Many of you know that in May 2011, Norwescon was granted 501(c)(3) status by the Internal Revenue Service. When we unlocked this achievement we were able to access a significant number of new services, goods, and fun things that help us to complete our mission1. In addition to receiving donations of goods and discounted prices for items like our new registration system, one of the more exciting avenues now open to us is access to employer matching programs. Many employers offer to pay 501(c)(3) organizations a certain amount of money for each hour that their employees volunteer (your employer might have a program that will pay Norwescon for your volunteer hours!).
We have had several ConCom members sign up with their employers for this type of employer matching program. As a result, in the last fiscal year, we received approximately $2,000 in employer matching funds. This amount could pay for Green Room supplies or it could cover almost all of the Special Events budget.
If you would like to learn if your employer has a matching program, the process is simple: Contact your human resources representative and, if this is a benefit that your employer offers, they will be able to start the process on your end. During this process, they will ask for contact information for the organization. Please give them the Norwescon business email address: business@norwescon.org. If this benefit is something that you are able to access, thank you for thinking of donating your hours to us.
If this benefit is not something that your employer offers, don’t worry. We still love you and value your volunteer contributions as well.
1 Unfortunately, our mission is not to explore strange new worlds. It is slightly more earthy and achievable. Our mission, slightly edited, is to promote science fiction, fantasy, and science through the written word, art, and educational programs. We accomplish this goal by holding a yearly convention.