The word nonprofit is very familiar to the Peninsula community. Most think of it in terms of requests for donations, funding through grants and fundraisers. The Bernardine Franciscan Sisters Foundation through Entrepreneurial Thinking for Nonprofits (ET) invited nonprofits to explore what is very natural to them, being entrepreneurial and identifying new revenue-generating streams to support long-term sustainability. Natasha House, Inc., and Faith Recovery accepted the invitation, utilized ET and are benefitting from new revenue-generating streams.
NATASHA House Inc. (NHI), the only transitional home in York County, exists to empower homeless mothers on the Virginia Peninsula by providing resources and support to achieve and maintain self-sufficiency via its HomeMakers (HMP) Transitional Housing Program. According to Dr. Karen Brown, CEO, one way the nonprofit achieves its mission is through the Seed2Table (S2T) on-site career-readiness, Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program. In 2021, NHI received a $20,000 grant from the Bernadine Franciscan Sisters Foundation. Of that, $10,000 was used to lease a commercial kitchen which eventually was sold, forcing NHI to relocate. It used the other $10,000 for equipment storage, resident employment and product sales. S2T generated income, and its plans included product specials, subscriptions and more. In 2024, revenue decreased due to challenges S2T faced. It was restructured and formulated a 2025 relaunch. The Relaunch Plan includes sharing kitchen space, restarting the S2T Care-Shares, leasing garden space, product expansion via subscriptions and revamping its partnership with Virginia State University.
ET provided Faith Recover with invaluable guidance as it developed a revenue-generating project to enhance both sustainability and the care it offers as a Christian Addiction Recovery Program. The project focused on adding a clinical component to its services by obtaining credentials through the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services and Medicaid, hiring clinical staff and renovating a 3,000-square-foot building into counseling offices. The ET Project grant played a crucial role in completing the renovation. This addition transformed Faith Recovery’s 3.5-acre campus, which already included two homes and a chapel, into a comprehensive, integrated recovery environment. By offering counseling on-site, it now provided a seamless campus experience that aligns with its mission to treat the whole person, spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically. ET empowered Faith Recovery to take this significant step toward expanding its impact and improving the quality of care it provides.
A new revenue-generating stream was the culmination for each nonprofit working toward that goal; however, the true goal was adopting an entrepreneurial mindset. It was about taking a break from the hamster wheel of grants, donations and fundraisers by exploring opportunities to create new revenue streams. The Mission Model Canvas (MMC) was a learning which each participant could use to map out potential opportunities toward guaranteeing the nonprofit’s stability and sustainability. Implementation of MMC provides a total picture of all the aspects of an entrepreneurial undertaking. The beginning and continuation of any new endeavor takes time; however, unite the talent of the executive director and board of directors, and voila, a new revenue-generating stream.
