The Micah Project

Welcome to The Micah Project!

Our mission is to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ as a means to reconciliation, justice, and mercy.

“And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God”
(Micah 6:8, NIV).

The Micah Project has three areas of emphasis:

Technical Empowerment- We help build the capacity of organizations whose missions demonstrate a Biblical worldview. We apply knowledge and experience gained over more than 60 years of combined service to the nonprofit sector. Our focus is in addressing developmental needs involving financial management, board governance, legal compliance, and special event planning.

Evangelistic & social justice empowerment - We support activities that proclaim the life transforming power of the Christian gospel, including the sponsorship of speakers, evangelistic events, and the creation of published materials that support this objective.

Financial empowerment - We make grants, contributions, and below-market loans to help seed activities that proclaim the gospel. Grants and loans are accompanied by consultative support where appropriate.

The past year was a productive time for The Micah Project. Learn more about how we applied our resources in furtherance of Christian evangelism and human services in 2011.

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose”
--Philip James “Jim” Elliot (1927-1956)

News

Walshes Complete Leadership North Carolina

Dennis & Debbie receive certificates from J. Thomas McSwain, Chairman of the LNC Board of Directors.

On May 8. 2012, Debbie and Dennis were among the 44 graduates of Leadership North Carolina, Class XIX. A ceremony was held in the historic legislative chamber of Old Capitol in Raleigh, NC that included presentation of the Governor’s Award to Tarboro native and former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Ret. Gen. Hugh Shelton. Leadership North Carolina is a 7-month program design to help current and developing leaders learn more about government, economic development, education, environment, and health and human services in North Carolina. Read more about the program.

Universal e-filing Key to Transparency

The dramatic reduction in the cost of collecting and analyzing information from nonprofits’ Form 990 annual tax returns made possible through e-filing will lead to an information-rich sector that will meet the diverse needs of various stakeholders. In this op-ed appearing in Philanthropy Journal and the Planned Giving Design Center, Dennis makes the argument for requiring that e-filing of Form 990 be made mandatory.

Debbie Appointed to CMCA Advisory Board

In her role as Director of Prison Ministries for Child Evangelism Fellowship, located in Warrenton, Missouri, Debbie has been selected to serve on the advisory board for the Correctional Ministries and Chaplains Association (CMCA). This newly formed organization serves Christian chaplains and volunteers who minister in the U.S. correctional system. Its aim is to read more …

Work Opportunity Tax Credit Back in Limbo

Congress failed to extend the work opportunity tax credit (WOTC) program for non-veteran target groups before the credit expired at the end of 2011. However, the credit has been retroactively extended 7 times in the last 15 years and many groups are advocating for its prompt reinstatement. In addition, nonprofit employers may now take a credit in the form of reduced employer-matching FICA taxes on employee wages as a result of certain veteran hires. Hopefully this provision for nonprofit employers will be broadened to include other target groups such as ex-offenders. Watch for further developments and in the meantime learn about the credit .

Debbie Honored by COPE

Debbie was the recipient of the 2011 “President’s
Barnabas “Encourager Award” presented by the Coalition of Prison Evangelists (COPE) on November 4, 2011 at its International Conference in Melbourne, Florida. Debbie has served as a COPE board member since 2009 and works closely with Executive Director, Fauhn Schierer in planning mission content and encouraging prison ministry
collaboration.

Dennis on Panel at Conference

Dennis answers a question at the 2011 Nonprofit Conference and Public Policy Forum, held in Greensboro on September 23. The full-day workshop panel included Dianne Chipps Bailey of Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, Charlotte, and David Heinen (center), Director of Public Policy for the conference sponsor, North Carolina Center for Nonprofits.

Aaron Johnson at
International Civil Rights Museum

On Wednesday, December 8, 2010, Aaron Johnson spoke and signed copies of his memoir, "Man from Macedonia," at the International Civil Rights Center and Museum, located at the corner of Elm and February One Place in Greensboro, NC. This event was a collaborative project of the Center, Leadership North Carolina, The Micah Project, and ICRCM. Click to see photo.

Dennis receives Community Service Award

Pictured with Guilford Nonprofit Consortium Director Donna Newton (left) and wife Debbie, Dennis receives the 2010 Community Service Award.

On November 4, 2010 Dennis received the Guilford Nonprofit Consortium’s second annual Community Service Award in recognition of his volunteer service to the more than 200 Consortium member organizations. Dennis operates the Financial Management HelpDesk, an online portal where nonprofits can ask questions and locate resources specific to financial management and legal compliance issues. In addition, he organizes finance roundtables, a forum for interactive finance training with guest presenters on various topics. And
he keeps nonprofits up to date on accounting and tax developments. Interested persons can learn more about the GNC mission and activities at www.guilfordnonprofits.org.

Debbie published in new book

An article written by Debbie about the death of her brother is included in a new book "The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow." The book is a collection of testimonials about families who have lost children, compiled by long-time friend, Wayne Triplett. Wayne lost his 19-year old son in 2006 after a 7-year battle with cancer. You may order the book at http://www.crossofcancer.com/ or at Amazon.

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Debbie featured in "Destiny" Magazine

See the article "When God Laughs" that was published in the Fall 2010 issue of Destiny Magazine about Debbie's prison ministry work.
Click Here.

Jamestown News

See the article appearing in the Jamestown (NC) News, telling the genesis of our involvement with Dr. Aaron Johnson and his recently released memoir “Man from Macedonia.” Find out what is so inspiring about Dr. Johnson and why we were willing to put resources behind development of his biography.

New Book: Man From Macedonia

The Micah Project is the registered operating name of The Deborah and Dennis Walsh Foundation, a North Carolina nonprofit corporation recognized as a tax exempt private operating foundation under Section 501(c)(3) and 4942(j)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The foundation is qualified to receive tax deductible contributions under the rules applicable for contributions to public charities pursuant to Section 170(b)(1)(A)(vii).

Pursuant to U.S. Treasury Department regulations, we wish to inform you that any tax advice that may be contained on this website (including anylinked documents) is not intended
or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or applicable state or local tax law provisions or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matters addressed herein.

Copyright © 2007-2012 The Deborah and Dennis Walsh Foundation