Chapter Leadership Brief 8.28.18
By President-Elect Steve G. Jacobson
AFP-NYC is the Smorgasburg of Fundraising! What? For the uninitiated, Smorgasburg is an outdoor food festival in Brooklyn that is open on Saturdays and Sundays from April through October. But Smorgasburg is much more than a seasonal food fair. It is billed as the largest weekly open-air food market in America, where you can try food from over 100 local vendors. Want some Ethiopian wat? Yes, you can find it there. How about some Himalayan shabaley? That’s there, too! Donburi bowls from Japan? Canadian butter tarts? You get the idea…
But, what on earth does exotic food have to do with fundraising and AFP? Well, it dawned on me the other day that the NYC chapter of AFP is the fundraising equivalent of Smorgasburg. We at AFP offer a little bit of everything related to fundraising. We are, in a way, a one-stop shop for all your fundraising food needs.
Many of you might know us as the force behind Fundraising Day in New York, our annual June education and networking event that serves up content to about 1,800 fundraising professionals. With 11 tracks of education, spanning from Advanced Fundraising to Web, Tech, and Social Media, Fundraising Day is truly a smorgasbord of fundraising education. Some attendees come looking to gorge on best practices for legacy giving, but, in the end, decide to nibble on special events. We offer it all.
But our wide-ranging options of fundraising entrees don’t end with Fundraising Day. Our chapter has a deep and extensive menu of professional advancement opportunities. On Wednesday, September 5th, we are hosting a Lunch & Learn Webinar, in which noted nonprofit management consultant, Robbe Healey, will focus on strategies you can digest to help your board fundraise with ease and confidence. Join us for lively pre-and post-webinar discussions sandwiched around the webinar.
On October 11th, we will be presenting a panel discussion, Diversity in Fundraising: Recruiting and Retaining Diverse Professionals. Come to hear more about the value that a diverse team brings to an organization’s bottom-line. You’ll also learn how specific Diversity/Equity/Inclusion strategies, when used in conjunction with acquisition and retention initiatives, can increase stability in your organization’s workforce.
And, did I mention the November 8th event on Donor Advised Funds? Of course, all of this should serve to whet your appetite for the National Philanthropy Day Breakfast, coming up on November 19th. On behalf of the AFP-NYC board, I hope to see you there!