What you Helped Accomplish in 2008!!!!

I hope you are well. We have actually had recent snow and sleet, and temperatures are running cooler than normal for this time of year. This report is later than normal. This has been a tough year in many ways.

At best, we are in a mild recession, and many people (and our supporters) are feeling the pinch of additional costs for gas and food. The costs for us to do fulfillment of catalog orders is really increased. We are doing our best to hold it down, but it is difficult.

This is a type of "annual report", or "state of the Foundation" letter. I think it is vitally important for you to know what we are doing, and for us to be accountable to our supporters. With all of the scams and fraudulent charities out there, we want you to be absolutely certain that we are a good, honest, worthwhile charity.

I am often asked if I think we are really doing anything worthwhile for my people. Isn't the situation hopeless? I grit my teeth and try to explain that all of us must do whatever we can to alleviate the suffering. I hope after seeing our work in review you will agree that we must continue.

I have outlined some highlights of our annual report on a separate sheet for the year of 2007. I can honestly say that each and every project was truly needed, and executed with care. We also try to make each dollar go as far as humanly possible.

Our salaries are frugal. The pay to our employees is modest, but decent and respectable. Our Board of Directors is all volunteer. We have a good and conscientious Board that earnestly weighs our needs and resources in love and justice.

Our administrative costs for 2007 were under 4%. I will put that up against any standard. Our audit was completed in the fourth week in March. I welcome you to request our financial audit available through our office. The Percentage of each dollar going to our charitable programs was very encouraging.

We are so reliant on you, that there is no way for me to possibly express my thanks and plea for you to continue to support us. We will take gifts in any form: Cars, trucks, buses, stocks, insurance policies. We are also now offering Charitable Gift Annuities! Of course our future so much depends on you; the ultimate gift is a will bequest. Won't you please consider leaving SWIF in your will?

I have been asked about an "adopt" or "pledge" program. We did not have the sophisticated apparatus or resources to manage such a program - but now we do. You may want to buy a stove for a Native American family, but just cannot afford the full amount at one time.

We can now set up a payment plan through your credit card. In this computer age, I hope you will understand that this is an easy way for us to manage such a program. We have an extremely secure credit card arrangement, and you can cancel at any time for whatever reason. It works like this: You authorize us to charge your credit card each month for a set amount. That way we can count on the donations - and spend much less on fund raising costs. I think this would be a tremendous benefit - most importantly for our projects and the poor and suffering people we assist.

What do you think of this? I really want to know your thoughts on this credit card program, our work in 2007, our future work, or anything else that is on your mind. I truly mean that. We have worked tirelessly to establish long range programs that significantly impact the lives or our people. We are truly building for a better future.

Just one example of a program that we are very excited about is our expanding home building project. In 2008, we hope to greatly expand our building capabilities and aide families that would have no way to have a home without outside assistance. We are setting a goal of 30 homes this year. Could you help provide long term stability to this program??

We accomplished a great deal in 2007, but there is so much more to do. The most important thing is that we never abandon the poor and suffering Native people of the Southwest. Let us unite together, and do more to alleviate poverty and suffering this year. You are always welcome to stop in the Foundation at 100 West Coal, in Gallup, NM, or the Gallup Cultural Center at 202 East Highway 66.

God Bless You Always,
Deacon Dan Nez Martin

P.S. I hope you will forgive me for throwing so many stats and so much information at you. We must never lose sight of our objective - the smiling faces of little Navajo children. They are the hope and future. Let us not let them down. Have a great summer.

Click here to download our 2008 annual report.