Fluff Free Fundraising
From Access Philanthropy
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August 2021
Bremer Trust Moves to EIGHT Funding Cycles, that "Mackenzie Scam" is real, and Some Surprising Stuff about Crowdfunding
We thought this whole damn thing was getting under control - that we’d only need to deal with some vaccine holdouts and probably booster shots in the future. But now educators, nonprofits, rural folks, and even the Great Minnesota Get Together are befuddled. We wish you the best as you and yours muddle through the indecisions you face in the next phase of this stuff. AND you can always buy a State Fair Box curbside with pronto pups, cookies, and other horribly wonderful things to eat.
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-Coming Next Month from AP-
Mental Health Funding in Minnesota
Next month, look for AP’s four-page report on the status of mental health funding in Minnesota, including top funders, recipients, causes; geographic breakdown, and mini-profiles of top funders
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Survey Says…
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After the murder of George Floyd, Corporate America jumped on confronting systemic racism bandwagon. Collectively, the 50 biggest corporations pledged $49.5 billion. Of that amount about $4.2 billion was awarded in grants/donations. What happened to the $4.5 billion? The Washington Post just did the story with lots of facts, figures, and names.
- The Children’s Funding Project recently released its Covid Relief Funding for Kids Crash Course, a collection of articles and “guidance” on Federal Recovery Funding Resources. Covid Related Relief Funding Tools and Resources. It’s a start, not well-curated, but a good place to begin getting organized and finding info..
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New Faces at AP A bunch of great new folks that you’ll love:
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We’re very excited that Ted Olson is joining us as a Senior Advisor. You’re going to love this guy. THOUSANDS OF YEARS OF EXPERIENCE and more ideas and energy than anyone on the team. He’s great.
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Brenda Urueta is our new Philanthropy Associate. She has plenty of foundation experience and is currently a Grad TA in nonprofit stuff at Humphrey Institute
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Zachary Wronski is our newest Philanthropy Researcher. A Minnesota transplant to Canada, remaining after graduating the University of Manitoba. He’s also a climbing instructor and wilderness first responder.
Our friend Christine Schwitzer is leaving as our lead writer to take on a capital campaign. God bless her and her courageous enthusiasm. We promised to keep in touch
30-Minute Chats
AP Staff are participating and enjoying the 30-minute chats we’re having with nonprofit folks who need a little advice, some information, or fundraising feedback. Our writers have 100 years of grants experience. Our consultants have… well, more than 100 years of fundraising and grantmaking experience. Drop a note to gail@accessphilanthropy.com to plan a time.
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The Mackenzie Desk
- “A Bloomberg News survey accounting of $4.3 billion in 375 grants to nonprofits reveals for the first time how the philanthropist (Mackenzie Scott) is directing her charitable might.”
- Mackenzie Scott, Melinda French Gates (and other funders) launched the Equality Can’t Wait Challenge, which will award $40 million for gender equity by 2030. Three priorities: 1) Dismantle the barriers that hold women back., 2) Fast tracking women in critical sectors, and 3) Call society to action.
- BTW remember the “Mackenzie Scam,” sort of like the anonymous prince scam, “send us your bank account # and we’ll send you a billion dollars.” Our clients received such emails, it’s real.
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Foundation News and Updates
The first six:
- October 7, 2021
- December 2, 2021
- February 10, 2022
- April 14, 2022
- June 16, 2022
- August 11, 2022
- More general operating support (big change for UW!
- Three years of funding
- More support for community awareness about grantee projects
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Judy Dayton, the grand dame of arts philanthropy in Minnesota, the last of the Great Generation of Daytons, the former governor’s aunt, and a genuinely nice lady died. Her obit.
James Hormel, heir to the Hormel fortune, the first openly gay U.S. Ambassador, a genuine LGBTQ advocate, and an enlightened philanthropist also died. His obit
Headwaters Foundation for Justice published its twenty 2021 Giving Project Grant Recipients including two of AP Charities’ sponsees, Asian American Organizing Project and Black Table Arts.
McKnight Foundation announced changes to its Arts and Culture program. More support for “culture bearers” people/groups who support arts/culture but aren’t arts and culture groups. Also expanded emphasis on giving to indigenous communities, communities of color and other underserved or underrecognized communities.
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The Fundraiser’s Toolbox
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Giving Tuesday is only three months away – November 30th. If you’re planning on doing anything for this or related giving days, maybe you should start now.
- Need some quick demographic data about changes in racial and ethnic population growth in your Metro community? StarTrib recently did a little piece with an interactive growth map.
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Crowdfunding and the Masses |
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Turns out maybe crowdfunding isn’t the ultimate in fundraising equity. In fact, NPQ did a story on the inequalities of crowdfunding.
“Nora Kenworthy, an associate professor at the University of Washington Bothell, analyzed 175,000 GoFundMe crowdfunding campaigns during the first seven months of the pandemic. What she found is startling.
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- Of all the campaigns the researchers analyzed, 43% of the 175,000 efforts received zero donations.
- Requesters with proximity to wealth, such as golf caddies at upscale LA golf courses, had much more success as a result, further exacerbating already wide wealth inequities
- The platform’s homepage prioritizes well-performing, popular campaigns for casual browsers, forcing many requesters to rely on their own social networks to receive donations
- She concludes that while GoFundMe is a useful tool for mutual aid financial management, “careful consideration should be used when involving a for-profit company in a non-profit space.”
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New Here?
The politically conservative Philanthropy Daily has a fundraising newsletter and has interesting advice for new Major Gifts Officers
- When you start making calls to donors and prospects, mention you’re new here
- Use your inexperience as an opportunity to re-cultivate current donors
- Ask your donors and prospects for advice on how to do your new job
- Stay “new” as long as possible
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The Jobs Are Out There!
You’d think we just finished a pandemic or economic downturn. There are literally hundreds of philanthropy jobs (not fundraising/philanthropy) out there. Here’s a small sampling. Most of these jobs and other jobs can be found on indeed.com. Interested in a specific funder? Go to their Careers section.
No paid ads. We want Minnesota-informed people working for national foundations.
Ford Foundation – there are currently 7 positions available from NYC to So. Africa to India.
Bezos Earth Fund (DC) – there are currently 4 positions available, including communications
If none of this pique your interest there are several positions available with the Central Intelligence Agency including the ominous sounding Operations Officer. |
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Now That We Can Be Together (a little) Lift a Glass…
To a woman who enabled millions of children worldwide to teach themselves how to lift a glass and who taught millions of teachers about self-learning. August 31 is the 151 st birthday of Maria Montessori who developed the Montessori system and who said “The greatest sign of success for a teacher... is to be able to say, ’The children are now working as if I did not exist.’” Good saying for consultants, too.
Need to talk to someone about fundraising or the stuff you’re experiencing in fundraising… schedule a time with gail@accessphilanthropy.com
Know someone who could use Fluff Free Fundraising information? Feel free to forward this piece.
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Steve Paprocki
President
Access Philanthropy
651-295-4684
www.accessphilanthropy.com
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Access Philanthropy Inc | 612-900-8861 | 2100 Stevens Ave., Mpls, MN 55044 | www.accessphilanthropy.com |
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