Colorado Springs Together

“Form 990 Part III Line 1 TO SERVE AS THE PRIMARY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION TO BRING THE COMMUNITY SPIRIT AND SUBSTANTIAL RESOURCES OF THE BUSINESSES AND CITIZENS OF THE PIKES PEAK REGION TO RESTORE THE LIVES, HOMES AND NEIGHBORHOODS IMPACTED BY THE WALDO CANYON FIRE. WE WILL RESTORE THESE QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY THROUGHOUT THE RECOVERY PROCESS.”

“Form 990 Part III Line 4a Donated funds will be used to coordinate these efforts through a resource center in Mountain Shadows and the Colorado Springs Together website. Donations will also be used to support the recovery of the communities with programs, events, and activities. Allocation of funds will be authorized by a volunteer advisory board that includes representatives from the affected neighborhoods. Goal #1: Establish the Colorado Springs Together Center. The Colorado Springs Together Center was established at a leased 5000 sq.ft. facility which served as a resource center, community center and meeting space for the residents affected by the Waldo Canyon Fire. It was open 9am-5pm Monday-Friday and available at night and on weekends from August 2012-July 2013. The center was staffed by a paid office manager and over a dozen community volunteers. Resources available at the center included Small Business Administration, HOA representatives, Housing and Building Association consultant, Better Business Bureau, Long Term Recovery Group, AspenPointe crisis counseling, insurance consultants, discount card program, Small Business Development Center, Colorado Springs Utilities and other groups, as required. This provided a "one stop shop" for residents. The center closed as planned in July 2013 just over one year after the fire. Results: - OVER 2000 VISITORS TO THE CENTER - APPROXIMATELY 150 GROUP MEETINGS / PRESENTATIONS - ALMOST 500 HOURS OF CRISIS COUNSELING PROVIDED AT THE CENTER BY ASPENPOINTE - OVER 200 INDIVIDUALS RECEIVED PERSONAL DIRECT INSURANCE CLAIM CONSULTING SERVICES Status: Completed Goal #2: Colorado Springs Together website. The website www.coloradospringstogether.org provided the "cyber" center of activity and communication. The site provided a "one stop shop" on-line for the neighborhood. Extensive resources were made available replicating those available at the Center. Regular email blasts were sent out to over 2000 subscribers on a variety of topics. The e-blast topics have been archived and are available at: http://www.coloradospringstogether.org/resources1/Emails-Archive.cfm. The website has received extensive praise inside and outside the local community. The site provided updates on recovery metrics, news items, a large array of useful publications and links to other resources. The website continued in operation until 12/31/13 at which time it was frozen but left active so that citizens could still access the materials. Results: - Over 540,000 e-blasts opened - Over 35,000 unique visitors to the website - Over 200,000 page views - Two days after Black Forest Fire: almost 3,000 visits in one day Status: Completed Goal #3: Colorado Springs Together Discount Card. Around 200 local merchants took part offering discounts of 20% on food, clothing, furniture and appliances to the neighborhood residents. The cards became available on 9/14/12. Cards were collected by approximately 80% of the affected residents and were given to any resident of Mountain Shadows and the extreme west of Peregrine, whether or not they lost their home, in recognition of what the entire neighborhood was going through in recovery. Detailed information can be found at http://www.coloradospringstogether.org/discountcard/index.cfm. The cards were honored by many merchants through the end of 2013. Many vendors have continued to offer discounts to those affected by the fire. Results: - Approximately 3000 cards issued - Highest savings achieved by a resident rebuilding their home ~ $30,000 Status: COMPLETED (WEBSITE STILL AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW AND INFORMATION) Goal #4: Coordination of Critical Activities. The number of activities is too extensive to include in this report. Key programs included debris removal which was extremely successful with 95% of the sites having debris removal permits in 3 months with the last debris being removed in December 2012. In addition, insurance claim processing counseling and workshops enabled residents to ach”

“Form 990 Part VI Line 11a The organization provides a complete copy of Form 990 to all board members for review and approval prior to filing.”

“Form 990 Part VI line 12c The organization's conflict of interest policy requires periodic review by the board of directors. In the fall of 2013, the Board signed the Conflict of Interest Policy.”

“Form 990 Part VI line 19. Governing Documents and conflict of interest policy are available upon request.”