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Thursday, December 17, 2015
Suttons Bay's Herman Park Awarded $45K Grant : News : The Ticker
NMC's Dennos Museum Receives Second Major Gift : News : The Ticker
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In September, longtime Northwestern Michigan College supporters Diana and Richard Milock announced a $2 million gift to its Dennos Museum Center to add two new galleries. This week, the college announced it has received a $1 million gift to expand the museum's signature Inuit art gallery. The gift is from longtime NMC supporters and Inuit art collectors Barbara and Dudley Smith III. The couple has given more than $2.4 million over the past 27 years to support the Dennos and many other college programs.
More ...
NMC's Dennos Museum Receives Second Major Gift : News : The Ticker
Holiday Concert To Benefit Safe Harbor : News : The Ticker
December 16, 2015 | |||||
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Holiday Concert To Benefit Safe Harbor : News : The Ticker
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Rotary Charities Grants $100,000 for Preservation of Hickory Hills
December 9, 2015
Rotary Charities of Traverse City announced the recipients of their fall-cycle grants on December 2nd, totaling over $720,172 in the form of 23 grants- including a $100,000 grant to Preserve Hickory in their effort to leverage significant City investment to improve park infrastructure.
“We are thrilled and very grateful to have been awarded a grant from Rotary Charities. This grant provides a “stamp of approval” on the collaborative efforts for improvements at Hickory Hills,” stated Laura Ness, co-founder of Preserve Hickory. “We hope that this award will serve to motivate other donors in the community to join in and preserve this wonderful community asset for future generations.”
More - Click here
Saturday, November 28, 2015
History Center To Transfer Archives To TADL : News : The Ticker
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Choo Choo...Fest Of Trains Coming! : News : The Ticker
r 28, 2015 | |||||
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Choo Choo...Fest Of Trains Coming! : News : The Ticker
BARC Launching Campaign To Make TC 'Greenest Community' : News : The Ticker
November 28, 2015 | |||||
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Friday, November 20, 2015
Hagerty Makes $90k Commitment To TraverseCONNECT : News : The Ticker
November 20, 2015 | |||||
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Hagerty Makes $90k Commitment To TraverseCONNECT : News : The Ticker
County Approves Y Takeover Of Easling Pool : News : The Ticker
November 19, 2015 | |||||
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Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Eitland accepts new position
I am pleased to announce that I have accepted a position to
be the Director of Development at St. Matthew Catholic Church in Hillsboro,
Oregon starting on December 1, 2015. (The parish is located about 17 miles west
of Portland.)
I will be helping members of that parish to expand their
discipleship of giving and implement their 20 year vision for ministry.
St. Matthew Catholic Church is “One Community Growing in
Christ” of 3,000 members and inspired by the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit. St
Matthew has a vibrant 100 year old Pre-K to 8th grade school of 225
students among many other growing ministries in that multicultural community. http://www.stmatthewhillsboro.org/
Please contact me if you would like to take over this blog to communicate with our colleagues and region about philanthropy. deitland@gmail.com
Monday, November 9, 2015
Restaurants Fundraising to End Homelessness : News : The Ticker
November 9, 2015 | |||||
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Restaurants Fundraising to End Homelessness : News : The Ticker
Friday, November 6, 2015
Year End Mailings
Hopefully by now you will have your year end mailing to all your prospect and donor database approved and ready to go.
You may want to include a Post Script for Legacy Giving.
Some quick ways to write that:
P.S. Since you have been such a great supporter of our work, would you consider placing a gift in you trust or will for us?
P.S. Including a gift in your trust or will can make your giving last forever at no cost to you today.
P.S. We have done wondrous things for XXX years and we will for another XXX. At this time of giving would you consider a gift to our charity in your trust or will?
P.S. A simple way of giving that costs you nothing today is a legacy gift. Would you consider making a gift in your trust or will? We will always appreciate your support.
P.S. Come join us in our <name> society by giving a gift in your trust or will today. Call <first name of person handling these gifts> at ###-###-#### or email at <email address> for exact information.
You may want to include a Post Script for Legacy Giving.
Some quick ways to write that:
P.S. Since you have been such a great supporter of our work, would you consider placing a gift in you trust or will for us?
P.S. Including a gift in your trust or will can make your giving last forever at no cost to you today.
P.S. We have done wondrous things for XXX years and we will for another XXX. At this time of giving would you consider a gift to our charity in your trust or will?
P.S. A simple way of giving that costs you nothing today is a legacy gift. Would you consider making a gift in your trust or will? We will always appreciate your support.
P.S. Come join us in our <name> society by giving a gift in your trust or will today. Call <first name of person handling these gifts> at ###-###-#### or email at <email address> for exact information.
TADL Upgrades Youth Services - TC Ticker
November 6, 2015
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Thursday, November 5, 2015
LIAA New Executive Director - TC Ticker
LIAA Names New Executive Director
November 5, 2015 - TC Ticker
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Friday, October 30, 2015
From the Chronicle of Philanthropy
What Nonprofits Need to Learn From Business
For years I’ve straddled the worlds of business and philanthropy, first as a corporate executive, then as a foundation head, and now as a consultant helping companies use social impact to drive their businesses. So I’ve seen both sides. Contrary to what I expected, this has made me an even more ardent believer that business-oriented, market-based approaches are the key to finally solving social problems in ways that are sustainable, scalable, and replicable.
Why do I think this? Because despite all the things that businesses have gotten wrong in the past 25 years, they have still been the most efficient and effective allocators of time, money, and natural resources, as well as the most powerful force in pulling people out of poverty. According to The Economist, the number of people living in extreme poverty around the world was cut nearly in half from 1990 to 2010 — “a reduction of almost 1 billion people.” And “most of the credit [for that reduction] must go to capitalism and free trade.”
Why do I think this? Because despite all the things that businesses have gotten wrong in the past 25 years, they have still been the most efficient and effective allocators of time, money, and natural resources, as well as the most powerful force in pulling people out of poverty. According to The Economist, the number of people living in extreme poverty around the world was cut nearly in half from 1990 to 2010 — “a reduction of almost 1 billion people.” And “most of the credit [for that reduction] must go to capitalism and free trade.”
In his book Poverty in America — and What to Do About It, Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute agrees, saying that “it was the worldwide spread of American-style free enterprise that saved billions from poverty.”
That got me wondering: Why has business been so successful compared to the other sectors, including nonprofits? It isn’t because nonprofits attract incompetent people. Quite the opposite. Some of the smartest, most dedicated people I’ve met work in the social sector. So what is it? I would argue the problem is waste — both time and money. Combined, the U.S. government and private foundations spend enormous sums — enough to do what needs to be done. But instead many major indicators are moving in the wrong direction. Why? Because, like retail pioneer John Wanamaker is said to have remarked: “I know 50 percent of my advertising is wasted. I just don’t know which 50 percent.”
That got me wondering: Why has business been so successful compared to the other sectors, including nonprofits? It isn’t because nonprofits attract incompetent people. Quite the opposite. Some of the smartest, most dedicated people I’ve met work in the social sector. So what is it? I would argue the problem is waste — both time and money. Combined, the U.S. government and private foundations spend enormous sums — enough to do what needs to be done. But instead many major indicators are moving in the wrong direction. Why? Because, like retail pioneer John Wanamaker is said to have remarked: “I know 50 percent of my advertising is wasted. I just don’t know which 50 percent.”
While few want to admit it, we all recognize there is waste. We just don’t know what to cut and what to invest more in. That’s because nonprofits are missing three features that make business so successful:
Transparency. Some people think that business is highly opaque, but I would posit that there is more information available about U.S. public companies than about institutions in any other sector. Doubt this? Just ask yourself: Which is more forthcoming, IBM or the Catholic Church (at least prior to the current pope)? And if you have a question or concern for leadership, is it easier to raise it during an annual general meeting or during a State of the Union? Business may not be an open book, but it’s far ahead on transparency.
Comparability. Not only is there more easily accessible information about companies but the type of information that’s available can be readily compared on an apples-to-apples basis, thanks in large part to common accounting standards. That makes it relatively easy to tell who is “winning” and who is “losing” — not by some largely meaningless internal standard like spending 10 percent or less of funds on overhead but where it actually counts — in the market they are serving.
Accountability. In business, you get paid for outcomes, not activities (for profitably selling a product, not just for getting it onto the grocery-store shelf). That accountability for your performance against stated outcomes is swift and clear: Investors can move money out of your stock in an instant if they no longer believe your company is the best bet to achieve their investment aims. We need a way to help social investors make the same types of assessments.
I understand this might be scary to many. After all, these three features also made the rise of activist investors and agitators of all types not only possible but indeed likely. Since outsiders can pretty clearly see what’s working and what’s not, they can often persuasively push for change.
Now I’m not saying the short-term mentality of activist investors would benefit the nonprofit world, but I am all for intense external scrutiny of nonprofit programming. After all, there must be some duplication and waste in a system in which roughly 1,400 501(c)(3) organizations in the United States alone are trying to fight the same disease, namely breast cancer. Yes, that’s a big and critically important job. And there are many needs: finding a cure, caring for those who already have cancer, and so forth. But, wouldn’t, say, 10 or even 100 larger, better-resourced organizations stand a greater chance of tackling the problem?
I’m also not saying there hasn’t been a lot of great work done (there has!), but if ever there was a sector that could benefit from some smart merger-and-acquisition activity, it’s nonprofits.
Transparency. Some people think that business is highly opaque, but I would posit that there is more information available about U.S. public companies than about institutions in any other sector. Doubt this? Just ask yourself: Which is more forthcoming, IBM or the Catholic Church (at least prior to the current pope)? And if you have a question or concern for leadership, is it easier to raise it during an annual general meeting or during a State of the Union? Business may not be an open book, but it’s far ahead on transparency.
Comparability. Not only is there more easily accessible information about companies but the type of information that’s available can be readily compared on an apples-to-apples basis, thanks in large part to common accounting standards. That makes it relatively easy to tell who is “winning” and who is “losing” — not by some largely meaningless internal standard like spending 10 percent or less of funds on overhead but where it actually counts — in the market they are serving.
Accountability. In business, you get paid for outcomes, not activities (for profitably selling a product, not just for getting it onto the grocery-store shelf). That accountability for your performance against stated outcomes is swift and clear: Investors can move money out of your stock in an instant if they no longer believe your company is the best bet to achieve their investment aims. We need a way to help social investors make the same types of assessments.
I understand this might be scary to many. After all, these three features also made the rise of activist investors and agitators of all types not only possible but indeed likely. Since outsiders can pretty clearly see what’s working and what’s not, they can often persuasively push for change.
Now I’m not saying the short-term mentality of activist investors would benefit the nonprofit world, but I am all for intense external scrutiny of nonprofit programming. After all, there must be some duplication and waste in a system in which roughly 1,400 501(c)(3) organizations in the United States alone are trying to fight the same disease, namely breast cancer. Yes, that’s a big and critically important job. And there are many needs: finding a cure, caring for those who already have cancer, and so forth. But, wouldn’t, say, 10 or even 100 larger, better-resourced organizations stand a greater chance of tackling the problem?
I’m also not saying there hasn’t been a lot of great work done (there has!), but if ever there was a sector that could benefit from some smart merger-and-acquisition activity, it’s nonprofits.
In fact, I’d say the writing is on the wall. My prediction is that as impact measurement gets better, faster, and cheaper, donors will more often demand proof of outcomes. In turn, nonprofits that aren’t the very best because they try to be all things to all people will suffer.
Why wait for that to happen to your organization? It’s time nonprofit leaders had the tough conversations to determine where they have true competitive advantage and then focus on that and leave the rest to others.
I know it’s hard to say no to supporters, but in some instances, that is the right thing to do. We need to bring more “market-like” pressures to nonprofits both to jump-start innovation and to root out waste.
Won’t this create winners and losers? Won’t many nonprofits go out of business or be taken over or merged with others? Probably, yes. But I see this as largely positive. As a business person, my belief is that the winners — big or small, new or old — should be those organizations that are truly delivering and able to prove that they do so better than the rest. If this happens, we’ll greatly reduce waste and increase efficiency, making us all winners because we’ll finally achieve real progress on these intractable issues and maybe, just maybe, actually solve some of them in our lifetime. Isn’t that what we’re all fighting for, after all, and wouldn’t that be worth whatever disruption is required?
Why wait for that to happen to your organization? It’s time nonprofit leaders had the tough conversations to determine where they have true competitive advantage and then focus on that and leave the rest to others.
I know it’s hard to say no to supporters, but in some instances, that is the right thing to do. We need to bring more “market-like” pressures to nonprofits both to jump-start innovation and to root out waste.
Won’t this create winners and losers? Won’t many nonprofits go out of business or be taken over or merged with others? Probably, yes. But I see this as largely positive. As a business person, my belief is that the winners — big or small, new or old — should be those organizations that are truly delivering and able to prove that they do so better than the rest. If this happens, we’ll greatly reduce waste and increase efficiency, making us all winners because we’ll finally achieve real progress on these intractable issues and maybe, just maybe, actually solve some of them in our lifetime. Isn’t that what we’re all fighting for, after all, and wouldn’t that be worth whatever disruption is required?
Monday, October 26, 2015
Four Key Questions... for Fundraisers to answer ....
Click here - for full story
Howard H. Stevenson, a Harvard Business School expert on entrepreneurialism and himself a philanthropist, explains why people give and how fundraisers can reach them.
Howard H. Stevenson, a Harvard Business School expert on entrepreneurialism and himself a philanthropist, explains why people give and how fundraisers can reach them.
Fundraisers should expect to have to address four key questions when making their pitch for why their organization is uniquely positioned to tackle something that the donor cares about:
- Does the organization do important work? Answering that question ties directly to how well its mission is articulated, and how important it is to the donor. Be bold and realistic in establishing a mission—and then make sure it’s communicated in a way that is memorable, differentiable, credible, inspirational, aspirational, and simple.
- Is the organization well managed? “People who give significant gifts dive into that question pretty fiercely,” said Stevenson. Is the economic model sustainable? Is there effective governance? Is the organization’s staff passionate and collaborative in carrying out a mutually understood service model?
- Will my gift make a difference? You must appeal to the head and the heart on this score. Show why the money you’re asking for is essential to accomplishing the organization’s core mission, and develop a means of showing a gift’s impact. Also, understand that some people may want to get personally involved in your organization as a way of answering this question on their own terms.
- Will the experience be satisfying to me? “I don’t think of raising money as helping my institution,” said Stevenson. “I think of raising money as helping donors fulfill their philanthropic objectives. That’s very different from saying, ‘Won’t you help us accomplish our purpose?’” Saying thank you is important and involves “figuring out what the right stewardship is that isn’t generic and makes a donor very proud.” Finally, a relationship with a donor should be just as satisfying for the fundraiser and the institution. Gifts can be the beginning of an ongoing partnership.
If the answer to all of these questions is yes, it will be difficult for a donor to say no and turn down the opportunity to make a gift, said Stevenson, who also highlighted the rewards of philanthropy—namely, the satisfaction of “partnering with others to accomplish things that have a positive impact on the world around you now and in the future.”
Friday, October 23, 2015
Musical Benefit to support Family Partnership
 | Billy Strings & Don Julin Benefit 10/23 American roots duo Billy Strings & Don Julin bring their unique musical style back home to Traverse City on Friday, 10/23, 7pm at Central United Methodist Church in a benefit concert for the Family Partnership of Grand Traverse. All proceeds will be used to support Family Partnership's work as they help local low-resourced individuals & families follow a path out of poverty with mentoring programs and support. Tickets $12/adults, $6/children under 14, available atwww.MyNorthTickets.com details |
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Book City - TC Ticker
Traverse City Is Now 'Book City'
October 21, 2015
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Sunrise Rotary Awards Grants - TC Ticker
Rotary Club Awards Mini-Grants
October 22, 2015
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Monday, October 19, 2015
60 minutes ... great story about Make a Wish...
Here is a link to a wonderful story on 60 Minutes last night on the philanthropy of Make-A-Wish and the lives they touch throughout the generations ...
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