NLC Institute 2010 – Fundraising

The New Leaders Council of San Diego (NLC) held its Fundraising session on the March 6, 2010. Fundraising is a key part of being a political candidate or as a board member of a nonprofit, and many civic leaders fundraise for their favorite candidates and causes. NLC Fellows learned some tips and tricks to effective fundraising to better prepare them to be leaders in their community.

The session began by an overview presentation by Kelli Maruccia, of KM Strategies, one of the premier nonprofit and political fundraisers in San Diego. Maruccia discussed the basics of candidate and events-based fundraising, using a presentation model she’s given to the Democratic Party of San Diego County.

Maruccia explained that San Diego’s political fundraising culture is unusually events-based, requiring significant amounts of time and resources for campaigns. She also outlined the general time requirements that candidates must spend raising money over the phone in order to raise adequate funds to be competitive. Fellows had an opportunity to discuss their own fundraising experiences, in campaigns and non-profit work, and to ask for guidance and suggestions form Maruccia.

During the lunch hour, the Fellows had a discussion with Robert Gleason, the chairperson of the San Diego Regional Airport Authority. Gleason is a significant fundraiser for political candidates, non-profits, and arts organizations. He shared some of his tips on cultivating donors, and how to identify how potential donors would be interested in contributing.

After lunch, the Fellows heard from John Fanestil, the Executive Director of the San Diego Foundation for Change. Fanestil described the process of soliciting major gifts to nonprofits and campaigns.

A key take-away point from Fanestil is that a major gift should be only a point along a continuum of a relationship between an organization and a donor. The organization needs to understand what motivates a donor, and identify how that organization can satisfy that donor’s interests.

Fanestil also explained how nonprofit boards function, and how the crafting of a shared mission statement can unify a board and help it reach out to the wider community to raise funds. He provided the Fellows with a simple worksheet that they could use to start identifying the key components of their respective organizations, to help craft a mission statement for their own boards.

After the formal training ended, the Fellows attended a mixer with the San Diego Lawyer’s Chapter of the American Constitution Society (ACS). The ACS is an organization dedicated to advancing a progressive view of law and policy. It’s members are made up of lawyers, law professors, students, judges and policy professionals. Several of the NLC Fellows are also board members of the local ACS chapter.