Yellowstone National Park has always been a favorite place for us. Mike has been going there since 1992, and I have been going since 1998. We did our honeymoon there in 2005 and last year went back to celebrate our 20th Anniversary.

During that trip (way back when I was 59), we decided to hike Mt. Washburn, Dunraven Pass Trail, a hike labeled as “difficult.” The difficulty comes from the elevation gain. I was excited about it and at the same time a little fearful. I knew I could handle the hike itself, but between the heat (direct sun affects me) and my pulmonary fibrosis, which affects my breathing sometimes, I knew it would be a challenge.

The rating was correct. Many hikers passed us as we made it to treeline and began the final ascent to the top. This was the point we were in full sun, and although I could see the top with the firewatch building, it felt SO far away. But we made. It wasn’t easy.

As we arrived back in Yellowstone this year, we had already decided that we would hike Mt. Washburn again and this time leave much earlier to avoid the sun.

At 6:09 a.m. on a gorgeous, chilly morning, we began our hiking adventure. I was now 60 and was, subconsciously, using this hike as a test of my overall health.

Hiking without heat and direct sun made a huge difference for me. I had to take a couple of breaks on the way up, but they were because I needed to take a breath as I made my way up.

The hike was exhilarating. Having done it the year prior, I knew what I was getting into, which was super helpful. Before I knew it, we were approaching the final climb to the fire lookout station, which last year almost killed me. This year, no problem.

Then we made it! I was ecstatic, and overall felt quite good. The way up was about 3.2 miles with an elevation gain of about 3,900 feet. It’s difficult to find exact data on the hike, but our watches said just over 3.2 miles going up. The switchbacks make it a little easier.

We had plenty of time to have some food and just relax at the top. We also chatted with other hikers and shared stories of our adventures around the park. It was wonderful being up there.

I did prepare for this hike and others we did while in Yellowstone National Park.

The stair climber at my gym is my best friend. A few times on that every week for at least half an hour help me a lot on the trail. And you don’t need to go fast on this to feel the benefits.

I am new to doing leg-specific workouts, and they definitely make a difference. Even adding just 15 minutes of leg exercises during your typical workout will strengthen you on the trail.

I walk every day even if it’s just for 20 minutes.

I try to incorporate stretches and sprints in my walks.

I hike at least twice a month, some months a lot more. A hike can be a quick, one-mile trail. It doesn’t have to be a planned-out intense hike.

I build community with others who love to hike and who see fitness as something important.

Since we returned from Yellowstone, I have done annual tests my pulmonologist has me do before our annual visit. For the first time since being diagnosed in 2023, my pulmonologist ended an email to me regarding the results with “This is great news”! This was the first time he has used those words for me. The tests summed up that there has been no progression of the fibrosis.

Hiking Mt. Washburn isn’t a cure for bad lungs, but it sure is a fun and exciting way to test them every year!

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

For those of us in nonprofit fundraising, any time is a good time to focus on whether or not someone who gives will give again. So here’s a kind reminder from me to you to support your efforts with keeping donors.

These steps can be incorporated into what you are already doing. They may be a reminder to you or a new idea.

They work. I use them all of the time with my work at Survivor Justice Center.

And as we know, keeping a donor is much easier than finding a new one.

Here we go!

Step one: Thank promptly. I know most of you already know this, and hopefully are already doing it. Thanking promptly builds a stronger relationship with your donor. The stronger the relationship is the better chance you have of the donor deciding to donate again.

Step two: Let your donor know how you spent their donation and the impact of that. I like to do this three or four months after the donation. This, of course, depends on your capacity. I have seen even the smallest of fundraising teams be able to accomplish this. Sometimes you have to be a little creative.

Step three: Connect with your donor throughout the year, without making an ask. When I started in nonprofit fundraising, there was a common phrase, “Don’t use your donors like an ATM”, and this is still an issue. This means don’t continually ask. Build a relationship with your donor.

There you have it. It really is this simple. My challenge with this has only been making sure I take the time to do this, to prioritize it.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Hi everyone!

This is a list I have shared in the past, and finding myself in more conversations about monthly giving, I think it’s time to share again!

Here are ten actions that can support your monthly giving program, even if it is brand new.

1. Decide who will run your monthly giving program. You have a much better chance of success if one person is responsible for the program.

2. Get as many people on board to support the program as possible. I like to have every board member as a monthly donor if possible.

3. Invite everyone to participate. Everyone.

4. Create a landing page on your website just for monthly giving.

5. Make it easy to become a monthly donor. This goes well with #4 but must also be considered with any interaction with a potential monthly donor.

6. Read all you can about monthly giving. Some of my favorite books are “How to Create Lifelong Donors Through Monthly Giving” by Harvey McKinnon and “Monthly Giving Made Easy” by Erica Waasdoorp.

7. Add an option to become a monthly donor in every direct mail appeal remit.

8. Share the impact of your monthly giving program. Some nonprofits have their program support a particular program within the organization

9. Keep inviting people to join the monthly donor program. Consistency with this makes a difference.

10. Celebrate your wins, program growth, and the difference monthly donors make for those you serve.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your colleagues. Be kind.

As I continue sharing fundraising tips during my transition from Altrui to Survivor Justice Center full-time, my focus will be on the actions I take each week to support relationship-building with our donors. In my first full week, most of my time was spent reaching out to donors and to those who had donated in the last year or so.

A point of clarification. I consider a donor to be someone who has donated at least twice. Someone who has made one donation is someone who made one donation. To me, they become a donor once they make a second donation.

Feel free to disagree. I share this because when I write about spending time with donors and spending time with those who have donated, you, the reader, understand that to me these are different types of people who have donated.

The key part of this week’s fundraising tip is to make time to reach out to and spend time with donors. When I share this with fundraisers, many ask me how to make time to meet with donors. There is so much going on, and ...

Most reading this can add to the and.

Nothing is more important to a nonprofit fundraiser and the mission they work for than spending time with donors and reaching out to donors. Take time to get in front of your calendar. Start filling in times and days that you can reach out to donors. I find that if something is on my calendar, it has a better chance of happening. Being on my calendar also gives me daily or weekly reminders of what is most important as I go day to day in my work.

As you read this, you can already think of who you want to reach out to.

Make the time.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Hi everyone!

I have thought a lot about what I wanted to write for July, typically the slowest month in nonprofit fundraising. I decided to share four stories about fundraising actions that worked for me so far this year, with the intent of sharing one each week.

This year, I did a peer-to-peer fundraising campaign in celebration of my 60th Birthday. It was a fundraiser for Survivor Justice Center, one of my favorite nonprofits. I have done many of these, yet this one reminded me of the power of the peer-to-peer fundraiser. Not just the power, but all it can do for the nonprofit.

I ended up raising just over $2,000 for Survivor Justice Center. Aside from the donations that came in, many of those who donated to my campaign were new donors, and we all know the value of new donors! As with many personal fundraising campaigns, people I never thought would donate to a birthday fundraiser did. In fact, half of those who donated were people whom I would not have thought of wanting to give to a fundraiser of mine.

I loved spending the month of February talking to so many about why I love Survivor Justice Center. I loved taking a day in March to write personal thank-you cards, a follow-up to the phone call I made to each person as their donation showed up.

I had one of my colleagues set up the fundraiser through our Neon One database. She set it up, and then I added the copy and photos. It was all very simple, as if Neon had really thought this through.

The whole experience made me want to shout from the rooftop about how awesome peer-to-peer fundraising can be. I’ve consistently talked about it since my campaign.

A peer-to-peer campaign can be for your birthday, another special day, a holiday, or just because you want to raise funds for your favorite nonprofit. If you’re in nonprofit fundraising, these types of campaigns can change your budget. Imagine 100+ supporters doing a campaign. Imagine all of the new donors and new potential relationships your nonprofit could have!

I’m going to do another one for my 61st birthday. I’d love to hear about yours!

Thank you for reading.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

For almost seven years, I’ve had the privilege of working as a nonprofit fundraising consultant, helping nonprofits build relationships with donors and grow the resources they need to do their work. It has been meaningful, varied, and rewarding in ways I didn’t always expect.

But one organization kept pulling at me.

Six years ago, I began working part-time with Survivor Justice Center, an organization that serves survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and trafficking — most of them immigrant women navigating some of the hardest circumstances imaginable. What started as a consulting engagement became something much more personal. The team, the mission, and the community SJC serves changed how I think about this work.

On July 1, I am closing my consulting practice and joining Survivor Justice Center full-time as Community Investment Officer.

This wasn’t a difficult decision. It was an honest one. I’ve seen up close what this team does and what’s possible when the right resources meet the right people. I want to spend my time helping to build that — not from the outside, but from within.

In this new role, I’ll be focused on deepening relationships with current donors, growing our base of supporters who give at significant levels, and building partnerships with businesses and firms that share our values. I’ll also be engaging with local politicians and community members to broaden awareness of and support for the work SJC does. And I’ll be working closely with our board to make sure we’re not just meeting our fundraising goals — but exceeding them.

To my consulting clients over the years: thank you. It has been an honor to work alongside you.

While Altrui is coming to a close, I plan to keep this fundraising tips blog going in its current format. The conversations we’ve had here about fundraising, donor relationships, and nonprofit work still matter to me, and I look forward to continuing them — just with a new vantage point.

Here we go.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

In nonprofit fundraising, there are many opinions about fundraising events like galas. I love them for many reasons. While the one I am a part of is about to happen in less than two weeks, I’m thinking more about how to not only create success before the event, but also what we can do after the event that, sometimes, can bring even more success.

Because I want your 2026 to be as successful as possible, you can start by spending a little more time making sure your events are successful.

Fundraising events can be a fun and creative way to grow relationships with your donors, connect with potential new donors, and raise funds. All in one night (or day)!

By fundraising events, I am specifically writing about events like an annual gala, dinner, luncheon, or awards dinner. The actions I’m about to share apply to other events; I have more experience with them around these specific types of events.

First, some of the post-event actions need to be planned/created pre-event.

One of my favorite actions post-event is sending out an email the morning after, an email thanking everyone for their support, with a couple of photos from the event. Do not ask for a donation from people who may not have donated at the event. That can come later. Simply thank everyone.

Another pre-event action is to plan who will be charged with planning actions of gratitude post-event. Who thanks whom? How are they thanked? More on this later.

Post-event actions begin as soon as guests arrive.

The most important actions post-event have to do with actions of gratitude.

• I like to have anyone who financially supported the event receive a thank you call the day or two after the event.

• Have your ED call board members to thank them, along with a list of higher donors.

• When I was a director of development, I liked to send an all-staff email thanking everyone who attended for joining us and helping us build relationships with those who attended. Thanking staff is critical.

• A few days post-event, send an email to your whole email list. Some of this email can already be written before the event. In this email, share about the wonderful time had by all, and this is where you can make an ask to donate to the event.

• Ensure that donor thank you letters and/or tax receipts are sent out within one week.

• If you had any type of auction, keep all those who dated in mind when thanking people.

These actions of gratitude may seem like a lot, and I’m sure some readers believe these cannot be accomplished so quickly. Pre-plan all of this. Have enough people ready to make calls and provide full support to your data person in getting all of this donor information into your system while also getting thank you/tax letters out.

Doing all of this right away lets you move on from the event quickly.

Make sure your team has everything removed from the hotel or event space. This may seem silly, but ensuring you have everything saves time in the coming days, time you will really need.

Next, ensure all bills have been paid or at least given to finance to be paid. Once everything is paid, send an update on the dollars raised to the board.

Lastly, begin the process of finding a location and choosing a date for next year. Perhaps even plan an event meeting to get things rolling.Good luck with all of this. If you have any questions, please email me at dan (@) altrui.org. And if you feel you got something out of this post, I’d be grateful if you shared it and subscribed. I only post once a week.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Hi everyone!

I’ve really enjoyed committing to a fundraising action each week this month, and here is the fourth and final action.

Ask.

I know, if you’re in nonprofit fundraising, it’s something we do all of the time. Or do we?

Or rather, do we ask enough? This is where it can get tricky for some. Leadership says to not send another e-appeal, sharing their opinion that your organization asks too much. Although some in leadership, primarily the executive leadership and the board of directors, may have some experience with fundraising, they have hired you and/or your team to do the fundraising. That means you are accountable for raising funds, and at the end of the fiscal year, you and your team are accountable for having raised more than what is in the annual budget.

For me, that means that, while others will have opinions on how we fundraise, since I’m accountable for our success in fundraising, I need to make decisions that I believe will allow us to exceed budgeted fundraising expectations.

So we ask. We ask the right people for the right impact point. And typically, this means we need to ask more: more e-appeals, more direct mail, more meetings with donors.

I’ve been fundraising for a good chunk of my life, and I have met many other fundraisers who are not very comfortable making an ask. We have to be comfortable asking donors to donate, especially when we’re a member of a fundraising team.

We have to let go of any fear.

We have to build relationships with donors so that they know the difference their donation makes, their impact.

We need to ask the right people.

And we can’t stop asking.

So the fourth and final action for this series of the month is to make an ask. This can be a phone call, an in-person meeting, or creating an e-appeal or direct mail piece. The main thing is to take the action.

I hope these actions in June have been helpful!

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Strong relationships with those doing the mission work are vital.

One of my fondest memories of my nonprofit fundraising career takes me back to my second day at what would become one of my favorite jobs ever.

The organization was Urban Peak, a Denver nonprofit serving youth experiencing homelessness. My office was across the street from the building where many of our services were provided, including meals for youth, a drop-in center, education and employment services, and street outreach.

On my second day, the person who led our street outreach team told me they were having a team meeting and invited me to introduce myself. I was ecstatic.

I didn’t know this in that moment, but the people I was about to meet would become some of the most inspirational people I would meet while there.

Some not involved in fundraising may think that so early on in my time there I should have been spending every minute in fundraising, seeing how things work there.

Relationships with everyone who is doing the actual work of the nonprofit are part of fundraising. For many nonprofits, the fundraising team lives in what I call “the white tower”. They are completely separate from those in programs, with very few interactions, let alone relationships.

This is the opposite of how I want to work, and as I walked over to meet the team, I became even more excited. After all, the people I was about to meet were doing the work the donors I would later meet wanted to support. My co-worker’s work was how our donors saw, that by supporting it, they could help make the world a better place.

I was introduced to about five team members. I then took a couple of minutes to introduce myself, mainly focusing on how excited I was to be there, to work with them, and how much I loved being in fundraising.

I then asked about their work, their challenges, and what they loved about doing the work they do.

The next hour was filled with me being fascinated by their answers. I wanted to hear more, to learn more. Their entire jobs were our mission, directly serving unhoused youth.

It was well past time to start their meeting, and the team leader walked me out. As we walked out, he let me know how grateful he was for me spending so much time with the team. Then he told me something that I will always remember and share: that I had just spent more time with the team than anyone in fundraising had before that, in all of their time at the organization.

I would go on to spend two and a half years there. The amount of committed, inspirational, and rock-star people I met during that time, uber-focused on serving youth and constantly thinking of how to do that better, is a long list. There is seldom a week that goes by, now almost eleven years since I left (to move to California), that I don’t think of one of those amazing people doing the program work at Urban Peak.

Build relationships with those on your program teams doing the work.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Hi everyone!

I have thought a lot about what I wanted to write for June and July, typically the slowest months in nonprofit fundraising. For June, I decided to share four stories about fundraising actions that worked for me so far this year, with the intent of sharing one each week.

This week’s action is to invite a donor to breakfast, lunch, or coffee. As you know, I love meeting in person with donors. It does so much for the relationship between you and your organization and the donor, and it allows you a wonderful opportunity to listen intently as you learn more about the donor.

Let the donor choose regarding a meal or coffee. Be sure to offer them several dates, and unless you know that they don’t need a lot of time to set a date, plan well in advance.

Figure out things like parking and what you will order ahead of time. I mention ordering because I’m vegan and always want to have the vegan meal discussion before I arrive, not in front of the donor. Having worked with donors for so long, almost all of them always choose a vegan-friendly spot with me and my love for eating in mind!

I always start a meeting with a huge amount of gratitude.

When meeting with a donor, I want to share with them everything going on at my organization. And then I want to listen. I definitely want to listen more than talk.

A lot can be written about making an ask, what the ask looks like, etc. This is all very personal to the donor. Spend time thinking about this, even considering not making an ask.

And have fun!

Don’t forget to send a note or email of thanks afterward.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

A veces pienso en español.

Me acuerdo de la primera vez que pensé en español. Estaba caminando una tarde después de clase y pensaba en quién estaría en casa. Puramente en español. Me alegré mucho y, durante toda la caminata, mantuve una sonrisa.

Unas semanas después, estuve en una fiesta con un amigo. Estaba hablando con un hombre, alguien que no conocía antes, y después de un rato él me dijo algo muy chévere. Cuando me preguntó “¿De dónde eres?”, yo le dije: “De los Estados”. Él se sorprendió.

¡Después de nueve meses en Santa Marta, Colombia, alguien me confundió con una persona que hablaba español!

Qué memoria.

—

Gracias a muchas personas, hoy, 43 años después, aunque no es perfecto, me encuentro hablando español con comodidad.

Y cada vez que hablo español, sonrío. Sonrío por la capacidad y por las memorias. Sonrío porque me encanta la lengua española y la cultura de la gente que habla español. Sonrío porque hay palabras que cuando las digo, me acuerdo de la persona que me las enseñó.

—

“Semáforo rojo”, dijo Pedro, el papá de la familia donde viví en Santa Marta, durante un viaje en el carro viajando por la ciudad. Mis primeros días allá estuvieron llenos de tiempo con él ensañándome palabras de todo lo que vimos desde el carro. Y siempre con una sonrisa.

Mis amigos me enseñaron otras palabras. ¿Las primeras? Que culito, durante tiempo en el centro mirando a una chica en la calle. Un poco diferente de las clases de Pedro.

Pedro y su familia me enseñaron tanto de la lengua española. Cada día más palabras. Y cuando tuve la oportunidad de viajar a Bogotá, yo quedé en el departamento de la familia por la Avenida Séptima y pasé mucho tiempo con Rosanna, la hermana mayor. Un día yo escuchaba canciones en inglés y ella me dijo que sería mejor escuchar música en español. ¡Qué lección!

Me acuerdo mucho de la familia de Pedro, y cuando hablo español es un testimonio de las muchas personas que me han ayudado en mi vida a aprender y practicar el español.

—

Si quiere aprender español, sugiero que hable tanto como pueda. Practique todos los días. Si está en un país donde se habla español, pase tiempo con personas que hablan español, no tanto con personas que hablan inglés contigo. Yo he visto a personas que visitan o estudian en un país hispanohablante, pero pasan demasiado tiempo con personas que hablan inglés y no español.

—

Yo vi en la sala a una niña y fui a hablar con ella. Fue la nieta de la mujer que limpiaba la casa. Su nombre fue Chile y siempre la recuerdo. Pasamos mucho tiempo hablando español, a un nivel en el que entendí y en el mismo momento aprendí. Hablamos de todas las cosas, de la perspectiva de una niña de siete años, más o menos.

Pensando en Chile, me acuerdo de las sugerencias del programa La Plaza Sésamo. Cada vez que miré ese programa aprendí bastante. Lo mismo con el programa La Abeja Maya.

—

El Ateneo Moderno es parte de mi historia con español. Después de cuatro meses en Santa Marta, comencé clases en este colegio. He aprendido mucho español hasta ese punto, pero tuve mucho más que aprender. Otra vez iba a descubrir la importancia de una comunidad para aprender español. Conocí a muchos estudiantes, muchos de los cuales hoy en día están en relaciones. Ellos no solo fueron amigos, sino que también fueron profesores de español.

—

Estoy hablando con una colega en mi trabajo en la recaudación de fondos para organizaciones sin fines de lucro. Hablamos en español. Sonrio cuando ella dice una frase que aprendí tantos años en el pasado en Santa Marta. La quiero mucho, la lengua española, pero las quiero más, las memorias de todas las personas que son parte de mi viaje para aprenderla.

Ahora me estoy preparando para un viaje a Tijuana, donde trabajo con organizaciones sin fines de lucro. Siempre les agradezco a todos los que me enseñaron el español cuando estoy allá, contento de que cada vez que voy, aprendo más.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

I grew up Catholic. Not the repressive, anti-gay Catholic. The social -justice-seeking, loves-everybody Catholic.

I didn’t know the Catholic Church and some Catholics were anti-gay until I came out.

The coming-out process, which took several years for me, showed me that people don’t just hate gay people because they don’t like us, but also because their religious leader, religious family, or religious friend has told them that God and Jesus hate us. (I say gay because I am a gay man, but they hate all of us in the LGBTQ+ communities)

This was reaffirmed to me one evening when I was at dinner with two women I had met from work. I was a waiter, and they were customers. They were incredibly lovely, and I was excited to spend time with them outside of work. After dinner, one of them brought a Bible to the table, and as she set it down, said: “We wanted to have this conversation with you because we love you”.

Any person who is in our LGBTQ+ communities and has experienced this knows what comes next.

To paraphrase it: “We don’t want you to go to hell.”

—

I am seated in the front pew. This is where I have learned I have to sit when at my church, where I can fully pay attention. Sitting further back means I lose focus on what the pastor is saying and get into people-watching.

I never considered myself a Christian. I was Catholic. But by this point in my life, I’ve begun saying I grew up Catholic and don’t consider myself Catholic any longer. Here at this MCC (Metropolitan Community Church), I am surrounded by a hundred plus other LGBTQ+ humans who’ve had similar experiences being dropped by their places of faith, their families, and friends … yet are fully welcome here.

I mean, fully welcome.

Our pastor gives his sermon, and just like many past Sundays, I have a lot to consider after listening to him.

—

People of religion have done well trying to destroy anyone who disagrees with them or lives in a way that is different from how they live. They do this in the name of Jesus, someone I believe would have nothing to do with what they are doing.

These days, a lot of these people are called White Christian Nationalists. Their hate surprises me, still. Sometimes it puts a little fear in me. Not the fear of going to hell, the fear of what their hate speech will do to someone who is part of our LGBTQ+ communities, but is not out.

Some of these people won’t make it to being fully out. Some will die by suicide.

Others may survive, but without their families, who for their whole lives have talked about how much they love them. But not now.

—

I came out when I was about four years sober. By this time, I had a new faith, one rooted more in a Higher Power than the God of my Catholic past. I had been to several different types of churches and hadn’t found the one. I had also come to terms that perhaps I wouldn’t find a church, that my faith would grow and thrive outside of those buildings.

In the late 1990’s, with over a decade of sobriety and a heart filled with love, peace, and gratitude, I came across the song “Testify to Love” by the Christian band Avalon. They were popular in evangelical communities, and I had found them through a friend who was a former evangelical.

I loved the song. I still listen to it. I had no idea that a band member had come out, but then, faced with leaving the band or going to anti-gay conversion therapy, he left the band. I’ll add here that I know nothing about what happened before or after that, and that I didn’t even know his name until last week.

Last week, he (Michael Passons) and country music star Ty Herndon, along with Melissa Greene, who was in Avalon with Michael, released a new version of “Testify to Love”. This version embraces loving everyone, and is especially meaningful to me as it’s sung by a trio that includes two out-and-not-going-back gay men.

It’s beautiful.

What’s even more beautiful is seeing dozens of videos on TikTok of former evangelicals who loved Avalon and love themselves, celebrating this new version of the song. Watching these videos has brought me to hardcore tears several times.

The more I look at TikTok, the more I feel so spectacularly happy to know there are that many other LGBTQ+ siblings out there who have struggled with religion and faith, and have survived and are thriving. Not perfect, but not living in that awful darkness, alone.

When I say many, I mean hundreds. Imagine how many are out there that haven’t posted to their social media, yet are sitting in a spot in their home, tears streaming down their face, grateful, while listening to this new “Testify to Love”.

All of this has brought me back to memories of dark days for me personally and even darker days for people I love. I know what conversion therapy does to someone. I know the toll of being disowned by family members who are supposed to love you no matter what. I realize how ignorant that sounds, but family love was the rock growing up. No matter what, you had your family.

—

This morning, I had a moment with tears in my eyes as I watched another LGBTQ+ sibling share their experience of this new version of “Testify to Love.” My relationship with my Higher Power is strong, and it’s also different as I find my way through a seemingly different and challenging life as a 60-year-old gay man.

The gratitude is still strong. As is the love for myself. My authentic, gay self. I at least have these two things, and this helps me as I trudge through a changing life and a difficult world.

Faith is one of the parts of my life that I typically keep very private. The release of this new version of “Testify to Love” has made me want to write about it, which is exciting for me.

I am thinking of all my wonderful LGBTQ+ siblings and all of my amazing family and family of choice while I have a huge grin on my face and a heart and soul filled with love.

Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Currently reading:

I’m still a bit unsure when I refer to myself as a writer. That sense of always having been a blogger, which to me was a step or two below that of being a writer, still hits me. Nonetheless, I am continually getting more comfortable using the word writer when I talk about myself in certain circles.

Like this one. Attending the LA Times Festival of Books for the fourth time. Walking booth to booth, saying hi to publishers, authors, and bookstore owners. Rushing into a panel discussion of two or three authors talking about everything from immigration and refugees to writing to our unhoused neighbors.

I especially love chatting with people I don’t know about this book or that subject. I’m a talker in any setting, but here it’s nonstop. Oh, you love this book? Why? And yes, I have loved this author for a long time. They inspire me.

This weekend was hot and full of sun. That takes a lot out of me, and I realized by the end of day one that I wasn’t doing everything I needed to do to take care of myself. Primarily, hydration. I must do better on day two.

I rarely have the opportunity to meet authors, let alone have a brief conversation with them. It’s even more wonderful speaking with an author who has written about a topic close to my heart, like immigration. Well, not only immigration, but also about immigrants, refugees, and how we treat people.

Another panel included Anne Lamott! She and her husband, Neal Allen, talked about their new book “Good Writing”, which is already in my collection. She said many fabulous things, but the one that hit me hard was her data about Amazon, that 75% of books purchased are purchased there, using an iPhone.

That session was the first time I said I was a writer in public. She asked how many writers were in the room, and I raised my hand. Oh my.

If you love books, reading, writers, and a community that includes all of these, think about attending the next LA Times Festival of Books. It will be in April of next year.

I’ll see you there!

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Currently reading:

Fundraising is all about relationships.

Transparency is a key element of a good relationship.

There are some in nonprofit leadership who believe that so-called dirty laundry should not be shared with donors; that we should only share good news with donors.

Good impact.

Everything is good.

The problem with this is that it’s not always the case. Nonprofits have struggles in carrying out their missions. It’s not easy work. And although the impact the nonprofit has is overall positive, there are many things that can happen that take a toll on the team and the mission.

People donate to a nonprofit as a form of making the world a better place. For many, your nonprofit is part of their hearts and souls.

They want to know about everything.

I will go even as far as saying that they especially want to hear about your struggles, mistakes, and lessons learned while impacting the world.

One example of this is the unfortunate news of a foundation grant that you have counted on not being awarded to your organization.

There are many reasons why you counted on it, and for whatever reason, it isn’t going to happen. I say this because in most cases, the homework was done. Putting this amount of money into your budget was the right thing to do, based on all you know.

Now there is no money for this program, not only for this year, but also for next year.

In some cases, this can be absorbed into the budget. In a worst-case scenario, the program is affected, and staff have to be laid off.

This is one of those stories some would say not to share with donors. I say share. Not as a “we’re in trouble if you don’t help right now” case, but rather to simply keep your donors up to date with what is going on in the organization.

This can be part of a regular communication, like a newsletter. It can also be a separate email with a link to the story on your website.

No matter how you share it, the important thing is to share it.

Your donors want to know.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

I have always loved animals.

Even before becoming vegan, I would often say that I love animals, even though I really meant just dogs and cats.

I mean, I never wanted to harm animals. I would never go out of my way to inflict pain or suffering on any animal.

But I did pay someone else to do that.

When I was still eating meat (animals), I was out with a group of fellow protestors (after a human rights protest), and one of my colleagues who was eating vegan said they were surprised that, as compassionate and kind as I was, I did not embrace those same ideas while eating. They said it in the kindest of ways. So kind, in fact, that I took it to heart.

I loved animals. I didn’t want to participate in harming them.

It would be several years until I would go vegan, but that conversation was the planting of the seed. I had never thought about what happens to animals to end up on my dinner plate. I certainly never thought about animals being tortured, filled with fear, not wanting to die. Animal suffering did not cross my mind.

I’ve been vegan for 30 years now. It all started with looking at the violence on my plate.

If you are new to being vegan or considering it, check out my page here on the blog called “Helpful websites and blogs”. I keep it updated to be as helpful as possible. If you know of a website that would be helpful to new vegans around food, recipes, health, or nutrition, please let me know!

As always, thank you for reading. If you like what you read here, I’d be grateful if you subscribed, which means you will get an email every time I publish. I try to publish weekly.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Hi!

Continuing the monthly donor theme here!

In all of my work leading nonprofit fundraising teams, and with all of my work working with clients at Altrui, my favorite way to fundraise has been creating monthly donor campaigns.

Whether you are brand new to monthly giving, have wanted to jump into it for some time, or have a thriving monthly giving program now, I hope some of these actions will benefit you and your organization.

This is one of those posts of mine that needs a little more time. Please take your time with this list. I want to make sure you read all the actions so we can affect your monthly giving.

These actions are based on plans I have created and monthly giving strategies I have used for small to medium-sized nonprofit fundraising teams. They are not in any order.

1. Decide who will run your monthly giving program. You have a much better chance of success if one person is responsible for the program.

2. Get as many people on board to support the program as possible. I like to have every board member as a monthly donor if possible.

3. Invite everyone to participate. Everyone.

4. Create a landing page on your website just for monthly giving.

5. Make it easy to become a monthly donor. This goes well with #4 but also needs to be considered with any interaction with a potential monthly donor.

6. Read all you can about monthly giving. Some of my favorite books are “How to Create Lifelong Donors Through Monthly Giving” by Harvey McKinnon and “Monthly Giving Made Easy” by Erica Waasdoorp.

7. Add an option to become a monthly donor in every direct mail appeal remit.

8. Share the impact of your monthly giving program. Some nonprofits have their program support a particular program within the organization

9. Keep inviting people to join the monthly donor program. Consistency with this makes a difference.

10. Celebrate your wins, program growth, and the difference monthly donors make for those you serve.

Whew! As I said above, these are in no order.

Having someone focused on your monthly giving program is super beneficial and helps with the key to success, which is consistency.

Let me know how it’s going!

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues.

The most difficult part for those in nonprofit fundraising who are creating a monthly giving program or campaign is getting started.

This article is for those who have already taken the most critical of steps and are starting to have people sign up to donate monthly.

As you know about me already, I am one of those in the world of nonprofit fundraising who believe that fundraising is not about money.

It’s about relationships.

It’s about your relationships with donors, volunteers (including the board of directors), your co-workers in programs, and those you serve. Of course, the list is longer, but I’ll stop here.

In this arena of monthly giving, the relationships I’m writing about are those you have with your donors. Once your donor signs up to donate monthly, let’s begin the relationship in a wonderful way for you and them by thanking them promptly.

I prefer a quick phone call. This will most likely surprise the donor and even make their day.

Do you have time for a quick call?

Next, send them an official thank you via email. Thank them for becoming a monthly donor. If you have a name for your monthly giving campaign, make sure you use it. Ask them if they would like a thank you/tax receipt every month, or one to cover the year of giving. I send those out every January.

There are a couple of things to remember while they begin giving monthly. First, keep them in the loop. This can look like a quarterly email to all monthly donors, one filled with gratitude and sharing the impact of the monthly donations.

Next, keep track of credit card and debit card expiration dates. My experience with monthly donors is that they will continue to donate monthly for years. The one thing that stops them is their card expiring. To be clear, their card is expiring, and the organization is not reaching out to get the new number, which is usually just a new expiration date.

Yes, you will need to communicate with the donor.

No, there is no need to fear this. I have heard several times from peers in fundraising who are fearful that the donor will cancel the monthly giving if they call for an updated card. This is not the reality in almost all cases. Your donor sees their desire to make the world a better place through their monthly donation to you. They do not want that to end.

I like to call donors a month before their card expires. They typically already have the new card by then, and the monthly donation flows without interruption.

Keep close to your monthly donors, ensure they know how grateful your organization is, and keep them informed of the impact of their giving.

Monthly giving will catapult your giving and ensure those in programs have all they need to serve those served by your organization.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Those of us in nonprofit fundraising have a great opportunity to build our relationships and fundraising by working with our board of directors.

Joining a nonprofit board of directors can be an exhilarating and life-changing experience. Not only does one get to work with others who share a similar passion for making the world a better place through the organization’s mission, but you can also support the mission in many ways.

Here are six action items to consider for your nonprofit board of directors:

First, since you are reading this on social media, have them add this new volunteer experience to their LinkedIn profile. Let their professional network know they are on your nonprofit’s board. And ask them to regularly post on LinkedIn about why they are on your board.

Next, have them send a note to the ED/CEO and ask them to coffee or lunch. This is their opportunity to get to know them better and see where they see them best fitting. EDs and CEOs may see board members frequently, but this is a one-on-one. A chance to grow the relationship between leadership and the board.

Next, do the same with their head of fundraising. In some cases, this may be the same person! Nonetheless, get to know them as well, and find out how best they can assist with fundraising for the nonprofit. The head of fundraising will welcome this meeting, and they will most assuredly have some action items for them. This is especially important for those board members who feel that are uncomfortable with fundraising.

Now connect them with the CFO or whoever handles the finances and budget. If they don’t already have a copy of the current budget (by this I mean the full budget, not a limited version of one), ask for one. Then ask if they can attend the next finance committee meeting. The idea here is for them to get to know the budget, why this is that, and that is this, and have a better understanding of the organization. The main thing is to have them ask questions about any uncertainties. They will do the nonprofit a huge service if they fully understand the budget.

Have them commit to attending 100% of the board meetings. These are typically scheduled for the year, and whether they can be there in person or join via phone or Zoom, their presence as a board member is critical, even if it doesn’t feel like it. Keep in mind that many foundations expect a certain percentage of board members to attend board meetings, and your organization could miss out on grants if that percentage is not high enough. Board meeting attendance is also just part of being a board member, and whether they can make meetings or not would be part of deciding whether they should join the board.

Lastly, create some type of “elevator speech” about the nonprofit, which includes why they are on the board. This part is important when sharing with friends and colleagues, as their passion with purpose for the mission of the organization will affect how or if they want to support the cause. Of all the nonprofit boards they could have joined, why this one? Their first two meetings with staff from above can help create this language.

Thank them for volunteering to join your board of directors. Invite them to have fun and make good trouble. Wish them the very best!

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

Currently reading:

I watched the news this morning and heard more stories about the Straits of Hormuz and the possibility of U.S. Navy ships escorting oil tankers in and out of the Persian Gulf.

The news and this war with Iran have brought up many memories of my time in the Persian Gulf in 1987, when U.S. Navy ships were present to escort oil tankers being attacked during the Iran-Iraq War.

In February of 1987, I was a 21-year-old sailor onboard the USS Conyngham, and we left our home port of Norfolk, VA, to head on a six-month Persian Gulf tour.

I was mostly excited, as many of the port visits were places I had never been. And I had never even dreamed of being in the Persian Gulf. Although what was called the Tanker Wars was happening, I felt pretty safe going. I was new to the USS Conyngham and excited about a cruise on board after having been on a much larger aircraft carrier.

It took a month to get there, and I was enjoying the heat and getting to know the country of Bahrain. On May 17th, we returned to Manama, the capital and major port, and turned over our patrol duties to the USS Stark.

That evening, the Stark was hit by two Exocet missiles fired by an Iraqi pilot. Only one exploded.

37 sailors died that night.

There was a moment when it seemed that the ship could sink. By early morning, the USS Conyngham arrived to help, and shipmates went to fight fires.

The visual of the USS Stark on fire was mind-blowing to me. It’s something I never expected to see and will never forget.

I think of that night often, and every May 17th, I post about it on my social media platforms to keep the memory of those who died alive.

In loving memory of those who lost their lives onboard the USS Stark:

Doran Bolduc

Bradley Brown

Jeffrey Calkins

Mark M. Caouette

John Ciletta

Brian Clinefelter

Antonio Daniels

Christopher DeAngelis

James Dunlap

Steven Erwin

Jerry Farr

Vernon Foster

Dexter Grissett

William Hansen

Daniel Homicki

Kenneth Janusik

Steven Kendall

Stephen Kiser

Ronnie Lockett

Thomas MacMullen

Charles Moller

Jeffrey Phelps

Randy Pierce

James Plonsky

Kelly Quick

Earl Ryals

Robert Shippee

Jeffrey Sibley

Lee Stephens

James Stevens

Martin Supple

Gregory Tweady

Vincent Ulmer

Joseph Watson

Wayne Weaver

Terrance Weldon

Lloyd Wilson

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.

I look forward to writing about great customer service and how I was treated so well by a business. This is not that time.

This is a story about how a company treated a six-year customer like crap, and only responded to fix the situation after being called out on social media.

Another email about my QuickBooks subscription renewal, followed by one stating that the price is going up.

Again.

I had already been thinking, since the last time I renewed, that I no longer want to use QuickBooks. Sure, it’s convenient and easy. I can see why people, especially small businesses like mine, like it. It makes bookkeeping simple. Well, once you understand it all!

Two things are going on that make me want to end it now, before my auto-renewal in March. First, I am certain I can move forward without QuickBooks; it may just require a little more work on my end each month. Second, their politics. I haven’t put a lot of time into investigating it, but I’ve read enough that their company supports the current administration financially, and that’s a big deal for me.

I know many people love QuickBooks, and after six years of using them my business, I am ecstatic to have just received the email that my account has been canceled. My relationship with them is over.

I’m going to do my books on my own for now.

I wanted to end my relationship with QuickBooks last year, but forgot to do it before they charged me again.

Customer service for smaller accounts is nonexistent. My decision was even easier when I went to my account online to cancel and found out I had to call. Once I got someone (their hours were incorrect on the website), they put me on hold for five minutes while they processed my cancellation. Total of 10 minutes on the phone.

The main reason I left was that each year their fee went up a lot. With no added benefits for me. Then there are political donations supporting those who support what ICE is being allowed to do.

I’m super happy.

Lesson for businesses and nonprofits: be good to those who support you.

The saga continued. Although I canceled on February 4th, they resubscribed me on March 1st and charged my card.

I called, and they said I did not cancel. If I wanted to cancel, to do it online. I clicked cancel online, and it said I couldn’t because I had just resubscribed. I need to add here that it isn’t easy getting someone on the phone. And each time I was able to do that, the person was not helpful.

The notes left on my account said I was calling to cancel because I was dissatisfied, and that I couldn’t cancel online as I was not at my computer. Both are false. I was at my computer the whole time.

I was put on hold as the person I was speaking with said she couldn’t help me. I waited 15 minutes, and I hung up.

Unbelievable. Or is it?

I shared this on my LinkedIn account. The Intuit account posted on my post that someone would be in touch with me, and indeed, a couple of hours later, I received a phone call.

They said they would refund the amount I had been charged. They also said they would look into the calls and how their employees worked with me.

My LinkedIn posts about this have received more views than any other post over the decade-plus I have been on the platform. Unfortunately, a company treats customers in such a way that, rather than getting kudos or thanks online, platforms are used to share how terrible they have been treated, resulting in lost opportunities for sure.

QuickBooks is a huge company. They can do so much better. Unfortunately for them, I won’t be around to see any changes, that is, if any are made.

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Take a risk. Be of service. Support your friends and colleagues. Be kind.