Sustainable Tompkins got some good news at the end of the 2015 calendar year!  We received our notification from the IRS that our own 501c3 status has been finally granted.  We’ve been under the fiscal umbrella of Social Ventures for many years, and we’ve been grateful to Sara Hess, Jeff Furman, and Chuck Guttman for their board’s willingness to give our donors a place to make their tax-deductible gifts.  Sustainable Tompkins paid a 5% fee to Social Ventures, and having our own tax-deductible status will save us money and streamline our operations.

Much gratitude is also due to Chuck Guttman who served as our pro bono attorney for the lengthy filing, and to Board member Dick Franke for picking up where others left off in completing the many steps involved in compiling documents for an organization with our long history.  Thanks also to office helpers Peter FitzRandolph and Nancy Robbins for pulling together all the elements needed!