One of the most common pitfalls applicants encounter in designing successful applications is in the development of their measurable outcomes. Frequently, we find charities propose projects which lack tangible outcomes and are filled with fuzzy thinking. For example, here are some outcomes that were recently submitted (with revisions to protect identity): 1) Youth Centre for students established with all needed … Read More
7 tips for sparking interest in a proposal
Over my past 16 years’ work in philanthropy, I’ve had both the joy and distress of reading over 2,000 proposals. (A quick check on my database shows 2,035 to be exact.) Some of these made my heart sink. Others made my heart soar. The best ones were well-written, and followed these tips: Know your reader. Pitch an idea close to the … Read More
Updated portfolio for 2015 grants
Grants made in the second half of 2015 are now listed in our portfolio. Grants were awarded by our grantmaker, Bridgeway Foundation, and were focused on “capacity building”. While many charities succeed at raising funds for programming, it is a challenge to find donors who consider strengthening charity health and viability by investing in their often unseen infrastructure or support … Read More
End-of-year grants from Bridgeway
Stronger Philanthropy’s grantmaking partner Bridgeway Foundation is pleased to announce it has awarded grants to 15 organizations at its last grantmaking meeting of 2015. Bridgeway Foundation Grants Awarded – December 2015 Organization Name Project Name Amount Awarded City Prov Purpose of Investment Big Brothers Big Sisters of Waterloo Region In-School Mentoring $5,000 Cambridge ON To provide ongoing in-school mentoring of … Read More
From lone ranger to effective partnerships
Businesses and charities are quickly transitioning from a culture where lone rangers protected one’s turf to one of sharing resources and multiplying impact. In the past we worked in isolation and achieved results through a laborious process of addition. Today we are learning to drop one’s guard, trust others who are walking a similar path, and discover the strength of … Read More
Bridgeway capacity building grants announced
Stronger Philanthropy partner Bridgeway Foundation is working with Seacrest Foundation and Frontier Marketing on a triple partnership for capacity building for Canadian Christian charities. Bridgeway’s grantmaking committee met on May 23, 2015 and approved six conditional matching grants for charities located from Alberta to Nova Scotia. Each of these six charities will be undertaking an online fundraising campaign this summer. … Read More
Six steps to better site visits
March and April were busy months with most of my time dedicated to 18 Stronger Together site visits with charities from BC to Quebec. We normally reserve two hours for these meetings, as we arrange to personally meet all shortlisted applicants. In many cases, it’s the only time all year that I will be face-to-face with that charity’s leaders, so a … Read More
Bridgeway’s triple partnership for building charity fundraising capacity
We’re pleased to announce a triple partnership for a project that will lead to more effective charity fundraising efforts. This spring, our partner Bridgeway Foundation teamed up with Seacrest Foundation and Frontier Marketing to uncover some of the best practices in online fundraising. Seacrest Foundation is an innovative Vancouver-based foundation, committed to building charity capacity. Frontier Marketing is a Victoria, … Read More