FAQ

The mission of C.O.R.D. (Community Outreach and Referrals of Downingtown) is to provide an environment where local, small-business owners can invest in each other’s long-term business growth & strategic planning by providing quality referrals to its members with the ultimate goal of each member “paying it forward” to the greater community of Downingtown in the form of pro-bono, consulting in their area of expertise, charitable giving, and volunteerism.

Weekly C.O.R.D. meetings are open to the public for small business owners within the community to attend, observe and provide any input beneficial to the group as related to scheduled upcoming events; however, referrals, promotion of business, networking, etc. is prohibited by visitors and is strictly reserved for Active Members of C.O.R.D. only.

Members of C.O.R.D. are to attend every Wednesday meeting. As a group, our commitment to C.O.R.D., goes beyond just our small business success & vision, but is–rather–leading with first and foremost what C.O.R.D. can do for the local community. We ask that if a person becomes a member of C.O.R.D. that they attend a minimum of 85% of all meetings; no exceptions.

If you consider there are roughly 50 meetings a year (special holiday exemptions Christmas, New Years, etc.), this allows each member to miss roughly 8 additional meetings in a calendar year. We understand & recognize that each member is busy and a professional. All members should agree upon this prior to joining C.O.R.D. We are all professionals and should respect the commitment and value of each person’s area of expertise. If a member knows they cannot commit to this, they should relinquish their role within the group so another member of the community can actively fill that space.

Members are encouraged to invite new members to join C.O.R.D. from the local community. However, any new members should be outside the area of expertise of current members.

An example of this would be not inviting a realtor as we already have a local realtor who is an active member of our group. Any new member must be first agreed upon by the Leadership Committee (currently Daniel Pishock, Ann Angelucci, and Chris Madonna) before membership is granted to the networking group.

Areas we still are actively seeking members in are as followed:

• Chiropractic Care
• Florist
• Restaurant Owner

Yes. C.O.R.D. fees are nominal and collected on an annual basis. The annual fee to become and remain a member of C.O.R.D. is $120 (equivalent of $10 per month) and is gathered upon first joining and at the end of December or beginning of January the following year.

Dues are used for any rental fees C.O.R.D. may incur, donations made to organizations C.O.R.D. supports, gifts for any important life events (birth of a child, death of a loved one, etc.) a C.O.R.D. member may experience, annual fees for digital assets such email, domain and website maintenance and hosting, and any other fees needed to be covered for the group that may come up during a calendar year.