Building our Dream Non-Profit: Steps Taken So Far
I’ve been dreaming about this project since I was 8 years old. Yes - really!
A few years ago, I started taking steps to make this project a reality.
Here’s a summary of everything we’ve done so far.
1. Moved to Panama
In 2020, I made the official move to Panama. Why Panama? Tim and I both love the beach, and it’s always been my dream to move somewhere tropical. Panama is safe, well-run, and has gorgeous weather every single day! They also allow siblings with disabilities to gain permanent residency. Once I became a permanent resident myself, I knew we could make it a home for Tim.
After a couple of years in Panama, we purchased our home in 2022, with the intention of building a home for Tim on our property.
In April 2022, Tim and my family came for a visit and it was confirmed - Tim is right at home here! He loved it. He spent his time watching the sunset, in the ocean, and walking on the beach.
2. Committed to small steps each week
In August 2022, my team and I decided it was time to start bringing Tim’s Club to life. We committed to meeting every single week to clarify our vision and start taking small but consistent steps forward.
Our underlying philosophy is:
One step at a time
Everything is figureoutable (thank you Marie Forleo)
3. Refined the vision
We started with Pinterest - the best tool for finding inspiration. We used this to clarify each piece of the project and figure out exactly what we want it to look like.
For example, this was the inspiration we came up with for our cafe:
We then used Canva to make this mockup:
4. Reached out to professionals
There’s so much for us to learn about successfully running a non-profit. We’ll be hiring consultants every step of the way.
We’ve already made some amazing connections. One of the co-owners of my favourite cafe in Panama City (Mahalo Cocina y Jardin) just happens to offer consulting. Yay! We’ll be working with her in the development of our cafe.
We also have a fantastic lawyer Emilio (at PGS Legal) who helps us with all things legal. Here’s us officially registering Tim’s Club!
5. Designed our logo & website
We are so grateful to our immensely talented team member Anno, who designed our adorable logo for us. Here’s what the creative process looked like:
I love the one we picked! Do you?!
6. Searched for land - and found it!
Special shoutout to my friend Taige for coming on many land search adventures with me!
We already have the property in mind that will be perfect for this project. Our goal is to purchase the land this year, and hopefully start construction for the buildings in early 2024.
The land we want! 👇
7. Found our architect
We’re very excited to be working with Nelly Lachman on the design. Here’s a photo of me showing her the land (she loved it too!)
Funnily enough, I met Nelly by chance a few years ago. She also has a brother with special needs. And her university thesis project was literally our vision - a non-profit organization just like Tim’s Club (just set in Panama City instead). How incredible is that!
8. Opened up
We’ve been working on this behind the scenes for a while. Now we’re ready to share and bring you along for the rest of the journey.
We’ll be sharing updates on Instagram so make sure you’re following us there.
And sign up for email updates here:
Thank you so much for all your support. If you have any ideas or suggestions you’d like to share with us, contact us here.
