Annette Marcum, the founder and executive director of Ben Lomond’s Valley Churches United Missions, remembers sitting at a table in 1985 to work out the nonprofit’s first budget, a modest $11,175. Since then, the group that was created to give direct help to those in need of basic necessities has grown — a lot.
Fast forward 25 years, and for the first time the nonprofit’s budget has reached $1 million, with more than half of that amount making up item donations like food, new school supplies, and unused blankets.
“We had the concept and the vision, but none of us anticipated how big this would turn out,” Marcum said.
Marcum said the budget has grown each year because the number of people in need has increased.
“For example, three years ago, our senior program served 30 seniors a week. Now, we’re at 140 seniors a week,” she said.
Valley Churches was built on direct client aid, Marcum added, and the larger budget is a reflection that the group can do most of what it does — like help people pay emergency rent and utility bills or give out bags of food — under one roof.
“Hunger doesn’t take a holiday. It’s there all year,” Marcum said. “And we all work like heck to make sure people get what they need.”
Since starting out, Valley Churches has built up its donors, who are its main base, Marcum said. The nonprofit uses no government money and operates with about 5 percent in administrative costs.
As donations have grown, the organization has been able to do more. Because donated foodstuffs are usually items that don’t need refrigeration, for instance, $95,000 of Valley Churches’ budget has been set aside to buy food vouchers from local stores so recipients can buy perishable foods.
Along with donations, Marcum said, volunteers are the most vital part of Valley Churches. After filling a new paid administration assistant position this month, the outfit is 2 percent paid staff and 98 percent volunteers.
The group has 462 volunteers on call year-round who do a range of tasks, from office work to sorting donations. Valley Churches also has 229 volunteers on call specifically for disaster relief.
