FAQ'S revised as of 2/26/2011 supersedes all previous editions.

Q) How is the organization a non-profit if you are selling T shirts & Hoodies and what made DSRYI come up with a fashion line?

A) We, like the YMCA, Interfaith of the Woodlands and the Pin Oak Charity Horse show sell stuff to survive & thrive. As long as any (profit) money that is generated is going back into the charity for reasonable costs and services, it legal under the IRS 501c3 code. An overwhelming majority of people are excited and love the concept for the fashion line and want to see us succeed in a major way.
The fashion line came about as a creative solution to rise above the local fund raising dollar everybody is competing for which is very tight. We came up with the line as a result of our entry into a 4th of July parade.

Our hoodies sell for $79.00+. We are in upscale boutiques and shops. The Chocolate shoe, Rhinestone cowgirl, and Charlottes Saddlery carry our items with more stores and a web site on the way. When we was in Jaded in Market street, our hoodies sold out for $89.00. (they was hidden in the back too) Proceeds go back to sustaining the organization and building stock levels.

No one gets paid on our team...we are all volunteer. We are a grass roots assembly of good, hard working people who work full time with busy lives.

Every expenditure we have ever made has been with integrity and openness. As of now, the fashion line is operating and selling under the non-profit umbrella which is legal in our fund raising efforts.

Q) Where are the funds going you raised so far?

A) All the funds we have earned/raised goes into our Woodforest bank account. We have an accountant you may contact at anytime. Her name is Amyjo. All our banking records are open to anyone at any time. All one has to do is ask. amyjo2404@yahoo.com

We invest our funds in local youth by sending kids to horse camp. We take kids out for Great day on the Ranch and rent facilities. We invest in fund raiser events like auctions, fashion shows, barrel races and of course buying items to add to our stock. We use only Swarovski crystals. We are known for quality garments with a diamond like sparkle. We have also given away quite a bit of our fashion to the general public in terms of generating goodwill and getting the name/brand out there which is important in the marketing aspect of our business. A heartfelt thank you to all who have donated to DSR.

We use a Quickbooks Pro 2009 accounting system that is accurately reconciled for the most part on a monthly basis. We raise a few thousand here, a couple hundred there. Our account is modest and generally speaking quite minor and manageable in nature compared to the big non-profit entities we compete with.

DSRYI is proud to have earned an A+ rating on earmarked funds. This means when we say money is going to be spent on a specfic program...it goes there!

Q) Does DSRYI have paperwork showing this is a non-profit entity?

A) Yes. We say we are a non profit on our web site because we truly are. Our legal certificate paperwork from the IRS for our non-profit status was issued in November of 2007. All documents are available for anyone to see. All one has to do is ask.

Q) Does Diamond Star own property or a ranch?

A) No. As of now we use several ranches who open their doors for us either at a discount or donated in total. We want to acquire our own land some day and pray the Good lord will assist us in this major undertaking. Equine activities are the most rewarding while also at the same time being the most expensive.

Q) How many Kids has DSR impacted?

A) Hard to measure but these are the numbers so far. In our 4 years of service we have sent 3 kids to an all week overnight horse camp and one to an all week day only camp. One of the recipients was a 10 yr old girl who we know for a fact the impact was phenomenal. We have taken about 120 kids and their parents out for "Great day on the Ranch." Great Day outings are more recreational then therapeutic. It has been reported that the family is bonding and recording beautiful memories during these events. It's a wonderful experience and one of life's few pleasures to see this. To have paid full retail costs for these events would have cost anywhere between five and ten thousand+ dollars easily! Great Day on the Ranch is for boys and girls from ages 4 to 17.

Q) What classification of kids have you serviced so far?

A) We have serviced several kinds of kids so far. Underprivileged, foster home and homeless kids who are facing challenges and our newest category, "good kids who want to stay good kids." Their families are financially challenged but want to benefit from DSR's programs. Why should we leave them out?

Q) What is the ultimate goal of Diamond Star Ranch Youth Initiative?

A) To build a world class youth "girls only" Academy where a teen girl can rehabilitate herself and find her God given talents to do good in the world. To be a 100+ year "Crown Jewel" role model Institution for our community. To be the "google" of referral youth services and mitigate our 9 1 1 mentality.

To have a young teenage girl stand behind a DSR podium and say...Thank you God for Diamond Star...If it would not have been for this beautiful academy and the loving environment here, I would either be in jail, dead, addicted to drugs or a mother of an unplanned family with no father for my child...saying further for example... I'm going to college to solve the cancer riddle that took one of my dear families member’s life .The Academy will have strict entry profile.

Q) How was it decided that Diamond Star Youth Academywas to be for girls and why girls only?
A) Simple. No one is doing anything like this for our own backyard. At first DSR was to be for boys because of a personal family experience. However after meeting with Miracle Farm leadership team (Miracle Farm services teen boys) Miracle Farm told us in a meeting that if you offer service to girls, we will send you our referals that we have no place to send. Plus after an exhaustive research and finding no one delivering this much needed service which is very expensive to administer, we decided to step up and change. I thank God we did. This is truly a high calling.