Written by Aimie and Shalom in collaboration with Jesse from RVC Seattle (cross-posted here)
Around ten years ago, a funder came to Communities Rise (known at the time as the Nonprofit Assistance Center or NAC) and said “What makes you different from RVC?” The implication was clear:
“Did we both need to exist?”
Inherently, this isn’t a bad question. For a healthy nonprofit sector, we want to consider mergers, understand similarities across services, and encourage partnerships and collaboration. But, we need to recognize that it is also okay to support the growth of like-services and both organizations who are doing important transformative work in the nonprofit sector. We would never argue that there should only be one food bank in the region, so why is it that there should only be one capacity building organization for BIPOC communities? To not acknowledge the value of a multi-service approach to capacity-building is to ignore the plethora of varied lived experiences, cultural richness, and diverse struggles that contribute to a strong ecosystem of cultural vibrancy and resilience. Let’s embrace that parallel programs exist to support an immense need that cannot be met by a single source. Nuances in services may be better supported by a broader breadth of capacity building perspectives and expertise.
By comparing us to other organizations, funders are creating competition and scarcity. It fuels counter-productive attempts to prove that we are better than our counterparts, wasting energy over-analyzing and critiquing another program.
Instead, we can use our energy to invest in relationships that are: grounded in trust, uplifting, filled with clear communication, and opportunities to learn from each other. Relationships that prioritize a focused commitment to crafting a better future, and invite collaboration as an opportunity to build rather than compete. When we embrace cross-pollination, we open up a multitude of perspectives. When we embrace that our successes are intrinsically linked, there is more energy to invest in our comrades’ health and growth, allowing us to build upon our unique strengths.
Building Relationships
It’s with that type of mindset that we set out to build relationships between RVC and CR. Our approach has been light-hearted and personable: dedicating time to check-ins, leading with curiosity on our well-being, and breaking bread together. Over the years, it has evolved and shifted, but the lasting trust we have built amongst ourselves created a foundation of appreciation for the gifts we each bring to one another and the sector. This trust was hard won, as we worked to reignite a relationship between our two organizations in the wake of RVC’s reduction in force in 2025. For us, this is what community meant – showing up to hold each other during hard moments and building a sustainable future together. In many ways, we were the right people at the right time to build a strong foundation of trust, transparency, and care among our organizations.
This past year, we began brainstorming creative ways to be in relationship with one another. We added more structure and intention to cross-support one another’s capacity-building efforts. Last summer we co-hosted a Summer Community Gathering for our staff, setting aside time to leave our computers, eat delicious food, and enjoy the sunshine together. We invited additional partners, recognizing the importance of breathing and being together. We plan to gather more information from our collective communities to determine areas of natural overlap and opportunities for further support from both of our organizations.
Where we go from here
To continue, we plan to:
- Meet regularly, in-person whenever possible;
- Support one another in sharing our funding information and advocating for the funding of one another;
- Build places to collaborate more closely on capacity-building programming;
- Survey our networks to gain greater understanding of the needs of the moment;
- Leverage our position as capacity builders to engage in thought leadership together (if you missed it, our first collaborative piece was on what we need to see at this moment from philanthropy);
- Transparently share our processes and learnings as we build and grow, both with one another and externally.
We believe in and are invested in the longevity of one another’s programs, and look forward to continuing to grow and build with each other in the years to come.