This summer, I am working as a fundraising assistant with an organization called The House of Possibilities (HOPe). Their mission is to create an environment and program for people with disabilities to enhance their social relationships and skills for the workforce. Before COVID-19, the organization held both child and adult programs where individuals could make friends while learning at the same time. With new social distancing regulations, HOPe had to come up with a way to prevent their members from losing vital life skills while in quarantine. With the help of google-meet, members have been able to attend online programs and keep in touch with friends during this difficult time. Sadly, the organization had to lay off two workers due to a loss of funds and had to turn their annual gala online at the last minute. Their gala is a primary fundraising event and usually brings in about $300,000, so making the online version a success was vital. Although I didn't directly work on the virtual gala, I was lucky enough to witness the incredible leaders at HOPe think on their feet and create an awesome event. We ended up raising over $200,000 and gaining new donors. Through this experience, I learned how important it is to adjust to new obstacles and come up with new ways to overcome them.
While the planning and execution of the gala were taking place, I initially started by learning the basics of fundraising. I read numerous articles from the Association of Fundraising Professionals, which taught me about ethics, board members, fundraising tactics, and the list could go on. Before working with HOPe, my main interactions with non-profits were through volunteering, but I was clueless as to how important fundraising is to keep an organization running. After reading articles, I then attended virtual seminars on grant writing and the importance of donor relationships. I took notes on numerous lectures, which are included in this document. Recently, I progressed my work to researching grant leads for HOPe. I use resources like guidestar.org to look at the 990s of non-profits and the Foundation Directory Online (FDO) to get an overview of a grantmaker's funding patterns and if HOPe would be a good candidate to apply. Although I cannot share the specific spreadsheet, I will explain how I generally organize the grant leads. I have created a spreadsheet with Master, maybe and drop tabs to draw attention to the best fits. It's important to document every grantmaker I research, so HOPe can use my notes as a reference in the future. With each grant lead, I record the grantmaker's name, city, state, contact, website, grant deadline, and a note as to why they are a good or bad fit. If my organization is a good match, I create a donor folder with a copy of the FDO report and a spreadsheet of past donations. This process has taught me how to properly research organizations and efficiently analyze data. Now, more than ever, I need to find leads that match HOPe because funding has depleted due to COVID-19.
One of the most memorable and nerve-racking experiences I've had while interning is when my boss asked me to help her write a grant for $100,000. She called me midday to tell me that she was having COVID symptoms and needed help editing and finalizing a grant that was due the next day. Thankfully I completed numerous seminars on grant writing and the importance of storytelling to convey the mission of HOPe. Through our hard work, we sent the grant in on time. This experience taught me a couple of things. First, the importance of learning the basics and then moving forward from there. If I didn't do those seminars beforehand, I wouldn't have the resources to handle the situation. Secondly, by reading the grant and first-hand going through the process of submitting one, I understand how much work goes into a single submission. Even with symptoms of COVID, my boss put herself second to make sure her organization had the best shot of successfully receiving the grant. Luckily, her symptoms subsided and she felt better the next day. Nonetheless, I’m lucky to have an amazing role model as my boss and I’m looking forward to learning more about fundraising with her. Overall, I have loved working with HOPe so far, and I'm excited to see the new projects the organization has in store for me.