Client: Granite United Way
Engagement: Assessment and engagement strategy with 22 community based organizations
Regional reach: North Country, Upper Valley, Southern New Hampshire, Central New Hampshire and Seacoast
DMC focus: Grassroots partnerships, equity partner engagement, qualitative research, organizational capacity, regional collaboration and implementation strategy
Granite United Way engaged Deo Mwano Consultancy to understand the experiences, needs and partnership opportunities of 22 grassroots community organizations. DMC combined individual conversations, onsite observation and regional convenings to connect partners’ knowledge with recommendations for stronger engagement and organizational support.
The challenge
Grassroots organizations served communities with different needs, resources and geographic realities. Partners supported rural residents, immigrants and refugees, veterans, families experiencing housing insecurity, youth, LGBTQ+ communities, entrepreneurs, older adults and other populations facing barriers to services.
Many organizations delivered extensive support with small staffs or volunteer driven structures. Funding restrictions, limited facilities, transportation barriers and burnout could constrain their ability to sustain or expand services. Understanding these pressures required learning how each organization operated and how it experienced its relationship with Granite United Way.
Partners also wanted regular communication, in person engagement and a relationship in which their community expertise could inform decisions. For Granite United Way, the opportunity was to connect its funding role with a more informed and sustained partnership approach.
DMC responsibility
DMC was responsible for building relationships directly with the organizations, understanding their missions and operating conditions, identifying organizational and regional barriers, and translating the findings into an actionable engagement strategy.
The team examined programs, staffing, funding, sustainability, operational systems and growth opportunities. DMC then brought partners together to review the findings and worked with Granite United Way staff, leadership and community facing teams on recommendations for continued engagement.
Assessment scope
DMC met individually with all 22 community partners. Onsite visits typically lasted one to two hours and included observing programs, meeting staff and volunteers, touring facilities and learning how services were delivered. The engagement covered organizations across five New Hampshire regions and neighboring areas.
DMC community partnership approach
Information Gathering → Report Out → Relationship Building → Co Design Solutions → Implementation
Understand each organization before developing solutions
Initial conversations explored each partner’s mission, communities served, programs, impact, challenges and expectations of Granite United Way. Further discussions examined operational systems, staffing, sustainability, funding constraints and capacity. This provided a basis for understanding differences between partners as well as shared needs.
Visit the places where services happen
DMC traveled to organizations to understand their work in context. At Way Station in North Conway, the team learned how the organization responded to rural homelessness through food, cold weather supplies, transportation support, phone and mail services, and community partnerships. The organization identified stronger regional networks and more in person engagement from Granite United Way as opportunities.
At WREN in Bethlehem, DMC observed work supporting economic opportunity across Grafton, Coös and Carroll counties. The organization was developing resources such as a photography studio in response to limited nearby infrastructure. These visits connected organizational needs with the realities of the surrounding communities.
Treat partners as sources of community expertise
Building Community in New Hampshire illustrated how restricted funding could limit a holistic response when families faced interconnected health, education, housing and transportation needs. The refugee founded organization employed case managers representing communities including Afghanistan, Ukraine and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
At Safari Youth Club, relationships with immigrant and refugee families helped staff and volunteers understand children’s needs beyond academics and connect families with additional resources. DMC examined what partners knew about their communities alongside the support their organizations needed.
Identify themes across partners and regions
DMC compared experiences to identify recurring issues involving capacity, sustainable funding, transportation, physical space, burnout and funding restrictions. The analysis also identified expectations for more consistent communication and a stronger community presence from Granite United Way.
Return findings to partners and develop next steps
Regional convenings gave partners an opportunity to review and challenge findings, share experiences, explore collaboration and help shape the future relationship with Granite United Way. DMC used this feedback with staff and leadership to develop recommendations for engagement, capacity support and internal structures to sustain the work.
What the assessment revealed
Small organizations carried substantial responsibilities
Many partners relied on small teams and volunteers to deliver services while responding to growing demand. Friends of Veterans reported providing more than $100,000 annually in assistance with 15 volunteers. Project S.T.O.R.Y. was serving approximately 90 young people through a largely volunteer structure. These examples showed why staffing and sustainability mattered alongside program reach.
Community needs crossed service and funding boundaries
Families’ needs did not always fit within a single program or restricted funding category. Partners could encounter health, education, housing and transportation challenges together, while their resources allowed a narrower response. DMC identified this tension as a consideration for organizational support and partnership design.
Geography and facilities shaped participation
Transportation and access to physical space influenced whether residents could reach services or participate in community programs. Safe Spaces described these challenges in a rural setting and expressed a desire for Granite United Way to become more present within the community.
Partners wanted an ongoing relationship
Organizations valued visits, consistent communication, clearer expectations and opportunities to contribute to decisions. The findings connected relationship quality with Granite United Way’s ability to understand local conditions and offer relevant support.
From community insight to action
DMC’s recommendations called for stronger regional engagement, ongoing partner convenings, greater in person presence, clearer communication and connections among grassroots organizations. Recommendations also addressed organizational capacity support and pathways for partners to inform decision making.
DMC worked with Granite United Way to consider staffing and internal structures that could sustain engagement. The proposed approach included continued learning from partners after the initial assessment, allowing priorities and support to respond to changing conditions.
Delivered value and strategic impact
DMC brought 22 organizations’ experiences into a structured assessment and partnership strategy. Interviews and visits supplied context, regional analysis identified shared barriers, and convenings allowed partners to review findings and inform next steps.
DMC gave Granite United Way recommendations connecting funding relationships with community presence, capacity support and partner input. The work provided a basis for more responsive engagement with organizations serving rural, underrepresented and underserved populations.
DMC capability demonstrated
This project demonstrates DMC’s ability to connect a funding institution with grassroots organizations through qualitative research, field observation and regional dialogue, translating community expertise into organizational strategy and practical partnership recommendations.