SUCCESSES

Limited Time Agency Endowment Matching Program

We are excited to announce an Agency Endowment Matching Program available to Lodi nonprofits - a limited time opportunity for nonprofit organizations to establish or grow an endowment and receive matching funds up to $10,000!

This opportunity is available through 2023 for 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in Lodi, and is a great way to receive long-term support! Endowments provide nonprofits with the ability to better manage financial assets, forecast for future budgeting and operational needs, and be in a position to navigate new challenge surrounding as well as times of growth. View brochure for information.

OPPPORTUNITIES

Lodi Community Foundation Grants Program

It is with great pleasure that we announced in September the first Lodi Community Foundation Competitive Grants Program. The Lodi Community Foundation (LCF) Board has committed a total of $10,000 to support local eligible nonprofits that are committed to enhancing the lives of residents in our community.

Local nonprofits may request up to $5,000 in grant funds made available from the LCF Field of Interest Fund. The Board of Directors of the LCF recognizes that Lodi and its surrounding areas are a community with diverse and ever-changing needs, and one in which philanthropy can make an impact through leveraging its own resources for strategically focused grantmaking. Review the full grant information in this PDF. Applications will only be accepted online through the online grant portal.

Deadline to apply is Friday, October 27, 2023, 5:00 p.m. (PST)

209Gives Giving Tuesday

On Tuesday, November 28, 2023, nonprofits and their supporters will have the opportunity to participate in locally branded 209Gives Giving Tuesday!

This will be 100% FREE for eligible nonprofit organizations to participate in the national Giving Tuesday campaign at a local level!

Keep an eye out for 209Gives Giving Tuesday social posts for platform launch date! Once launched, we encourage local area nonprofits to register their eligible 501(c)(3) organizations as a cause to support! Once organizations have registered, a major social media effort will commence to encourage people to give, no matter how big or small on 209Gives Giving Tuesday, November 28, 2023.

Lodi Community Foundation will advertise this giving effort to ensure local nonprofits 209Gives Giving Tuesday's are highlighted for LCF fundholders and the greater local community.

Are you interested in helping sponsor this opportunity for our nonprofits? See the sponsorship package here.

CEMI Capacity Building Grant

The Community Economic Mobilization Initiative (CEMI) is a countywide grantmaking program to assist eligible organizations in building their knowledge and capacity to participate in upcoming local, state, and federal funding and planning opportunities.

Lodi Community Foundation proudly shares that the first grant opportunity I now open and encourages Lodi area businesses to further review grant goals, eligibility, and criteria by visiting the San Joaquin Community Foundation website. A PDF version of the grant is also available for reference.

An informational webinar regarding this funding opportunity is scheduled for Wednesday, October 25, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. (PST)  through Zoom. Please register for that meeting here. The meeting will be recorded and sent to those that register. It will also be posted on the SJC CEMI webpage.

RFPs must be submitted by the deadline of December 1, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. (PST) by submitting via the online grant portal.

RESOURCES

Pivoting - An Article Courtesy of Jim Eskin, Esking Fundraising Team

Thanks to the New York Times for the following eye-opening insights: An intergenerational transfer of wealth is in motion in America -- and it will dwarf any of the past.

Fundraising might still be in the doldrums, but many donors continue to express a commitment to giving, despite challenging conditions. A Qgiv study examines the challenges of soliciting gifts from donors in an economy that has been rocked by a pandemic, inflation, supply-chain snares, and a volatile stock market. It includes findings from a survey of 292 fundraisers who use Qgiv’s technology. Forty-four percent of fundraisers said revenue from donors fell slightly or significantly over the previous three years. While the economic forecast now looks brighter than it did five months ago, non-profits are still challenged by the high cost of goods and services and declining rates of donor participation. The pandemic forced fundraisers to be nimble, devising new solutions to overcome shortages of direct-mail envelopes, qualified new hires, and more. In recent months, a cloudy economic forecast has been the biggest challenge, forcing fundraisers to keep pivoting.

More than half of fundraisers pulled - 53% - said their organization had changed its fundraising strategies over the previous three years to respond to economic instability and rising costs. 

Many non-profits tossed out or substantially lowered their fundraising goals at the onset of the pandemic and have invested more resources in tactics that focus on giving over time, like monthly giving, and building stronger donor relationships.

Article Credited to Jim Eskin, Eskin Fundraising Team