Withisms from Lori

A couple of weeks ago I got a chance to spend time with the hard working fund development team at Jeremiah Program in Minneapolis, MN. As they finalized their plans for their upcoming golf event I asked them how would they infuse their mission into the golf outing?

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Their mission: Helping single mothers and their children break the cycle of poverty.

I have learned from author, fundraising professional and philanthropist Lynne Twist, “Fundraising, consistent with the mission will always produce enough money.”

After a discussion about what they COULD do, the team got into action quickly to implement some of our brainstorming ideas. They created signage and made sure the language and messages used at the golf outing brought their mission alive.

Angela Woodhouse, Director of Major Gifts & Special Events, sent me an email last week that shared the awesome results of the event due to changes they had made to infuse the event with their mission. 

Here is Angie's list. . . I recommend you use it as a checklist for your own events:

We created "teaser" signage on the golf course about our student speaker to pique guest's curiosity to hear more;

• During “fund-a-need” we had a well-defined goal, with a timeline and a sense of urgency;
• We created emotion through the speaker sharing her life story;
• We created an emotional connection - making it personal for people to participate: "Help us make Jyssica's dream come true for another family and help us raise $25,000 tonight- the cost of one family for one year at Jeremiah Program.
• We created talking points for our Executive Director and Emcee to set the stage for the ask. The Emcee then asked for $10,000 ; $5,000; $3,000; $1,000. . . Hands were going up all over the room! The energy in the room was contagious.

We are thrilled! This was the most successful tournament to date on all levels. Guests bid goodbye with "See you next year!"

Awesome work, Angie and team! Congratulations!