideas and grow together.
While donations are valuable for us and our programming, it can also benefit you. As you invest in your community, all financial contributions are tax-deductible, so save your receipts! This also helps small business owners catch a break when they can write off their extra marketing dollars.
In addition to legal requirements imposed on us by the IRS to retain our nonprofit status, we also have strict guidelines for operating in that partnership with the City of Orlando. This primarily impacts our volunteer Board of Directors who work hard to maintain our own legacy with this organization.
Volunteers
Every October, our board comes together to vote in a new Executive Board consisting of a President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary. This is our current slate of 2022-2023 Executive Officers and Members at Large.
President: Yuri Almonte
Vice President: Ryan Walker
Treasurer: [ vacant ]
Secretary: Rett Polachek
Committee Chairs
Economic Vitality: Emilie Menendez
Promotion: Nicole Schmitt
Design: [ vacant ]
Organization: Kathryn Smith
Members at Large: Susan Kelly & Chris Thalasinos
City-Appointed Liaison: Terry Goodin
Under this board of strategically-minded individuals, we have a set of four grass-roots committees (Economic Vitality, Promotion, Design, and Organization) who execute the plans and have creative freedom within a general structure. This makes it easy for volunteers to find a place to “fit” for their passions and schedule with so many options to choose from.
Looking back even one year ago, our organization did not have this solid of structure. We’ve seen exceptional community engagement with these passionate residents and Neighborhood Champions step up and give back to the community. Although it was sad to see our previous Board President leave, we know that all Presidents who roll off of the board go on to continue supporting the community in other ways.
For example, Justin Bauknight (20-21 President) of State Farm went on to lead the Kiwanis of South Orlando and Val Vazquez (21-22 President) of Lake Como Elementary went on to lead the Rooted in Grace youth group for the Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church.
Under the leadership of our current (22-23) Board President, Yuri Almonte, Curry Ford West is on a growth trajectory. Our volunteers have a laser focus on their goals and we’re hearing great reviews from the community about the events and initiatives we put on. More than ever before, people are reaching out to us to get involved, not just the other way around.
As we bring this back to our mission of “giving residents and businesses the opportunities to help beautify, connect, promote and improve our district,” we see the correlation to our four main committees. Beautification handled by our Design committee, connecting with the help of our Organization committee, promotion thanks to the committee that shares its name, and improving being the main goal of the Economic Vitality committee.
The Economic Vitality committee’s main achievements over the last year were:
- Welcoming a new Committee Chair
- Restarting the Best of the West (business of the month) campaign
- Reconnecting with Business Members and meeting 1:1 to discuss benefits
- Hosting a number of Community Courses to share knowledge in the community
Over the next year, they plan to:
- Strengthen the Best of the West (business of the month) campaign
- Continue to host Community Courses to share knowledge in the community
- Host more Business Member social events for networking
- Add more committee members
The Promotion committee’s main achievements over the last year were:
- Welcoming a new Committee Chair
- Starting the Way Out West biweekly Tuesday Night Market
- Connecting with a number of vendors to promote pop-up opportunities
- Hosting a number of Signature Events to bring the community together (Hurry Down the Curry 5K, Dress Like a Dad Pub Crawl, Little Entrepreneur Fair, Trunk or Treat, and Picture Perfect Holidays)
Over the next year, they plan to:
- Strengthen their marketing & social media presence
- Continue to host Signature Events to bring the community together (Dress Like a Dad Pub Crawl, Trunk or Treat, and Picture Perfect Holidays remaining)
- Add more committee members
The Design committee’s main achievements over the last year were:
- Painting a number of City of Orlando dumpsters to add a splash of color to the district
- Hosting multiple Community Clean-ups to help curb litter blight
- Creating a “Little Library Map” where people in the community can find the ones we know about and scan a QR code to add more!
Over the next year, they plan to:
- Strengthen their committee with a dedicated Committee Chair
- Paint additional public art spaces (like the new mural that just went up next to Conway Optical!)
- Focus on placemaking projects like installing colorful planters and bike racks
- Add more committee members
The Organization committee’s main achievements over the last year were:
- Partnering with organizations like BizLink Orange, the National Entrepreneur Center, and Visit Orlando to offer benefits and resources to business members
- Recruiting some great new volunteers to help lead our organization in this new chapter
- Hosting a number of coffee hours and opportunities for the community to gather
Over the next year, they plan to:
- Recruit additional volunteers to support all committees and event needs
- Continue to network in the community with other leaders who would help with either “friendraising” or fundraising
- Add more committee members
Support
We know that leadership isn’t for everyone and the last thing you want is to have your volunteer gig feel like work, we get it. But there’s also a great way to look at giving thanks to this definition of “the 5 T’s of Philanthropy” from the Milken Institute: Time, Talent, Treasure, Ties, and Testimony. At any given time of our lives, we might have the capacity to give one or more of those. We encourage volunteers to ask “why” when pursuing a role or opportunity to make sure it’s a passion and not because they’re being “voluntold.”
Once people are locked in with a passion connected to the district, then we’re really cooking with gas. This is when it feels like a well-oiled machine and everyone really “fits.” When a few people have to do all of the work it feels like those dreaded group projects in school.
When philanthropy feels more like a Choose Your Own Adventure Book than a User Manual (or book of law) people are more excited to give either any of those T’s listed above. The benefit of happy sponsors and volunteers is invaluable and we could steal a line from PBS and say that this is made possible by viewers like you.
What comes next
With another Pub Crawl around the corner and the holidays to keep on the radar, we have plenty on our plate, but we’re used to that. Armed with a concise Strategic Plan from the board for our committees to execute, there’s a lot of great programming just around the corner for Curry Ford West residents and business owners. It’s already pretty late into 2023 to say that we’re excited about where this year is headed, but it doesn’t make it less true.
It is the exceptional combination of the right talent and generous sponsors / donors that will help this be a landmark year for the organization. Though we have lofty goals, we know that our biggest assignment is “foundation building;” making sure that everyone understands who we are and how we’re fighting to make Curry Ford West a great place to live, work, eat, and shop!
We don’t do this work to get rich or famous. We don’t do it to win awards (although we do).
We do this work to support small businesses. We do this work to amplify the voices of business owners that aren’t equally represented. We do this work so that the Little Entrepreneurs who grew up with these opportunities remember what that felt like to be helped and help in return.
It has been my personal pleasure to serve in this role as Executive Director over the last year and I have made so many great connections with people within and because of the district. I can’t wait to see where this organization goes with the leadership of our current Board of Directors and the ones who have yet to join.
If this sounds like your cup of tea, we would love to see you at an upcoming event or committee meeting. You can learn more about the events on our website: http://curryfordwest.com or email us to get invited to the next committee meeting that matches your interest [email protected]
Not sure where to start? Let’s grab a drink or a bite and chat about what you love most about Curry Ford West. You can book 30-60 minutes on my calendar HERE.
Best,
Sarah Shoulak
