Sharing fundraising info to other NPOs

As a new member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, I wrote up these notes for the Tucson Women's Chorus (TWC) http://www.tucsonwomenschorus.org.  I am also now a board member of TWC and have been a chorus member for the past two seasons.

I am learning as I grow in the co-chair role of TWC's fundraising committee.  So, as I share fundraising info with TWC, I thought it might benefit others among the Better for Us/BuildUP^ network to also have periodic fundraising info.

The Pima County Library's Non Profit Center is a good place to start (which I did), and I found the book, Forces for Good..., at their Himmel Branch Library.  http://www.pima.library.gov

Notes on Fundraising from the book, Forces for Good…  

There are six primary myths about what NPOs need to do in order to be successful:

1.      Practice perfect management

2.      Implement Brand Name awareness

3.      Create/produce break-through ideas

4.      Develop a textbook mission statement (successful NPOs have one but focus on program delivery rather than spend time on perfecting a mission statement)

5.      Demonstrate high ratings on conventional measurement metrics

6.      Have large budgets

Instead, successful NPOs perform these six elements:

1.      Advocate and Serve

2.      Make Markets Work by developing earned income and return on investments

3.      Inspire Evangelists*--volunteers are more than free labor; volunteers are engaged with the NPOs core values and mission

4.      Nurture broader NPO networks

5.      Master the art of adaptation

6.      Share leadership

*Volunteers are “transformed” by the NPOs effort through Rules of Engagement which are…

·        Communicate mission, vision and values to all volunteers and members

·        Create meaningful experiences for all volunteers and members

·        Cultivate a “face” of a superevangelist such as Jimmy Carter for Habitat for Humanity

·        Build a social network committed to the NPO

Compiled by Anita C. Fonte, 2018 Community Renaissance, www.communityrenaissance.webstarts.com 520.331.5582

turning it over

It's been an interesting journey for Community Renaissance these past 5 years.  Since our work ended for Imagine Greater Tucson (and before that six years with the Grant Road Improvement Project), we have engaged with TENWEST, TEDxTucson, initiated Do Happy Today and BuildUp Tucson, while supporting the inital stages of ROGUE Communities.

Times they are a changing---Bob Dylan's song revised last Saturday by Jenifer Hudson at the #MarchforourLives in Washington D.C.  We progressives know that 2016 was a turning point for our country and 2018 may be another.  Times of change are accelerating, indeed.

And yet, finding a path for Community Renaissance that is meaningful and of value can be a slow process.  This is where Community Renaissance finds itself at this moment.  We are letting go of coordinating both Do Happy Today and BuildUP Tucson.  A primary Community Renaissance Associate, Tina Marie Wilken (formerly Tina Marie Summers), is taking on the coordination of Do Happy Today.  BuildUP Tucson is going dormant until and if one of our community partners asks us to step up to another chapter of work.

The revised 2017 Walkabout Talkabout Booklet is having another spin with Southwest Fair Housing Council as a future educational outreach tool and, posssibly, adding another layer of asset data to their Opportuity Index.  We are hopeful this will be meaningful to the greater Tucson community and beyond.

So, new postings at www.facebook.com/communityrenaissance and www.communityrenaissance.webstarts.com will keep you informed.

ROGUE: Emerging Neighborhoods Project

Realizing Opportunities for Growth, Unity and Equity (ROGUE) is officially launching its Emerging Neighborhoods Project 2.22.18.  Three neighborhoods are participating:  La Capilla (S. Tucson), ParkView and Barrio Anita.  All three will be doing asset-mapping with the updated Walkabout Talkabout Book, developed by The Maverick Institute (1988)/Community Renaissance (2017).  The Walkabout Talkabout Book has been translated into Spanish in an abbreviated version. 

The Emerging Neighborhoods Project is a 6 week, focused effort to assist community-based positive changes in local neighborhoods.  Besides Tucson and South Tucson, the city of St. Louis, Missouri is also part of this ROGUE effort and a guest speaker from St. Louis will be attending the March 24th GeoSpatial Summit at Joel D. Valdez Downtown/Main Library, 10 a.m.- 3p.m., public invited. 

Also at the March 24th Summit, Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild will be reading the Proclamation for Tucson's 4th International Days of Happiness and giving certificates of community kinship to ROGUE's neighborhood leadership.

Community Renaissance is happy to be a member of ROGUE and its current and future community efforts are/will be in collaboration with ROGUE, a soon-to-be national nonprofit organization.

For more information contact:  anitafonte@gmail.com or iris@geospatialcollaborative.com

Tucson's 4th International Days of Happiness

Starting in the fall of 2013, Community Renaissance has been working with collaborative community partners to improve personal and community happiness in Tucson and Beyond.  http://communityrenaissance.webstarts.com

We have convened Community Conversations with the Pima County Public Library, danced in Jacome Plaza with Dancing in the Streets Tucson, created happy walls with LIVE HAPPY magazine and local hosts, made Happy Bags at Kellond School and with a group of Girl Scouts, and helped to make the "dream" of a well-being walking park a reality with Limberlost Family Park and City of Tucson Parks and Recreation and Ward 3.

We've had fun (mostly) and now it's time to celebrate again--and let go of our convening role after this year's events.  It's up to others to keep the ball rolling and we hope you will.

Starting in mid-February through mid-March, it is the Hebrew month of Adar with a focus on joy.  The Tucson J is offering several activities to enhance personal and community happiness and well-being.  You can find out which activities in their magazine with the emoji ☺.  Go to http://www.tucsonjcc.org

So far, for the week of the official March 20th date, we have these activities/events and partners with more to come:

3/20: GLOBAL/OFFICIAL International Day of Happiness--  The Reliance Group is sponsoring up to 10 adoptions at The Humane Society of Southern Arizona; The Profit Project is convening a workshop on "wellness in the workplace" at La Cocina; Bentley's Cafe is branding their breakfast menu as "Smile with Us" all day; Cafe 54 will have our DHT table and giveaways; Tuesday Laughter Yoga is dedicating their session to #dohappytoday and will be wearing their DHT t-shirts.

3/24:  ROGUE (Realizing Opportunities for Growth, Unity and Equity) will be convening a GeoSpatial Summit 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Joel D. Valdez Main Library, featuring Mayor Rothschild at 11:30 and the City's Proclamation for Tucson's 4th International Days of Happiness.  BuildUP Tucson, Limberlost Neighborhood Association and others will be facilitating action steps for ROGUE's Emerging Neighborhoods Project. http://www.geospatialcollaborative.com

3/25:  Limberlost Family Park, 2-4 p.m. Tai Chi, Toddlers' Little Olympics, Plein Air Painting and more are part of recelebrating Tucson's First FengShui Wellness Walking Park.

We welcome others to come up with/share your activities that enhance happiness, health and well-being in our region and yours.  This is how we BuildUP^ Tucson & Beyond, making our communities Better for Us and Better for Everyone.

Walkabout Talkabout Your Neighborhoods 2017 revised version

Now available to download for free at www.facebook.com/ROGUEcommunities

Note that the Walkabout Talkabout booklet is no longer available at www.communityrenaissance.biz which has been discontinued.  Community Renaissance's current website is www.communityrenaissance.webstarts.com

You can contact Community Renaissance through www.facebook.com/communityrenaissance or 520.331.5582

Walkabout Talkabout Book 2017/BlogtoBook

It's been a labor of love for community, and a community-relationship building experience to create the new (third) 2017 version of The Walkabout Talkabout Book.  The book originally was written and designed in 1988 by The Maverick Institute co-founders Leslie Johnston (graphic artist) and Anita C. Fonte (writer) and funded by the Arizona Humanities Council. It was reprinted by the University of Arizona's Cooperative Extension and 4-H and used by 4-H Groups throughout the State.

In 2016, as part of the collaborative effort to Build UP^ Tucson & Beyond, others came into the process of envisioning how a revised version could benefit various community-building efforts.  These groups include:  the Southwest Fair Housing Council, the Pima County Ending Poverty Program, the Geospatial Collaborative LLC, the Limberlost Neighborhood Association and Feng Shui Planning.  

In 2017, Leslie Johnston/What We Think Design, created a new cover for the book which features a water-harvesting element.  Content suggestions from the City of Tucson's Trees for Tucson Program, the Pima County Ending Poverty Program, and Feng Shui Planning were added under the authorship and coordinationa of Anita C. Fonte/Community Renaissance & its pro bono program, The Partnership for Equity and Civic Engagement (PECE).

The Walkabout Talkabout Book is free and available to download at www.geospatialcollaborative.org.  It is a book that is friendly to children as well as adults.  Limited hard copies are printed by the Pima County Ending Poverty Program and the Geospatial Collaborative LLC.  

Please use the Walkabout Talkabout Book and let us know how it helped you and your neighborhood at anitafonte@gmail.com 

www.publicdomainpictures.net

Collaborations Continue

We will have new info soon on continuing and expanded community collaborations as we continue to BuildUP^ Tucson & Beyond and create thriving communities.