FRIENDS IN SOLIDARITY INC
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
South Sudan is the newest country in the world becoming independent in 2011 after over 60 years of civil war with the Khartoum government. As a result, this new nation has few well trained teachers or health care professionals. The population suffers from trauma and PTSD. Friends in Solidarity supports the work of Solidarity with South Sudan by supporting the Solidarity Teacher Training College and which has graduated over 550 primary school teachers since 2013. It was only TTC to graduate teachers in 2016/2017. Friends in Solidarity also supports the Catholic Health Training Institute at Wau which is also operated by Solidarity with South Sudan. It was the only institute training registered nurses when it opened in 2011. It has, since then, trained 170 RNs in the country and 98 midwives. Friends in Solidarity also supports the agricultural project and pastoral training initiatives (peacemaking and trauma-healing) run by the 25 Solidarity staff coming from 14 countries and 17 org.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Support for work of Solidarity with South Sudan
Solidarity with South Sudan staffs and operates the Solidarity Teacher Training College at Yambio, the Catholic Health Training Institute at Wau (training registered nurses and midwives), the Solidarity Agricultural Training Project at Riimenze, and also provides trauma healing and peace training workshops from the Good Shepherd Peace Center in Kit, near Juba.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
US partner to Solidarity with South Sudan 2016
External reviews
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsTotal dollars received in contributions
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Support for work of Solidarity with South Sudan
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Most of the funding we receive is designated for projects in South Sudan. 100% of designated funding is transferred to our partner in South Sudan, Solidarity with South Sudan
Total dollar amount of grants awarded
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Support for work of Solidarity with South Sudan
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
2021 includes two domestic grants in support of mission activity benefitting Friends in Solidarity, the US partner to Solidarity with South Sudan.
Number of overall donors
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Support for work of Solidarity with South Sudan
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of new donors
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Support for work of Solidarity with South Sudan
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Friends in Solidarity aims to raise awareness of the situation in South Sudan and the work of Solidarity with South Sudan. It also seeks to raise funding to support the work of Solidarity with South Sudan and is the US partner to this organization. In addition, Friends in Solidarity seeks personnel to join the 25 priests, religious brothers and sisters currently working in South Sudan and coming from 17 different religious congregations and 14 countries.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Friends in Solidarity is a relatively new organization (2016 was its first full year). It is a collaborative model both in terms of those who founded the group and in its Board of Directors. In this way, it mirrors its partner in South Sudan, Solidarity with South Sudan, in that it offers a new paradigm for ministry among the poorest of the poor. Solidarity with South Sudan is composed of members from multiple religious congregations joined with lay persons living and working together in five sites in South Sudan. Friends in Solidarity mirrors this collaborative model.
2) Friends in Solidarity has chosen to focus on the use of social media and electronic communications to get the word out thus reducing over all costs.
3) Friends in Solidarity has outreach to Catholic religious congregations in the US, those committed to this initiative in South Sudan.
4) Friends in Solidarity approaches foundations and other groups and individuals for support of the work in South Sudan.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Friends in Solidarity has the support of religious congregations of women and men in the US. It has a strong Board of Directors who are active on Education and Communications Committees, as well as on the Finance Committee. Friends is supported by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and shares office space with LCWR. Friends has fostered partnerships with US organizations (Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Medical Mission Board) who work in South Sudan. It networks with Africa Faith and Justice Network, the Catholic Task Force on Africa and the Catholic Health Association. It has in place a website (www.solidarityfriends.org), a Facebook page (facebook.com/solidarityfriends), and is active on Twitter and Instagram. Friends has developed integrated management systems that enable the organization to produce email newsletters to keep donors and friends up to date with information from the "ground."
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
During 2016 the focus was on establishing the organization. We developed the corporate structure and Members; developed a Board of Directors; wrote the Articles of Incorporation and by laws; applied for and received 501(c) 3 status from the IRS; applied for and received a listing in the Official Catholic Directory (2017 ed. Kenedy, under the Archdiocese of Washington, DC); researched and put in place an integrated management system which tracks donations from online sources to financial software; completed reporting requirements for IRS; raised over $130,000 in donations; transferred $75,000 to support the work in South Sudan. Friends in Solidarity has significantly increased its contributions to Solidarity with South Sudan since 2016, transferring over $425,000 to support educational initiatives in 2021. We have also posted several resources on the website to educate people about Friends in Solidarity and the projects that we support. In 2018 we began a monthly newsletter on MailChimp and also increased both the number of donors and the level of contributions. We are now supporting about 15% of the cost of the programs of Solidarity in South Sudan and hope to raise this to 20%. In 2020 we added a development associate to the organization, doubling our staff to 2.25, hoping to grow the organization and its ability to raise funds to support the work in South Sudan.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
FRIENDS IN SOLIDARITY INC
Board of directorsas of 04/04/2023
Sr Mary Beth Hamm, SSJ
Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia
Term: 2021 - 2022
Rev John Sivalon, MM
Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers
Term: 2019 - 2022
Rev. Robert Dowd, CSC
Holy Cross Fathers
Sr. Ann Oestreich, IHM
IHM Sisters, Monroe, MI
Sr. Mary Beth Hamm, SSJ
Srs. of St. Joseph of Philadelphia
Rev. John Sivalon, MM
Maryknoll Fathers
Sr. Durstyne Farnan, OP
Dominicans of Adrian, MI
Sr. Geraldine Hoyler, CSC
Holy Cross Sisters
Sr. Eucharia Madueke, SNDdeN
Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur
Sr Joan Mumaw, IHM
Friends in Solidarity, Inc
Br. Craig Franz, FSC
LaSalle International
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Not applicable -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 09/20/2021GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.