Christine Sculati's blog » Philanthropy

San Francisco’s beloved philanthropist was a problem solver, igniter and a catalyst

christine — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:15:50 +0000

One of San Francisco’s most beloved philanthropists, Warren Hellman, died this past Sunday from complications due to leukemia at the age of 77.

In The Bay Citizen article, “The Billionaire Who Loved Bluegrass,” Jane Ganahl describes how the Renaissance man, known mostly widely for the annual music festival that he bankrolled in Golden Gate Park, “spent as much energy distributing his wealth as he did acquiring it.”

As an active philanthropist, Warren Hellman also spent a great deal of his time reaching out to friends and business colleagues to make the case for causes he cared about and to ask for their support.

In these challenging times, nonprofit organizations that fight poverty and support arts, culture, youth, education, parks and the environment are dealing with unprecedented changes. Warren Hellman offered his time, funds, connections and influence to help many of these causes. He was problem solver, igniter and a catalyst.

Volunteer board members and other close champions of a particular cause or organization are the ones that help nonprofits make the critical connections they need, with major donors and foundations, to raise sustainable resources for their causes. Those volunteers invest their free time to reach out to friends and business associates, through events, personal meetings, phone calls and letters (or sometimes all four), to raise funds.

It is the ardent support of volunteers that influences friends and business colleagues to become backers. Then, the circle continues to grow.

In lieu of flowers, the Hellman family requests that donations be made to:

San Francisco Free Clinic

The Bay Citizen

San Francisco School Alliance

What the philanthropic community needs to know to support our state parks

christine — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 18:33:03 +0000

China Camp State Park, slated for closure

A Philanthropic Perspective on the Parks Crisis

With the California State Parks system in crisis, some hope that people with wealth will extend a lifeline to the state parks they treasure.

Yesterday morning a leader from one of the largest foundations in the country shared some insights from the philanthropic community. Thomas Peters, President of the Marin Community Foundation, gave testimony to joint committees of the California State Assembly during a tension-filled hearing on the topic of state park closures.

“I have never seen an issue that has galvanized such intense emotion – and will – to find a solution.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy recently named the Marin Community Foundation as one of the nation’s top 400 charities for raising money. In 2010, they raised $43.7 million dollars. The foundation manages and advises the funds for over 400 families. In the philanthropic world, these are called donor-advised funds. Private donors with the Marin Community Foundation support causes in Marin County as well as in other parts of the U.S. and around the world.

In his testimony on Nov. 1, Dr. Peters said that a number of the families with funds at the Marin Community Foundation are concerned about the parks. For families to step up and become involved, he told lawmakers what philanthropists will need from the state:

A clear understanding of the financial picture for each park. What are the expenses and the revenues for each park?
Assurances from the state that their funds will be dedicated to supporting their specific wishes. How will families know that the state will have reasonable and accurate accounting procedures?
A clear commitment to mission and professionalism. Will the parks department be able to show their dedication to preserving the legacy of our parks system? Will parks they support be operated and maintained with a high level of professionalism?

Park Advocates, Law Enforcement, Community Stakeholders Offer Testimony

Dr. Peters of the Marin Community Foundation was one of several presenters who advocated for ways to save our parks in Sacramento. (He also recently co-authored “Finding permanent solutions for parks” in the Marin Independent Journal.) Other presenters included Elizabeth Goldstein of the California State Parks Foundation, Caryl Hart of Sonoma County Parks and the California Parks and Recreation Commission, Ruskin Hartley of the Save the Redwoods League, Sonoma County Sheriff Steve Freitas, Nina Gordon of the California State Parks Rangers Association, Geoff McQuilkin of the Mono Lake Committee and Kathy Bailey of the Anderson Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Several other park advocates traveled to Sacramento to share public testimony, but the hearing ran out of time before everyone there reached the front of the line.

Lawmakers Extremely Dissatisfied with Parks Department Process

The problem-solving part of the hearing came after close to two hours of contentious questioning directed to the California parks department by Assemblymember Jared Huffman, Assemblymember Roger Dickinson and other lawmakers. Deputy Director Bill Herms and Anne Malcolm, legal counsel, defended the parks department for close to two hours. They could not offer data or other documentation to lawmakers or the public on the process the parks department followed to cut $22 million in spending by July 2012.

Blog series
This is the ninth article in a series on threats to California State Parks and the search for sustainable funding.

Wake up call: California park that immortalizes world-famous legend needs philanthropic lifeline

christine — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 18:44:26 +0000

Jack London’s “alarm clock,” Jack London State Historic Park

With a California treasure, Jack London State Historic Park, on the verge of sinking, what can we do to save it? Who can throw a lifeline?

On Friday, I wrote a post on the efforts of a group of dedicated volunteers, whose care and commitment to this majestic park is evident everywhere you go. In the House of the Happy Walls volunteers fill the museum dedicated to the world-famous author with music of the era by playing the Steinway grand piano. Docents lead tours through the parks natural and historic features. Myriad exhibits and panels inspire a sense of adventure and provoke the imagination.

Jack London State Historic Park honors volunteers in the Old Winery Ruins

Volunteers are the true heroes in the fight to save our parks, but they need help. After pouring in thousands of hours over the decades with a labor of love, these stars of the California State Park system face the daunting task of mobilizing to the level of raising thousands of dollars, an entirely new part of their volunteer job descriptions.

Trends in Park Philanthropy

In a story published today, Paul Rogers of the San Jose Mercury News reported on trends in park philanthropy. He wrote, “In an era when federal and state budgets are stretched to the breaking point, donations are increasingly the lifelines in the maintenance of some of America’s most popular natural treasures.”

The declining public investments in our state parks and other places of cultural, historical and environmental interest have already taken a toll. This neglect is noticeable in deferred maintenance backlogs in parks statewide but also in the voices of some who have not had opportunities to gain a personal connection to these treasures. This might explain, in part, why voters turned down a proposition last November that would have revived and sustained our park system for $18 per registered California vehicle in exchange for free park entry.

Without going into the politics and specifics of Proposition 21, the short story is that the public voted down public funding for the parks. Yet, with the values of many state and national foundations and individuals closely aligned with what parks offer in support of education, health and “fostering creativity and nurturing a rich cultural environment,” as in the case of the James Irvine Foundation, surely there must be opportunities for innovation in philanthropy and other forms of inspired giving to save our parks.

Imaginative Fundraisers

The Valley of the Moon Natural History Association invites you to two fundraising events this weekend in the Old Winery Ruins: On October 1, 2011, Broadway actors will entertain guests in an outdoor theater presentation: “Broadway Under the Stars.”

On Sunday, October 2, the association’s volunteers will present Walt Disney’s White Fang – based on the Jack London story (say, there is another potential park donor).

And when, on the still cold nights, he pointed his nose at a star and howled long and wolflike, it was his ancestors, dead and dust, pointing nose at star and howling down through the centuries and through him.”

-Jack London, The Call of the Wild

Reality check: Public parks need philanthropy

christine — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 18:26:08 +0000

Henry W. Coe State Park, photo by Laure Latham

State Parks in Crisis
At 87,000 acres, Henry W. Coe State Park’s wild open spaces span an area close to three times the size of the city of San Francisco. It is unfathomable to imagine this Santa Clara County park closing its gates permanently. Yet the state parks department named Coe State Park as one of 70 California state parks scheduled for closure between now and July 2012.

Across the state, on the east side of Yosemite National Park, the internationally visited Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve also sits on the closure list. When the closure list first came out, Geoff McQuilkin’s first question was “Why are we on this list?” McQuiklin, who is the executive director of the Mono Lake Committee, has never gotten a good answer from the state.

The Need for Philanthropy
The race to save state parks now relies on local park advocates. In the case of Coe State Park, a longtime group of park volunteers formed the Coe Park Preservation Fund in February to stop the closure. On September 9, 2011, the group announced that they had pulled together funds and an agreement with the state to keep the park open. A Los Angeles Times reporter who was set to go to press with a story about the state park closures in northern California, where most closures are concentrated, caught wind of the group’s good news just before press time.

To save the park, members of the Coe Park Preservation Fund worked to secure sponsorships from corporations, conservation-minded foundations and concerned individuals to cover park staff salaries and basic maintenance for a minimum of three years. Under the agreement with the state, funds raised will go directly to Coe and not a general parks fund, and the Coe Park Preservation Fund, a subordinate group of the a 501(c)(3) tax exempt charitable organization Pine Ridge Association, will have no administrative responsibility for park operations.

Once the agreement is finalized between the Coe group and the state, park administrators hope that this type of deal could be a model for saving other parks.

Beyond this unique situation at Coe, all over California park advocates and lawmakers are looking for solutions – from signing contracts with up to 20 nonprofits to raise funds and directly run state parks (Assembly Bill 42) to letting local governments take over (Senate Bill 356). The California State Parks Foundation co-sponsored AB 42 but has no position on SB 356.

Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve at sundown

Can nonprofits save our parks?
In the case of Mono Lake, they have not had the good fortune of Coe State Park, where a generous donor came forward with a $1 million commitment for the next three years. If Governor Jerry Brown signs AB 42 by October 6 and it becomes law, they are looking at this tool as one possibility for protecting Mono Lake, but they need to take a serious look at how they could handle the challenges to taking over state park operations including major insurance and liability concerns. While, the Mono Lake Committee’s executive director feels encouraged by the way the Coe group is hammering out an agreement that will keep the same park staff in place and leave administration to the state, his group would need major donor commitments to make this happen as well. They have had an outpouring of support in the form of letters and petition signatures.

Ann Briggs, president and board chair of the Coe Park Preservation Fund was disheartened to hear about the predicament at Mono Lake. She finds it especially surprising given its popularity: “While we have a following, we don’t have anywhere near the exposure of Mono Lake,” said Briggs. As members of her group wait to hear final word on their agreement, they are now moving forward with creating an endowment fund as a buffer to ensure that Henry W. Coe State Park can be kept open in perpetuity.

Volunteers cannot do it alone
Although both groups have longtime dedicated volunteers, 40 at Mono Lake and 30 at Coe, the bottom line is that philanthropy will be critical for keeping parks open, safe and clean and protecting the ecological integrity of these public lands.

Who is mobilizing in your community?
Do you know of people or nonprofits in your community mobilizing to save a state park? If so leave your comments here or go to the California State Parks Foundation blog, where they would like to hear your voice.

This is the third article in a series on threats to California State Parks and the search for sustainable funding as park systems are forced to reinvent.

California State Park Crisis featured on KQED Forum

christine — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 22:14:50 +0000

With the California State Park system in crisis, lawmakers and advocates are focused on passing legislation that could help keep as many as 20 parks stay open. A total of 70 of California’s 278 state parks (25%) face permanent closure. On September 6, a bill to allow the California state parks system to enter into operating agreements with nonprofits completed its journey through the legislature and now awaits Governor Jerry Brown’s signature.

This morning on KQED’s Forum, Michael Krasny spoke to Jared Huffman, the California assemblyman (D-San Rafael) who authored Assembly Bill 42 to help save state parks from closure, and Elizabeth Goldstein, president of the California State Parks Foundation. Her foundation is one sponsor of AB 42. (KQED Audio archive: Non-Profits: State Parks’ Savior?).

With closures imminent, growing awareness has led to many philosophical and political questions by the public. Some can’t believe that the parks will close, and others fear privatization. At the same time, the situation has reached a level of “triage” said Assemblyman Huffman. Huffman said that he would also like to use the public funding model of the last 100 years, but under the circumstances:

“Would I prefer a nonprofit operated park as a opposed to a closed park? Absolutely.”

After the public voted down Proposition 21 to support the park system in last November’s elections, what are the alternatives to keep this public asset truly public? Elizabeth Goldstein is optimistic that “we will find a long term tool to sustain the park system.” She said it will be critical for us to “keep our voices high.” Her organization, the California State Parks Foundation, accepts donations to help keep parks open.

One caller to the show said that his corporation was wondering if the state park system has an “adopt a ranger” or “adopt a park” program and if it was possible to see park budgets. Elizabeth Goldstein enthusiastically jumped on the opportunity, offering her email address on the air. In response, Krasny said, “does this mean that we are moving toward privatization?” Goldstein pointed out that the park system has relied on private donations for decades (if not for its entire lifetime) with the big change now applying to how donations will be spent in the park system. In the past her foundation raised money to support education programs and capital projects, now dollars will fund operations and maintenance.

Governor Brown has until October 6 to sign Assembly Bill 42 into law. You can send a message to the governor to let him know your position on this bill.

70 California State Parks on the Closure List

San Francisco Bay Area Parks are in bold

Anderson Marsh SHP
Annadel SP
Antelope Valley Indian Museum SHP
Austin Creek SRA
Bale Grist Mill SHP
Benbow Lake SRA
Benicia Capitol SHP
Benicia SRA
Bidwell Mansion SHP
Bothe-Napa Valley SP
Brannan Island SRA
California State Mining and Mineral Museum Park Property
Candlestick Point SRA
Castle Crags SP
Castle Rock SP
China Camp SP
Colusa-Sacramento River SRA
Del Norte Coast Redwoods SP
Fort Humboldt SHP
Fort Tejon SHP
Garrapata SP
George J. Hatfield SRA
Governor’s Mansion SHP
Gray Whale Cove SB
Greenwood SB
Grizzly Creek Redwoods SP
Hendy Woods SP
Henry W. Coe SP
Jack London SHP
Jug Handle SNR
Leland Stanford Mansion SHP
Limekiln SP
Manchester SP
Picacho SRA
Portola Redwoods SP
Russian Gulch SP
Salton Sea SRA
Twin Lakes SB
Los Encinos SHP
Malakoff Diggins SHP
McConnell SRA
McGrath SB
Mono Lake Tufa SR
Morro Strand SB
Moss Landing SB
Olompali SHP
Palomar Mountain SP
Petaluma Adobe SHP
Pio Pico SHP
Plumas-Eureka SP
Point Cabrillo Light Station Property SHP
Providence Mountains SRA
Railtown 1897 SHP
Saddleback Butte SP
Samuel P. Taylor SP
San Pasqual Battlefield SHP
Santa Cruz Mission SHP
Santa Susana Pass SHP
Shasta SHP
South Yuba River SP
Standish-Hickey SRA
Sugarloaf Ridge SP
Tomales Bay SP
Tule Elk SNR
Turlock Lake SRA
Weaverville Joss House SHP
Westport-Union Landing SB
William B. Ide Adobe SHP
Woodson Bridge SRA
Zmudowski SB

This is the second article in a series on threats to California State Parks and the search for sustainable funding as the park system is forced to reinvent itself.

Funding for innovative and healthy food businesses in California’s food deserts

christine — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 17:25:33 +0000

Tell me your zip code and I will tell you your life expectancy.

Those are the words of Dr. Robert Ross, President and CEO of The California Endowment, who talks about the dire statistics related to healthy food access in a video for the newly launched California Fresh Works Fund.

In the United States, one in every three children under the age of five are overweight or obese.
23.5 million Americans who live in low income neighborhoods lack access to a supermarket within a mile of their home including 1.7 million Californians.
In California, adults in neighborhoods with low access to healthy food options are 20% more likely to be obese than those with high access to healthy foods.
Each year in California, obesity causes thousands of deaths and costs families, employers, the healthcare industry and government more than $6 billion.

On July 20, 2011, First Lady Michelle Obama announced the launch of the new fund, a public-private partnership that will loan $200 million to increase access to healthy food in underserved communities in California using a tested and scalable solution. In addition to an interest in promoting good health, the fund’s investors want to stimulate economic development, job creation and promote innovation. The partnership includes grocery industry groups, healthcare organizations and leading banks. With at least $20, you too can become an investor through the Calvert Foundation, a project partner.

“Food deserts” exist in neighborhoods that severely lack access to affordable, nutritious foods. Corner stores filled with junk food like chips, soda and cupcakes and other unhealthy products might be the most accessible stores in some neighborhoods.

Berkeleyside recently ran a story about corner stores that stirred quite a debate. I wonder if it would be possible to turn some of these establishments into “healthy corners stores.” Seems like it could be a win-win for shop owners and customers. The Healthy Corner Stores Network, a project of The Food Trust, offers many resources.

On the other side of the spectrum, you can find high quality and organic food in the burgeoning healthy grocery store chains like Whole Foods Market, but are these stores affordable? DJDave raps about paying “80 bucks for 6 things” in the viral video Whole Foods Parking Lot. (You can listen to an equally amusing Bay Area remix here. To find out what is behind the video and the song’s lyrics, read Sarah Henry’s piece on KQED’s Bay Area Bites blog.)

More reading:

Fresh Works Fund Revitalizing Food Deserts Across California on Philanthropy Front and Center, the San Francisco Foundation Center’s blog
Food Environments Near Home and School Related to Consumption of Soda and Fast Food – New policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research
James Berk of Mandela Foods Brings Produce to His People by East Bay journalist Sarah Henry on her Lettuce Eat Kale blog

Bay Area Food Justice Organizations:

Oakland: Phat Beets Produce, City Slicker Farms, Mandela Marketplace, People’s Grocery and Planting Justice
East Palo Alto: Collective Roots
Berkeley: Ecology Center’s Farm Fresh Choice Program and Spiral Gardens Community Food Security Project
San Francisco: Literacy for Environmental Justice – Food Justice Program
Richmond: Urban Tilth
San Jose: Veggielution

Five simple questions every nonprofit should answer

christine — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 23:12:19 +0000

Does everyone in your nonprofit know the answers to these five questions about your work?

What is your organization aiming to accomplish?

What are your strategies for making this happen?

What are your organization’s capabilities for doing this?

How will your organization know if you are making progress?

What have and haven’t you accomplished so far?

These five questions form the foundation of Charting Impact, a new initiative of BBB Wise Giving Alliance, Guidestar USA and Independent Sector funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. In this article, Hewlett’s Program Officer Jacob Harold discusses their support for Charting Impact.

If you have been through a strategic planning process before or if you have built a comprehensive case for support, it is likely that you have thought about these questions already.

By encouraging nonprofits to go through a process to answer these five questions, the project’s leaders hope to promote strategic thinking and the open sharing of ideas, strategies and results through standardized reports, available on the website.

Since many foundations already look at a prospective grantee’s Guidestar profile during the due diligence process, particularly 990 tax returns, this report could help nonprofits share their impact beyond those financials – to potential funders and donors.

You can download a Discussion Copy of Charting Impact to use in your conversations and development process. The guide suggests that you consider selecting one person to champion the process and manage the writing while involving the perspectives of multiple people from across the organization. Charting Impact’s pilot with 39 organizations suggests that the most successful reports will include input from five to six individuals over a period of two weeks.

As of this writing, 62 nonprofits are participating in Charting Impact and have submitted reports to the website. I was curious to find out how many of those participants are California or Bay Area-based organizations, but the Charting Impact search function seems to need a fix. Manually scanning the list of 62, I spotted a few Bay Area-based organizations: Women’s Funding Network, GreatNonprofits and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation (the funder). All three participated in the 2010 pilot of this project.

Writing tips
When writing responses to the five questions, the Charting Impact project offers these tips:

Use simple declarative sentences.
Be clear. Don’t ask the reader to guess what you mean (This is a great tip because confusion does not lead to persuasion!).
Be concise. Include only necessary supporting information.
Be specific. Use numbers and examples where possible.
Use commonly understood language. Avoid jargon.

Successful grant seeking relies on research, connecting and learning

christine — Wed, 25 May 2011 19:24:31 +0000

Writing grant proposals is only one step in the process of building successful grant funding partnerships with foundations.

To illuminate the path, today The Chronicle of Philanthropy posted a video for grant seekers on The Giveaway blog titled, “Common Mistakes Made by Grant Applicants.” Follow this blog for news and analysis on how people and foundations are donating their money.

The video features short clips of interviews with grant makers and consultants who attended the April 2011 Council on Foundations Annual Conference in Philadelphia. They highlighted common mistakes and offered tips:

Grant maker tips to avoid common mistakes

Do no over promise, exaggerate or propose unrealistic ideas.
When foundations encourage it, take advantage of calling to find out what they are really interested in.
Do not miss strong opportunities (e.g., if a grant maker selects your nonprofit as a potentially good parnter, don’t fail to follow up!)

Read the post’s comments for additional tips offered by other readers. Some include:

Avoid careless typos such as the misspelling of a foundation’s name or company name.
Do your homework: Research the proper way to apply and the appropriate contact name and title.
Find out what an appropriate ask amount would be for a particular foundation. Do your research and make contact with the foundation.

Over the years, I have attended many presentations and panels organized to give grant seekers a chance to hear directly from the representatives of foundations and institutional funders. Oftentimes, I hear that they receive a large number of applications that have no alignment with their interests. Worse, sometimes letters are addressed to the wrong foundation.

The bottom line is that successful grant seeking relies on research, connecting and learning. It is not a numbers game.

3 California foundations offer guidance to grant seekers

christine — Tue, 03 May 2011 19:32:38 +0000

THE WORDS, “if you know one foundation, you know one foundation,” rang true for three panelists who spoke at the Foundation Center in San Francisco last week during Funding for Health and Human Services Month. Local foundation representatives advised grant seekers on what they like and what they don’t like when it comes to grant funding requests. And guess what?

If you know one foundation, you know one foundation

The Panelists:

Mary L. Gregory, Executive Director, Bella Vista Foundation
Fatima Angeles, Director of Evaluation and Organizational Learning, The California Wellness Foundation
Carrie Varoquiers, Vice President of Corporate Citizenship and President, McKesson Foundation

**Guidance from Three Unique California Foundations**
Key insights	Bella Vista Foundation	The California Wellness Foundation	McKesson Foundation
Type of Foundation	Family	Healthcare conversion	Corporate
Geographic focus	Varies by focus area	Statewide	Nationwide with HQ in San Francisco
What are your funding priorities?	Early Childhood Ecosystem Restoration	8 Health Areas and a Special Projects fund	Community Health Centers (by invitation only through National Association of CHCs) Mobile health research
How can a grantseeker cultivate a relationship?	Review the website carefully; call with questions regarding a possible "fit."	Go to the website: "Everything is there." Mail in a 1-2 page letter of inquiry (10% chance of receiving invitation to write full proposal).	Go to the website for next chance to submit a letter of intent for mobile health research projects.
What are you looking for in a proposal?	Show evidence of your expertise.	Describe your organization’s target population, not the merits of your executive director. What does your organization do and why are you the one to do it? What is your voice in the policy arena?	Promising research to find out what works in mobile health. Evidence does not exist today.
What are red flags?	Don’t "parrot back" our words from the guidelines.	Will disqualify your letter of inquiry if it exceeds 2 pages.	Letters addressed to the wrong name
Tips for funded programs	Write thoughtful progress reports.	Write thoughtful progress reports.	Write thoughtful progress reports.

12 tips for nonprofits seeking grant money

christine — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 00:06:57 +0000

Are you wondering how to connect with grant makers in today’s increasingly competitive environment?

The key is to understand what motivates funders to connect with your cause and how your project’s fit in to their funding priorities and initiatives. The Foundation Center, a nonprofit resource for grant seekers, offers a valuable way for nonprofits to gain these critical insights. They offer classes and access to databases through their San Francisco library as well as cooperating collections, like the Berkeley Public Library.

The main library in downtown Berkeley was the venue for a recent Foundation Center event. As part of Health and Human Services month, the Foundation Center invited representatives from three East Bay funding organizations to speak to nonprofit grant seekers. They described their funding guidelines, how to introduce your organization’s work to them and tips on submitting your proposal, if there is a fit.

The Panelists:
The panelists came from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives: one from a government agency, one from a corporate giving program and one from a nonprofit health organization.

Mark Friedman, Chief Executive Officer of First 5 Alameda County
Susan Houghton, Director of Public Affairs and Government Relations for the Northern California Division of Safeway, Inc. and Safeway Foundation
Angela Jenkins, Community Benefit Manager for Kaiser Permanente’s East Bay Community Benefit Program

12 tips for nonprofits seeking grant money
I created a list of tips shared by the panelists.

When you apply for a grant, a real person is reviewing your application. If you address it “Dear Recipient,” it will go into the trash.
Funders might have more than one giving mechanism (foundation grants, employee giving program, corporate charitable giving, event sponsorships, etc.). Figure out the best point of entry for your project or program.
When contacting a funder, be sure to find out what method they prefer. For example, a funder might prefer initial contact by phone, email, letter or online inquiry.
Before you contact a funder, do your homework. All of the panelists pointed to their websites for guidance on grantmaking and giving priorities.
After you receive a grant, be sure to stay connected with your funders. After your last grant or contribution, did you send an update? Send a photo? Invite the funder to an event? Involve employees (in the case of a corporate giving program) to be involved in your work?
Does the funder require that your program follow evidenced-based approaches (i.e., informed by scientific research) or have measurable results? Or are they more interested in you trying something innovative and new to solve a problem?
Does your program’s objectives or goals align with the strategic plans of the funder?
Have you asked your current funders for introductions to other potential contributors? Will they consider co-hosting a funder briefing?
Is your GuideStar.org listing up-to-date?
Choose your board members wisely.
Don’t be shy about developing relationships with local government officials and their staff. Advocate for how your services are important to the community they were elected to serve.
Are you marketing your programs to build visibility for your issue and organization?

Meet health grantmakers at the Foundation Center in April

christine — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 00:50:06 +0000

In my last post I wrote about “Park Prescriptions” and “Healthy Parks Healthy People,” campaigns organized by the Institutes at the Golden Gate and the National Park Service to strengthen the connections between the healthcare system and public lands.

If your organization or agency is behind the movement, then you might want to know that April is Health and Human Services Month at the Foundation Center, a nonprofit resource center on philanthropy.

This month they are hosting three “Meet the Grantmaker” panels – two in downtown San Francisco and one in Berkeley. Funders will discuss their organizations’ guidelines, how to introduce your organization’s work to them, tips on submitting your proposal and trends in health and human services grantmaking.

Several other programs will present resources, tips and tools for strengthening your chances of succeeding with grants. To register, visit the Foundation Center’s website. All events are free, but they typically fill up early.

Meet the Grantmakers: Funding for East Bay Health & Human Service Organizations

Wednesday, April 20, 2011 10:00 am – 12:00 pm in Berkeley.

Panelists:

Safeway Inc. Corporate Giving Program
Kaiser Permanente-East Bay
First 5 Alameda County
Y & H Soda Foundation

Meet the Grantmakers for the Bay Area: A Program for Health & Human Service Organizations

Thursday, April 28, 2011 10:00 am – 12:00 pm in San Francisco

Panelists:

Fatima Angeles, Director of Evaluation and Organizational Learning, The California Wellness Foundation
Mary L. Gregory, Executive Director, Bella Vista Foundation
Christine Tran, Program Officer, Blue Shield of California Foundation
Carrie Varoquiers, Vice President of Corporate Citizenship and President, McKesson Foundation

More April Events

Securing Corporate Support for Health & Human Services
Thursday, April 21, 10:00 am-12:00 pm in San Francisco
Explore best practices in gaining corporate support and meet local corporate funders.

10 Marketing Mistakes to Avoid for Health and Human Service Organizations
Monday, April 25, 2:00-3:30 pm in San Francisco
Learn best practices in marketing for health and human service organizations.

Think Sustainable: Earning Income for Your Health and Human Service Nonprofit
Tuesday, April 26, 10:00-11:30 am in San Francisco
Discover how to develop an earned income strategy.

What’s Our Value? Using Evaluation to Make the Case for Health and Human Services in Tight Times
Wednesday, April 27, 1:00-2:30 pm in San Francisco
Gain knowledge of the latest thinking in program evaluation and receive tools that will help you initiate internal evaluation efforts.

Visit the Foundation Center’s website to see a full list of opportunities.

What is the future of foundation giving in the Bay Area?

christine — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 00:03:59 +0000

EVERYONE wants to know what the future holds. So it was no surprise that an event titled, “Trends in Foundation Giving: How to Compete in Today’s Marketplace,” filled to capacity in San Francisco on February 18, 2011.

In the same room of The Commonwealth Club where moderators ceremoniously pound a gavel to begin programs, people who raise money for nonprofit causes gathered to eat lunch, network and listen to a panel of Bay Area philanthropists.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals – Golden Gate Chapter billed the event as a discussion with philanthropic leaders on the future directions of foundation giving and what nonprofits can expect. So, if you could not make it, I’m assuming you would want to know:

Who was there?

What are the trends in foundation giving?

Is your organization in a position to succeed in an increasingly competitive environment for limited grant dollars?

Who was there?

The panel’s moderator, Jane Whitfield, lined up Pamela David, Executive Director of the Walter and Elise Haas Fund; Anne Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of United Way of the Bay Area and Daniel Lurie, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Tipping Point Community. You can read more about the panelists’ backgrounds and grantmaking approaches on their websites.

What are the trends in foundation giving?
One panelist reminded the audience of this expression (which you have undoubtedly heard in almost any foundation panel):

If you know one foundation, then you know one foundation.”

That said, I think the answer to the question is: There are no trends in foundation giving – in general. Yet, if you skip down to the section below, a few common themes emerged from the discussion, even if I refrain from calling them trends.

Is your organization in a position to succeed in an increasingly competitive environment for limited grant dollars?

While no two foundations are alike, a few themes emerged during the discussion:

The case for giving to your organization needs to be strong.
Measuring your nonprofit’s progress – or at least having a process in place to find a way to measure what you do – will be critical for standing out and showing your work’s value. Show evidence that will convince funders that what you are doing, or what you plan to do, has the potential to make a difference. The tangible ways your nonprofit makes a difference, the outcomes, might not be immediate – so the signposts could be about your process. Many organizations are dealing with very complex issues. One panelist pointed out:

If we knew how to end poverty, then we would have done it.”
Do not work in isolation. Have more conversations in the field about what real and meaningful results look like. Learn from each other. Figure out how to partner effectively.
Keep in mind that funders are risk adverse. All panelists agreed that foundations are risk adverse, and the economic crisis intensified caution. While most funders see the need for innovation, they don’t mean that you need to try something completely new. Communicate with your funders. They want to hear both the good and the bad. If you let them know if something does not go as planned, then letting them know early on could give them an opportunity to do something about it.
Know your prospect. While most people know United Way for its management of workplace giving, they are also a grantmaker. If you are going to United Way, then you should know that they are looking to partner with organizations that help individuals and families out of poverty, have the potential to scale and give the highest return on investment (the number of dollars invested to the number of lives your organization helps). The Tipping Point Community focuses on fighting poverty in the Bay Area. Their process is to seek out the best people and stick with grantees for the long term. Their motto is to apply business principles to philanthropic investing, so your organization will need to have a “data driven culture.” For the Walter and Elise Haas Fund, you should be familiar with the Fund’s program areas and priorities inspired by the legacy and values of its founders. They fund in four program areas: The Arts, Economic Security, Jewish Life and Education. You should also read this Letter from the Executive Director, which features an interview with Pam David published in Blue Avocado titled: “Foundations: Fleas or Elephants?”
Be a top-performing nonprofit. All three panelists said that they are looking to fund top-performing nonprofits with strong leaders and people working in smart ways. Does this describe your organization?

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Bird illustrations by 11-year old inspire giving for Gulf Coast disaster

christine — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 20:09:02 +0000

Olivia Bouler, an 11-year old girl living in New York state, dreams of being an ornithologist when she grows up. Devastated by the BP Gulf Oil Spill, the largest oil spill in U.S. history, she was determined to help. Her talented illustrations of birds have now raised over $100,000 from donors giving to support wildlife recovery efforts.

Right now, she has 23,750 followers and counting on her Facebook page titled, “Save the Gulf: Olivia’s Bird Illustrations” and the attention of multiple media outlets. AOL made a $25,000 donation in her name and offered to host her portfolio of illustrations.

The donor involvement Olivia has catalyzed comes at a time when the full toll of the disaster’s impact on wildlife and people will require philanthropic dollars. According to a recent Chronicle of Philanthropy article, donors gave $4-million during the first two months of the disaster. This is “far less than will ultimately be needed,” writes the Chronicle.

The Bay Area-based International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC) is working with Tri-State Bird Rescue, the lead oiled wildlife organization on the ground, to set up and staff rehabilitation centers in Louisiana, Alabama Mississippi and Florida, where the growing oil slick is severely impacting birds. Although BP is paying for IBRRC’s wildlife rescue work, they welcome support for their ongoing programs and to cover the cost of future rescue efforts.

Photo credit: IBRRC

Links and Resources:

Save the Gulf: Olivia’s Bird Illustrations Facebook Page
Olivia Bouler – AOL Artists portfolio
Audubon Magazine Article
National Audubon Society
The Thin Green Line Blog (SFGate) How you can help the Gulf and 11-year-old raises $100,000 for Gulf cleanup efforts
International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC) blog updates
Gifts for Oil Spill Total $4-Million, but More Is Needed – Chronicle of Philanthropy (summary only, subscription required)
Volunteer Opportunities Scarce in Wake of Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill – Philanthropy News Digest
The Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors BP Oil Drilling Disaster Emergency Response Fund
The New York Times Times Topics – Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill (2010)
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service site for Deepwater Horizon spill

NPR reports on the massive mobilization for Census 2010

christine — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:16:17 +0000

On Monday I wrote a post about how nonprofit organizations, community leaders and foundations are collaborating to reach hard-to-count populations and ensure that their constituents participate in Census 2010. Several important campaigns are taking place in the Bay Area with the financial support of The San Fransisco Foundation, The California Endowment, Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Foundation, James Irvine Foundation and other local foundations. In addition to grant funds, The San Francisco Foundation and The California Endowment are helping grantees to collaborate, strategize and track their efforts.

Yesterday, National Public Radio reported on how major national foundations have also launched intensive campaigns to reach the hard-to-count including the homeless and those who might be uncomfortable participating based on immigration status. National funders of Census 2010 initiatives include The Open Society Institute, Ford Foundation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

As the NPR story reports, Voto Latino came up with innovative ways that link the popularity of the iPhone with young Latinos and incentives for filling out the census form. They developed an iPhone application for Los Angeles County that gives users the opportunity to win music and possibly a free concert if they learn about the census.

Listen to the NPR story:

Why is the Census important to you?

christine — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:23:59 +0000

It looks like your browser cannot or does not support IFRAMES.

Any day you should receive notice in the mail about the 2010 Census. The official questionnaire will follow the initial announcement one week later in mid-March.

The federal government distributes more than $400 billion a year to state, tribal and local governments based on the decennial Census count. And every ten years some states gain seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and some lose, depending on what the Census numbers say about the relative sizes of their populations. The changing numbers require states to redraw Congressional District boundaries.

Yet to the despair of social justice advocates, populations that are most in need of community services, resources and civil rights enforcement have also been the hardest to count. In the Bay Area a number of foundations have helped to mobilize outreach in historically undercounted populations by awarding grants to grassroots organizations with extensive reach in their communities.

When it comes to filling out box #9 with regards to race, advocacy organizations will also play a critical educational role to show how individuals can “self-select” by choosing more than one race or “some other race” to identify as multi-racial or by national origin. For example, some might choose to enter Afghan, Sikh, Maya or Haitian. This widely-syndicated article by the Associated Press describes how some Caribbean-American leaders are urging their communities to write their nationalities on the line under “some other race” on the forms, along with checking the racial categories they feel identify them best.

While the way race is counted is an important evolution in the Census, it remains to be seen how the Census Bureau will tabulate the write-in selections in 2011.

Articles and Resources on Census 2010

Nonprofits Count!: A project of the Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network, this website provides information, including best practices, on how nonprofit organizations and human services agencies can help produce an accurate count of hard-to-count populations.

Mapping Hard-to-Count Communities: Hard-to-Count (HTC) populations are groups that may have a higher non-response rate on the 2010 Census. With support from The California Endowment, Healthy Cities has generated a portal through which Census stakeholders may locate communities at risk for undercounting in California.

Justice Department Confirms Confidentiality of Census Information – March 5, 2010 article by the Washington Post

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

Census History: Counting Hispanics – March 3, 2010 article by the Pew Hispanic Center

Census: Battleground for Money and Justice – February 17, 2010 by Blue Avocado

Most View Census Positively, But Some Have Doubts - February 12, 2010 by The Pew Research Center for the People & The Press

California Complete Count Committee

The Census Project Blog: A collaboration of state and local governments, civil rights and labor groups, housing and child advocates, businesses, professional societies, and research organizations interested in a fair and accurate Census 2010

Brookings Institution Census Information

Grantmaker Initiatives

Census 2010 Grants Will Bring Visibility to Hard-to-Count Populations – The San Francisco Foundation
New York Foundations Push to Get Accurate Census Count – Philanthropy News Digest

Private foundations offer millions to ensure accurate census count – Contra Costa Times

The California Endowment has awarded nearly 11,000 grants across California totaling more than $1.9 billion.