Frequently Asked Questions
Community Heroes is a program of Dewlyn Nonprofit Services. Dewlyn Nonprofit Services was established in 2017 to support causes that promote social good. Community Heroes is our way of impacting thousands of communities by helping the people who help people. Before joining us through membership or applying for funding, please read through the FAQs below!
Heroes Membership
Heroes Lite includes:
- Discounts on private consulting and LIVE training.
- Monthly grant lists with funding opportunities from government, foundations, and corporations.
- Charitable program growth and sustainability resources and tips.
- Access to FREE training webinars.
Heroes Academy includes EVERYTHING from Lite memberships and free access to:
- Heroes $1,000 Award application.
- Automatic re-entry for the Heroes Award (each month of the calendar year).
- Archived funding newsletters.
- Charitable organization forms and templates.
- The Community Cafe.
- Heroes Coaching Circles.
- FREE access to LIVE and On-demand training webinars.
Academy Members have access to forms templates which will save hours of research and writing or paying for these forms online.
Available templates include:
- Bylaws
- Conflict of Interest
- Discrimination Policy
- Risk Management Policies
- Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
- Volunteer Agreement
- Charitable Donation Receipt
- Board Meeting Minutes
- Board Job Descriptions
- Grant -Letter of Inquiry
- And more!
The templates are fully customizable, enabling you to add new fields, logos or design it to match your company style guide.
To help you find the funds you need to implement and sustain your charitable program or project, we offer monthly practical advice and best practices to all Community Heroes’ members.
Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a magic elixir when it comes to funding a charitable program or project, especially during challenging economic times.
We recommend that you:
- Review all of the tips and resources provided by Community Heroes each month.
- Go online and research additional best practices that will position your program for funding.
- Use your best judgement in applying the tips and resources that best align with your program mission.
- And, never give up!
Grant lists are emailed in the Community Heroes Newsletter each month.
For each grant opportunity, we include the following details (when provided by the funder):
- The Funder’s name
- Opportunity deadline
- Opportunity Amount
- Funder’s mission or priority causes
- Where to learn more and apply
Yes. All members have access to On-Demand and LIVE Webinars that include:
- What Great Nonprofits Do to Succeed
- Becoming Grant-Ready
- Nonprofit Essentials 101 – What to do in your first 12 months.
- And more!
Academy members have FREE access to ALL of our on-demand trainings and LIVE weekly training webinars.
Training topics include:
- Starting a Nonprofit
- Completing the IRS 1023-EZ Application
- The Art of Grant-Writing
- Board Development
- 21 Ways to Fund a Nonprofit
- Nonprofit Budgets
- Nonprofit Compliance
- Utilizing Sector Resources
- Strategic Planning
- And more!
The Heroes memberships do not include free consultation. The purpose of consultation is to discuss your business needs. Many times consultation involves helping you to identify a plan of action for solving the issue or accomplishing your charitable goal(s).
Academy members receive a 50% discount for nonprofit consultation.
The Heroes membership doesn’t include free grant-writing services.
However, all Academy members receive FREE access to on-demand, LIVE webinar training, Coaching Circles and the Community Cafe. Grant-writing is covered in these trainings and tutorials.
In addition, Academy members can attend LIVE (in person) grant-writing trainings at a 50% discount.
Upgrading Your Membership:
Yes, you may upgrade your membership at any time.
To upgrade your membership, click on the (Academy) membership button located on this page.
Cancelling Your Membership:
Yes, you may cancel your membership at any time.
Lite Members: To cancel your Lite membership, you can do so by unsubscribing to the Community Heroes Newsletter, or by emailing us at support@dewlyn.com.
Academy Members: To cancel your Academy membership, simply send us an email to request a cancellation. Be sure to type “CANCEL” in the subject line of the email and provide us with a contact number where you can be reached – just in case we have questions.
IMPORTANT: Because we provide Academy members with upfront benefits, there are no refunds issued for Academy membership cancellations – regardless of the date of upgrade or cancellation.
If you have any trouble upgrading or cancelling your membership, please email us at support@dewlyn.com. We will be happy to help!
Heroes Award
The Heroes Award was established in response to COVID-19 to recognize and support everyday heroes that are contributing and/or creating positive social impact in local communities.
Eligible applicants:
- Academy Members only.
- Must be 18 years old or older.
- Must be engaged in positive social impact in your community or have a feasible plan for a social impact project.
- Must have 25 or fewer employees; or Self-Employed, Independent Contractors or Gig workers.
If you meet the above criteria, we encourage you to apply!
The Heroes Award is up to $1,000. Several awards may be given in a single month.
Applicants may also apply for a 1 year scholarship to the Community Heroes Academy. Be sure to check the box for this in the application.
Heroes Sponsorships
We award up to $1,000 cash to sponsor (or fund) a program, project, or event that helps you promote social good while also promoting the “Community Heroes” program in your network. Sponsorship awards may be used to fund budgetary line items such as equipment, websites, banners, printing, supplies, travel, IRS 501(c)(3) application fees, etc.
Heroes Grants
We award grants to nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations only. Based on your request, grants may be unrestricted and used to further your charitable mission.
You may apply for the Heroes Award one time per month.
If you are an Academy Member, you will only have to apply one time during the calendar year. Your initial application will automatically be re-entered for consideration each month in the current year calendar year. If you update your application, we will consider the most recent submitted application.
Only one person per business, organization, or team may apply for a Heroes Award in any single month.
The deadline to apply for the Heroes Award is the 30th day of every month at 12:00pm. Unless extended, final applications for the Heroes Award will be accepted December 31, 2020.
Heroes Awards are given to advance programs, projects, events, or policies that further social good, which includes charitable programs.
We do not provide funding for:
- Individuals, (experiencing hardship, illness, or in need of personal scholarships).
- Political candidates, committees, or organizations.
- Public service agencies such as police and fire departments.
- Applicants that discriminate against people on the basis of age, race, creed, gender, handicap, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or national origin.