Regional Nonprofits Begin Entrepreneurial Exploration With The Patterson Foundation

March 3, 2023 – Sarasota

Four regional nonprofit organizations have joined Margin & Mission Ignition, an entrepreneurial opportunity from The Patterson Foundation designed to build organizational capacity, boost revenue and strengthen mission impact. The Patterson Foundation created Margin & Mission Ignition in 2015 to give nonprofits a platform to explore entrepreneurial principles and ways to apply them to create additional funding streams to support their operations. 

No Margin, No Mission, a social enterprise and national consulting firm, has been engaged by The Patterson Foundation to provide consulting and technical guidance to each participating organization throughout a 30-month process. Over that process, these organizations will work to develop and implement earned-income plans to generate revenue that will help sustain and enhance their efforts in our community. Previous Margin & Mission Ignition participants have applied their learnings to launch or expand revenue-generating programs such as educational classes, venue rentals, thrift stores, consulting services and gift shops.

“The organizations Margin & Mission Ignition has been fortunate enough to connect with have demonstrated great ingenuity and openness while building entrepreneurial muscle,” said Debra Jacobs, president and CEO of The Patterson Foundation. “Creating earned-income programming can help nonprofits fulfill their missions amid economic uncertainty while boosting their capacity to serve our region. We laud the organizations for committing to the arduous, but game-changing process ahead.”

The following regional organizations are participating in the latest cohort of Margin & Mission Ignition:

• Art Center Sarasota
• NAMI Sarasota and Manatee Counties
• Sarasota Opera
• Save Our Seabirds

Prior to starting the 30-month process, No Margin, No Mission connected with each of the four nonprofits through a series of learning labs designed to help them assess their readiness for earned-income planning. As they learn about entrepreneurial principles and create their plans in the months ahead, they will have opportunities to connect with the other nonprofits in the cohort to share their learnings and experiences.

Margin & Mission Ignition is part of The Patterson Foundation’s Nonprofit Thrivability initiative. This initiative connects nonprofits with expertise and resources to learn concepts such as strategic decision-making while adopting and implementing entrepreneurial principles to generate enough revenue to support and eventually grow their operations.

For more information about Margin & Mission Ignition, please visit thepattersonfoundation.org or join the conversation using #TPFMarginMission on social media.