Strengthened gift support by diversifying strategies

A decades-old international organization, Variety relied almost entirely on special event fundraisers and raffle ticket sales to support its mission to help children with mobility challenges. Changing entrenched traditions was a challenge for a new executive director working with some reluctant-to-change board directors. McDonald Schaefer began by conducting a development assessment, the findings of which helped identify weaknesses in the organizational structure that would need to be addressed before proceeding with a fully diversified funding strategy. Among the changes that made a difference were recruiting board directors with prior board experience, hiring a development director, and finally, creating a major and planned gifts program from the ground up.