Mountain Cryer

Next AFP Meeting is Wednesday, October 19, at 11:45 am

Involving Your Executive Director in Development Work

Some days executive directors are underutilized. Some days executive directors are over utilized. Where is the balance? When should you ask for your executive director’s help in development work and when should you not? What strengths and influences does your executive director possess that can help you cultivate and secure a gift? All these questions and more will be addressed by an executive director that is neither over utilized or underutilized but is rather a partner in the success of the organization by getting involved when it is important to do so.

Dr. Beverly Sgro is Head of School at Carolina Day School in Asheville. Before coming to Carolina Day in 1999, she was Interim Head of School at Collegiate School in Richmond. From 1994-1998, Dr. Sgro served as Secretary of Education for the Commonwealth of Virginia in the Cabinet of Governor George Allen. In this position, she had oversight of all public schools and 39 public colleges, universities and community colleges.

Attention Senior Fundraisers
AFP WNC wants to recognize all chapter members with 15 or more years professional fundraising experience. You might be a CEO or Director of Development or a consultant: Let us know!

Who are you? The October meeting cost will be discounted $5 for senior fundraising AFP members. Please contact Alice Keenan at akeenan@ raisingfundseffectively.com by Oct. 10, 2005.

Hooked on E-mail
Sure, Americans say they receive too much email, but a survey by America Online indicates they can’t get enough of it. Most Americans spend about an hour a day on email, and more than 75 percent of email users have more than one account. On one hand, the public can’t get enough of checking for and receiving email. On the other hand, public concern over spam has been so strong that Congress was forced to act. While most legal requirements affect only for-profit entities, some charities have been hesitant to distribute a lot of emails.

“Like telefundraising, we’ve found that emails aren’t replacing direct mail, but complementing them,” said AFP President and CEO Paulette V. Maehara, CFRE, CAE. “Emails can inform potential donors of upcoming letters they should look for in the mail, and charities should be developing lists of supporters who want to hear only from the organization via email.” “At this point, much of the public still doesn’t quite have a grasp on emails as a fundraising tool,” Maehara continued. “However, it’s clear that charities can use emails as a way of identifying potential donors and then follow up through other means such as direct mail.”