FUNDRAISING
Fundraising in the time of coronavirus Local nonprofits find creative solutions, strengthen relationships
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lexibility, focus and personal connections: Those are the hallmarks of local nonprofits navigating 2020 and beyond. Whether facing the impossibility of staged productions, the complexities of online learning or the increasing risks of families in crisis, keeping these agencies and institutions moving forward has been a challenge – and may have some long-lasting rewards. At the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Director of Development Sara Clark said the need for flexibility became obvious as soon as the pandemic reached Ohio. With no way to perform live theater onstage – and the loss of its traditional revenue stream – there was no choice. In some ways, after all, the show must go on. “We launched a COVID recovery fund almost immediately … focusing on how hard the company – and the industry – was hit,” Clark said. “We had to go into hyperdrive.” The suddenly empty halls of DePaul Cristo Rey High School also prompted immediate action, according to Sparkle Worley, the school’s vice president of advancement. There really wasn’t a choice. “We have 320 students and 65 staff members who are working hard to learn and to educate,” Worley said. “Our office helps fill the gap so learning can happen. It helps that we have a passion for what we do.” At both institutions, that energy was poured into transforming what was usually in person – the continuing theater season at CSC and the annual auction at DPCR – into virtual events. At ProKids, where community volunteers advocate for abused and neglected children, Executive Director Tracy Cook said a similar transformation was necessary. “Our donors are involved with us throughout the year,” she said. “We do ask them each year to partner with us for our traditional Friends of Children Breakfast fundraiser each May. As our team revised plans 14
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beginning in March, we rebranded that event and moved it to September so we could present the most powerful virtual presentation we could put together.” The ProKids Call for Community
became the key fundraiser for the year, presented online in small groups and in larger groups. But, Cook said, a focus on engaging donors individually was critical. “We shifted to more phone calls, emails and sometimes Zoom meetings to keep (donors) updated on how they are continuing to make a difference for abused and neglected children in our community,” Cook said. “As our volunteers worked on their cases, wearing masks and being socially distant during visits with our children … we were able to share these stories with our donors and make sure they knew the impact they were having in such uncertain times.”
A commitment to the institution That kind of focus – on both the individual donors and on the mission itself, was also important at DPCR. “Our model is not your typical
Movers & Makers
high school model,” said Worley, citing the school’s affordable Catholic, college prep curriculum partnered with an innovative work study program. “Our donors and friends have confidence that the school leadership makes decisions based upon what is best for our students and families. Our students are not going to work at this time.” And the partners, who usually would be hiring students to work, “have been very understanding and … almost all have indicated that even if our students are not at work, the money they have paid thus far can stay with the school.” That commitment to the
By Julie Borths
ProKids to triple the number of children served by the agency in recent years. “We know that the more our donors learn about how they can break the vicious cycle of abuse and neglect, the more they want to help ProKids create a new cycle of growing up safe and confident for the kids we serve,” she said. “When we let them know how much our children need them right now, with so much uncertainty in our world, many leaned forward – asking, ‘What do you need?’” Cook continued. “It’s been a great affirmation to know our donors continue to prioritize our kids.”
Creativity born from chaos From top: Sara Clark, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company Sparkle Worley, DePaul Christo Rey Tracy Cook, ProKids
institution has been part of Clark’s experience at Cincinnati Shakespeare as well. “When we formally postponed our season, we were worried: Would the big people pull out? But they didn’t,” Clark said. “They told us they valued our resilience and our ability to adapt.” Cook said donors have enabled
None of these successes comes without costs. Clark said donors not only miss the CSC performances, they miss one another. “We can never forget that development is called that because it’s a relationship business,” Clark said. “When people feel valued, heard, seen, they continue to support and to give.” The pandemic, Clark said, “is a reminder that a snazzy benefit package or a fancy event might be what initially gets people to give, but feeling connected to, and valued by, an organization which does work they believe in, that’s what keeps them giving.” Worley said traditional events are “not only for fundraising, but also for friend-raising,” referring to how donors will bring others along. “We have had to be very creative this year,” she continued, citing a complex golf outing which relied on appointed tee times, fewer foursomes and no surrounding events like a dinner. “We did very well,” she said. “Our golfers even played in the pouring rain.” Creativity was important at ProKids as well, Cook said. “Our team was able to pivot and
