SNOW HILL – The Worcester County Commissioners voted 5-2 to contribute funding for a study gauging the economic impact of nonprofits on the Eastern Shore.
At the request of Merry Mears, Worcester County’s economic development director, the commissioners agreed to contribute $1,500 to the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore (CFES) for a study on the impact of nonprofits on the shore.
“This is something we can put in front of people to say these are the jobs that are resulting as far as what the local nonprofits are creating here,” Mears said. “There are a lot of jobs that are available in the region through nonprofits.”
Mears said she met with Erica Joseph, president of CFES, this fall to discuss the regional study the organization had planned.
“The study results are expected to communicate to philanthropists the significance of funding nonprofit organizations while investing in communities served by these organizations in our region,” Mears said.
She said the study would cost $16,100 and that CFES was asking for a $1,500 contribution from Worcester County. She said there was ample funding in her department’s budget for the request.
“I believe this study will provide a platform to local philanthropists that currently contribute and those who may want to,” she said. “They’ll understand the numbers and the impacts their dollars will make.”
Commissioner Chip Bertino questioned whether government should be involved in the study.
“We have a great number of nonprofits who do excellent work,” Bertino said. “Why should government and taxpayer money fund it?”
Mears said the county should help fund the study because nonprofits didn’t pull in private investments or sell products for profit. She said her department worked with nonprofits on vital programs such as the Step Up and Reach for the Stars STEM Camp and that this study would showcase the impact of nonprofits on the Eastern Shore.
“It’s shedding light on what’s out there,” she said, adding that she’d had two philanthropists call her during the past month to discuss setting up scholarships.
When asked who else would be funding the study, Mears said CFES would be seeking support from the Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore, the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce, Somerset County Economic Development and the Tri-County Council, among other groups.
Commissioner Jim Bunting said the fact that there was $1,500 available in Mears’ budget didn’t mean she should use it on the study.
“I think there’s times you’ve needed $1,500 for things more important than this,” he said.
The commissioners voted 5-2, with Bunting and Bertino opposed, to approve funding for the study.
While the study is still awaiting funding commitments from a number of other entities, Joseph said Wednesday she expected work on it to get underway in early 2018. She says the finished product will demonstrate the part nonprofits play in the community.
“The purpose of this study will be to communicate with citizens and elected officials the key role the nonprofit sector plays in improving and advancing the quality of life in the Lower Shore region, as well as to increase understanding of the importance of funding nonprofit organizations and investing in communities served in this region,” Joseph said.
