How Mission Edge Helped This Veteran Turn His Passion Project Into a Donor-Funded Museum
How being fiscally sponsored under Mission Edge has allowed this museum to accept donations, expand, and become sustainable
Nestled next door to our very own offices here in San Diego lies an 800-square-foot space that tells a story of wartime history.
The Nautical History Gallery Museum, led by Joe Frangiosa Jr. – a military veteran and the principal artist – offers an up-close journey through the evolution of naval ships from the Revolutionary War to the beginning of naval aviation. (Talk about having some cool neighbors!)
Here’s how being fiscally sponsored under Mission Edge has allowed NHGM to accept donations, expand, and contribute to our understanding of history.
NHGM’s Journey with Mission Edge
The NHGM was born in La Jolla in 2016 as Joe’s passion project, funded by his retirement pension. But in October 2022, the museum received a major pledge that would enable it to expand and relocate to Liberty Station in Point Loma.
However, the museum lacked the nonprofit status and infrastructure to accept the donation. That’s where Mission Edge’s Fiscal Sponsorship came in.
Mission Edge decided to take on NHGM as a fiscally sponsored project under our own Community Give Back program because the museum’s cause aligns with the heart of our mission.
We embraced NHGM as a fiscally sponsored project at the end of 2022, and we’ve since helped them launch a giving campaign, create a donation page, and assist in writing and submitting multiple grants and nominations.
The Results
Because it now has the infrastructure in place, NHGM can accept donations from each visitor. This keeps the museum free for all to attend – and they are quickly approaching having enough donations each month to cover their largest single operational cost: rent.
Joe is now able to focus on educating his guests and his art, without being bogged down by the bureaucracy of running a nonprofit.
And because of the structure and assurance we provide in making sure the museum’s financial operations are done legally and with excellence, the founding donor has continued to support them with both time and money, and is invested in helping the museum diversify its fundraising efforts with grants and individual donations.
What’s more: Joe has been able to step into a paid position, which helps make this work more sustainable and will allow him to invest more time and effort into growing the museum that began as a retirement passion project.
Why Does it Matter?
Every day, veteran visitors enter the doors of the NHGM and are brought back to experiencing vivid, heartfelt memories of their time served. Joe witnesses children and families being told stories from when their loved ones served.
If they wouldn’t have turned to Mission Edge for fiscal sponsorship, the NHGM never could have re-opened in Liberty Station in a way that was financially stable, and those stories would remain untold.
Moving forward, Mission Edge is helping the NHGM explore how to diversify its funding and supporting both their marketing and grant writing efforts.
The museum is looking forward to accepting more donations in 2024 so they can continue to allow free admission for years to come.
Get the infrastructure you need to accept funding
Mission Edge’s fiscal sponsorship offers the infrastructure many charitable causes like NHGM need to grow, without the obstacles and red tape involved in setting up a nonprofit.
If this sounds like something your charitable cause could benefit from, we’d love to walk through some options with you
