Skip to content

When building a board, look for the helpers

“Look for the helpers. You’ll always find people who are helping.”

Following the bomb explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday (April 15), this comforting word from Fred Rogers has popped up again on social media sites. Our favorite neighbor was referring, of course, to advice from his mother about dealing with scary things. But it occurs to me that Mama Rogers’ wisdom is helpful as well when recruiting board members.

Okay, so it’s quite a leap from Boston to your boardroom. But stick with me.Read More »When building a board, look for the helpers

When building a board, look for the helpers

“Look for the helpers. You’ll always find people who are helping.”

Following the bomb explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday (April 15), this comforting word from Fred Rogers has popped up again on social media sites. Our favorite neighbor was referring, of course, to advice from his mother about dealing with scary times. But it occurs to me that Mama Rogers’ wisdom is helpful as well when recruiting board members.

Okay, so it’s quite a leap from Boston to your boardroom. But stick with me. Read More »When building a board, look for the helpers

Tips for perfecting your thank you

Recent days have brought a flurry of articles through my in-box that praise the power of a simple thank you. An appreciative word is good for business, we’re told. “Thank you” leads to reciprocal generosity. It’s a tough cookie who’s immune to the motivating effects of acknowledgement and thanks, researchers report.

The take-away for fundraisers? Forget the plaques, the chotskis, and the doo-dads. Instead, double down on thank you and prepare to be amazed.  Read More »Tips for perfecting your thank you

Avoid the trap of “maybe gifts” and mission drift

I heard it again on my last trip out —  a proposal to expand an organization’s mission packaged as a development strategy. “By launching X, we’ll open the organization to a whole new group of donors,” the executive director said with more conviction than evidence.

Never mind that the organization’s strategic plan included nary a hint of the proposed project. The siren song of potential new dollars (hinted at, but not confirmed by the ED) was too much for the cash-anxious board to resist. My bet? A year from now they’ll be singing a sadder (and more realistic) song.Read More »Avoid the trap of “maybe gifts” and mission drift

A scholarship with stewardship modeling on the side

For Ken and Renee Moreland, the scholarship funds they’ve established at Messiah College (the school where my husband serves as provost) aren’t just about helping students afford a Christ-centered education, as praise-worthy as that is. Nor is their giving simply what a good board member does (Ken serves on the college’s board of trustees), as laudable as that would be.

As the Morelands explained at a recent donor appreciation event, they give to “equip young people with the resources to discover and nurture their God-given gifts and talents” in pursuit of the Great Commission. Read More »A scholarship with stewardship modeling on the side

7 deadly sins of grant seekers

For the faith-based nonprofits with which I work – and in fact, for the majority of small to mid-size 501(c) 3s – foundation-funded grants are a tiny fraction of total gift income. Yet invariably, “write more proposals” is the first suggestion from organizational leaders when money is tight. I spend a lot of time talking board members and executive directors down from their high hopes of grants to the rescue.Read More »7 deadly sins of grant seekers