Fundraising is always challenging and, as the not-for-profit sector seeks more and more aggressively to raise much-needed dollars, the challenges continue to increase. Since becoming Chairperson of the Fundraising Committee, I have had first-hand experience in discovering what challenges we face as well as what some exciting new fundraising possibilities there are for the Lakehead Social Planning Council.

To start with, we have been fortunate enough to have Pat Forrest of Forrest Marketing and Communications working for us as fundraising coordinator. With input from the staff, Board and volunteers, Pat has crafted a long-range fundraising plan and has already implemented some successful fundraising activities.

The following are some highlights of the fundraising initiative:

We have secured a location for Nevada sales at the Mac’s Store at the corner of Red River Road and Junot.
We have approached all major employers in the City to request that LSPC be the recipient of funds from their “Dress Down Days”. So far, we have received a favourable response from the City of Thunder Bay. Proceeds from the City’s January, 2004 Dress Down Days was approximately $2000 and we will be on the receiving end of these funds again in January, 2005
We have approached all service clubs in the City to provide information on the good work of the LSPC and to seek a donation. So far, we have received only $250 from one local Rotary Club but several others continue to consider our request
The Italian Cultural Centre once again hosted a Spaghetti Supper on our behalf. Last year, we received a donation of $900 as a result of our support of this event and we are hopeful that the Centre will at least match that amount this year. We have also approached the Da Vinci Centre to request that they host a similar event for us in the fall
A good number of volunteers and staff participated in this year’s Mayor’s Walk. We anticipate that we will receive about $500 as a result of our participation
We have sent proposals to the organizers of all major special events in our community to become the charity of choice of one or more of these events. We are hopeful that at least one event will “adopt” us—if not this year, then at least in the future
We sought new members as well as returnees in our membership campaign this year and we achieved some success. We will continue to ask volunteers to identify 10 good prospects each year in an effort to expand our membership base. Donations from returning members was strong this year, as well.
We have a new strategy for Christmas Fest and are projecting an increase in our net revenue of $7000 as a result of our plans. Forrest Marketing has already generated $7250 in cash and in-kind sponsorship of the event. The target for cash sponsorship is $7000 and $10,000 in in-kind media sponsorship is being sought. We are confident that this target will be achieved, allowing us to promote the event much more strongly. We are also planning some enhancements to the event itself including a celebrity wreath auction, new artisans and an enhanced food village.
We are in the early planning stages of a second artisan show to be held in the spring of 2005 in Intercity Mall. Intercity merchants will fundraise for us during the show.

The challenge for the fundraising committee is to come up with innovative events that do not cause staff and volunteer “burn out”. With this in mind, we must increasingly focus on recruiting new volunteers. Without a strong volunteer base, fundraising events will not be as successful as they should be.

Respectfully submitted by
Janette Sprovierii Fundraising Chair