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Hiya Friend! Hope your summer is off to a fantastic start! The weather here in Minnesota has been pretty warm lately...and by warm, I mean hot. Like, consistently above 90 degrees hot. But I think us Minnesotans agreed that if we had a mild winter, we wouldn’t complain about the hot summer. So, there’s been lots of sunscreen, pools, popsicles, and sprinkler play. Also, lots and lots of dry, yellow grass. Hey, we’ll take it. Anyhoo, let’s get to the updates! RESULTS ARE IN!In case you missed our announcement on Social Media last month, the winners of the Dough social innovator program in which Handlender was a semi-finalist were announced. Unfortunately, we were not selected as one of the finalists, but we weren’t discouraged in the least bit! We gave an awesome pitch (the judges agreed), and our overall presentation was great! Plus, we learned so much along the way. So if anything, the whole process has added fuel to our fire! I was, however, curious about why we weren’t selected. But when I learned who the winners were, it all kind of made sense. The organizations that were chosen are doing wonderful work in and for our communities. Click the links below to learn more about the awesome ways they help make our world a better place. Wildflyer Coffee ~ Edith’s House ~ Bricks to Bread ~ Letters of Love ~ Mocha Momma’s Coffee (website not active) For a quick video summary of all 5 organizations, click here. See what I mean? They’re doing some cool stuff... ...and so are we! We have a plan to expand nationally and globally! Check out some of our key strategies to make it happen:  You’ve definitely got a lot to look forward to! Keep the support coming, and spread the word to your networks. They won’t want to miss out on what we have in store! WHAT'S HAPPENIN'Members of the Handlender network will mutually experience the Power of Giving and the Comfort of Receiving. Remember what we're all about: Offering a safe, anonymous, and efficient way to ask for help or lend a hand to people you already know and trust, without requiring money or bartering. We enjoy helping members unearth hidden skills and talents, essentially saving them money and keeping resources in-house.
GROWING OUR TEAM Psst! We’re looking for quality individuals who’d love to join the Handlender team. We’d love to have a social media manager and a sales & marketing manager come on board, as well as a few qualified individuals to serve on our advisory board. We’re also looking for individuals who’d like to join our website development team. If you want to learn more, or know someone who might be interested, email us! Stay Connected Our HCN's are a great way to stay in the loop about our growth and progress, but we’d love for you to interact with us on Social Media as well! Connect with us on LinkedIn, Follow us on Instagram and Twitter, and Like us on Facebook! 'TIL NEXT TIMEBefore I bring this newsletter to a close, I’d be remiss if I didn’t express my gratitude toward the key individuals who played a huge role in helping Handlender successfully navigate the Dough program. Many thanks to Adam Thompson, Bill Sharpe, Jenny Edstrom, Kate DiLeo, Jim Sanford, Brian Jones, Danielle Jones, and everyone else who supported us along the way! Alright, friend. We better get back to it. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover, and I’m eager to get trekking. Thanks for your continued support, and we’ll talk again in Q3! As always, thank you for being a part of the Handlender Network!
Hiya Friends, and HELLO Spring! I’m loving the warmer weather here in Minnesota, even though there’s always a chance it could snow tomorrow. The way I see it, you gotta take the good with the great! Anyhoo, I could hardly wait to send you this newsletter! I’ve got many updates to share, so let’s get to it!  I mean, it's kinda like Shark Tank...I’m thrilled to announce that Handlender is a semi-finalist in a local social entrepreneurship initiative called “Dough!” The idea for this program was originally designed and successfully carried out by Colonial Church in Edina, Minnesota. As a spin-off, Dough was formed and sponsored by Wayzata Community Church and invites entrepreneurs to submit ideas for projects that address social challenges. Of 108 applicants, Handlender was selected to join 13 other semi-finalists for an opportunity to receive funding from a pool of $200,000! In addition to possible funding, the Dough program offers benefits such as access to skills/business coaches, entrepreneurial resources, workshops, and access to business-friendly networks and potential investors! Part of the admission process was submitting a two-minute video sharing a little bit about our idea. Check out our video, and videos of other semi-finalists! We've been working with our business coach weekly since our acceptance into the program, all in preparation for “Pitch Week” in May, where the winner(s) will be selected! Obviously we're hopeful to be chosen, so we welcome all encouragement and prayers of support! DO YOU LISTEN TO PODCASTS?If so, you’ll be happy to know that I recently had the opportunity to speak with podcaster Adam Thompson, host of The Phase 2 Podcast and owner of FocalPoint Coaching of Minnesota. In the podcast, we talk about the origination of Handlender, how the platform works, how we intend to grow, and how you can get involved aside from membership. The podcast will be released this Wednesday, so keep your eyes peeled for an email or a social post with the link to listen! Speaking of social posts, if you haven’t noticed by now, we’re making more of a splash on social media. In addition to our website, you can now follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn!
DEVELOPMENT Remember those back-end automation and notification updates we told you about in the last newsletter? Well, they’re finished and we’re ready to go! If you’re part of a Handlender community (sponsored by your Church or organization), you may receive an email and/or text confirming the transition of your account as we start to move all members to this new system. After your account is transitioned, and when you submit a request, you will now receive text and email notifications about who’s available to help as soon as the helpers respond! Isn’t that exciting?! No more waiting for 48 hours! WEBSITE We’ve made a few minor changes to our website, which may not be noticeable at first glance, but I want to tell you about them anyway. We’ve updated our “Registration” and “Contact Us” pages to make it easier for members to sign up or connect with us. We’ve also modified our newsletter subscription link, so if you want to share the joy of Handlender updates with others, they can subscribe to our newsletter right from the Home Page. P.s. A warm welcome to our new subscribers! 'Til Next Time...And there you have it, friends. A newsletter full of excitement, and much more still in the works! We'll continue working to make Handlender even better for every community in our network. So feel free to share our platform and social links with others, so they'll also have the opportunity to experience The Power of Giving, and the Comfort of Receiving. Thank you for all of your support, and thank you for being a part of the Handlender Network! Schia Hart Founder, Handlender LLC New to Handlender? Subscribe to our quarterly Newsletter!
Merry Christmas, Friend! |
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