by Nory Contractor

As Executive Director of Patronato Pro Niños for six years, I had the best job. With an outstanding team of doctors, dentists, a psychologist, a nutritionist, drivers and office personnel, we served over 10,000 children a year.

Like most things worth doing, there were difficulties. The challenges involved would have kept some people up at night, but my nature thrives on a certain degree of hyper-activity. I like having many irons in the fire, especially when those are all going to build the same efficient machine.

Being Executive Director was a fun, fulfilling role that allowed me to reshape my business acumen in service of the non-profit (NGO) sector. But astounding as it was, as with most things in life, one day it came to an end.

Vacations are fun... for a week or two. I enjoyed the calm: attending to a list of things that had been on the back burner, taking even better care of myself and my loved ones.

Then, looking forward, I participated in an ongoing deep conversation with myself. I meditated and asked myself the important questions:

What do I want to do here in San Miguel?
How can I best serve?
What is the legacy I want to leave?

I knew that I wanted to do something meaningful, something no one else is doing, that doesn't compete with other non-profits here, something bigger, more central, on a different level, something with the potential to serve all, making San Miguel a better community for all.

I told you that I like to keep busy.

Celebrating with graduates of the preparation program conducted for Mano Amiga beneficiaries
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Over my years at Patronato Pro Niños, I had occasionally reached out to Dr. Dave of Lokkal. Very happy where I was, it was, you might say, professional flirting, based perhaps on a premonition that one day we would work together. Because I saw results when we did, I made sure that Patronato Pro Niños always bought advertising in Lokkal for our events.

I resonated with David's mission, to have an online meta-platform, all-inclusive, like the Yellow Pages robustly reborn for the new millennium. Instead of everyone working separately to promote their event, business or organization, the Lokkal platform unites our efforts in a digital town square, a common publicity platform.

My future, as I visioned it, also involved a meta-project, a non-profit that served other non-profits. Just as the person or group producing an event often needs help publicizing the event, nonprofits serving the community, often (really, always) need help raising money, finding and taking advantage of the funding sources that are available. The nonprofit world is really a universe, and even the best captain needs an expert navigator to sail those seas. That's the role for me.

One day, over lunch, listening to Dr. Dave preach the gospel of localism, a local internet platform that builds community and strengthens the local economy, thereby solving many of the problems facing society today, I realized our kinship. Ours were both meta-projects, including all under our umbrella, floating all boats. I realized the Foundation, I was already well involved in building, and David's Platform had the same objectives in different realms. The lightbulb went off when, I told him I was looking for a name for the foundation and he suggested, "Why not call it Lokkal?" Taking a good dose of our own community medicine, walking the walk, we became a duo for good.

Lokkal Foundation is a good fit for Lokkal the internet platform. The Platform will donate all profits to the community through the Foundation, much as Atención donated its profits to the community through la Biblioteca.

Speaking with a group of beneficiaries of Mano Amiga's microlending project
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I spoke with my dear friend Donna Foudray (RIP), as her San Miguel Community Foundation had the potential of doing many of the things I wanted to do. Not wanting to compete, I was greatly relieved when she, a true community spirit, gave me her blessing, "Lokkal Community Foundation is exactly what San Miguel needs.¨

A community foundation focuses on supporting a specific geographical area, primarily by facilitating and pooling donations used to address community needs and support local nonprofits. Lokkal Foundation uses our expertise to assist non-profits in taking advantage of numerous types of grantmaking programs, frequently including donor-advised funds, endowments, scholarships, field-of-interest funds, giving circles and more. Community foundations are funded by donations from individuals, families, businesses and sometimes government grants.

The mission of Lokkal Foundation is to strengthen existing NGOs in San Miguel, educating them and ensuring their sustainability. We work from within, analyzing their needs, creating programs, guaranteeing a flow of income, to ensure that they can optimize the work that they do outside, in the community. Lokkal Foundation's legal status allows us to work with other NGOs, and special projects, but not directly with the public, making us an important asset to the local NGO community.

This legal status didn't happen overnight. It's been two years in the making. This has been time enough to gather an amazing Board of Directors: President Gael Sherman heads up the board which also boasts Susan Page, Mary Finley, Noe del Razo and Claudia Briones, all dedicated, wonderful, experienced people, expats and locals, all bilingual.

Our amazing team at Lokkal Foundation
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Along with these directors, the Foundation is blessed to have in our office, the ultra-competent duo of Rocio Garcia Barrera and Magdalena H. Copado, who came with me from Patronato Pro Niños.

So yes, Lokkal Foundation has been two years in the making. Although still a baby, we've already taken some giant steps, already having facilitated the bottom lines of a few specific foundations in significant ways. The other day, I brought a small cake into the office to celebrate our two-year anniversary. Happy Birthday to us.

Lokkal the Foundation looks forward to sharing, here in the pages of Lokkal the Platform in an irregular column, important information about San Miguel's NGO scene, including news, tips and how we can give back, be involved, and best make our community better. Stay tuned.

xxx

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Nory Contractor, originally from Cuba, lived in Miami, Florida for 46 years before coming to San Miguel nine years ago. In Miami she worked in education, including as Campus President at National School of Technology. Then she worked at Humana & United Healthcare as Director of Community Relations.

Nory is passionate about providing opportunities for growth and creating quality life experiences in our community. She wants to ensure that every Sanmiguelense has the possibility of a healthy, prosperous and happy life. Through her daily meditation practice, she finds purpose and meaning which allow her to motivate and inspire others to do good for the community.

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