Five ways CAA-funded community foundations grew arts funds in the worst year since the Depression

Most nonprofit fundraisers are glad to see the calendar turn to 2010—personal donations in 2009 declined while social needs skyrocketed. During this tumultuous time, the arts giving landscape might have been bleak, but it was far from barren.

Lessons in success

Here are five lessons in success, based on wins in 2009, that point the way to more giving in the new year.

1.  Donors value leadership—and collaboration—in the arts.

Community Foundation Sonoma County connected five arts nonprofits with new and prospective donors through An Evening of Song & Poetry. This approach featured unprecedented local cooperation: each arts organization in effect introduced its largest donors to other nonprofits celebrated at an intimate evening event. The community foundation provided plenty of incentive for everyone—offering $50,000 as a match for any event attendees who chose to contribute funds to one or more of the arts organizations feted. Donors responded enthusiastically. Nearly 60 people contributed $90,000 through this appeal, representing nearly two dollars for every one pledged by the community foundation, and generating $140,000 in immediate support for these five organizations. Read more about this remarkable fundraising event.

2.  Artists have networks of new donors at the grassroots level.

An innovative matching commissions program, started by East Bay Community Foundation and picked up by The San Francisco Foundation as well as the Marin Arts Council, continues to gain steam. The program, more fully described here, provides matching grants—typically $5,000 or $10,000—to artists. To date, the artists who received matching grants have, in turn, generated contributions from 2,588 donors. This donor giving has provided $615,000 in new support for 182 artist-run organizations and artist-driven projects in the five-county Bay Area.

3.  Many donors know that now is the time to stand for arts, and to stand with their community foundation.

The East Bay Fund for Artists, which supplies the matching grants for the commissions program above, received a total of $75,000 from four donor advised funds in 2009. Diane Sanchez, Director of Grantmaking and Donor Services, is thrilled: “I feel very good about this because in a difficult year these donor advisors could have let this community foundation program slip off their list.” Only one of the donors sustains a dedicated focus on giving in the arts; the others had many appeals to consider for use of their funds. Plus, all these donors were working with lower fund balances than normal due to the loss of investment assets. “Their commitment in these tough times is a validation of our work,” adds Diane.

4.  Giving circles invite a welcome degree of donor engagement.

Sacramento Region Community Foundation knows that many arts donors appreciate connections. This notion has special meaning in a down economy, as pooling funds helps donors do more with their individual gifts. Plus, donor circles bring a social aspect to giving, helping individual givers learn from each other and share pride in the stories created through their collective support. There’s additional appeal when these groups of donors receive special access to arts experiences and face time with artists. All this adds up to success with the recent launch of donor circles in Sacramento. One circle is forming now with a lead giver at the $25,000 level, and other donors entering with a minimum contribution of $5,000.

5.  Long-term thinking still matters—so don’t give up on endowment building!

Orange County Community Foundation received a $250,000 contribution to its Arts Endowment Fund in late 2009. It’s the largest gift to the fund to date. Listen to Keith Swayne speaking about this decision by he and his wife: “Judy and I are delighted to make this gift, not only as a reflection of our belief in the importance of the arts to a thriving community, but as a challenge to other local philanthropists to do their part in strengthening the arts and cultural sector in Orange County.”
The Swayne’s action is creating buzz. Says Todd Hanson, Vice President of Donor Relations and Programs, “This gift gives confidence to other potential donors. It helps them see how they can help the fund grow quickly and become a cornerstone of stability in our arts sector.” Read more about this community foundation’s commitment to the arts.

Toward the new year

These five success stories remind us that the case for arts remains strong in spite of (perhaps even because of!) a poor economy. As always, the task is to connect to donor motivations, offer the giving options people want, and be confident in making the ask.

A year-end bonus: One of our most popular posts of 2009 is a feature on deepening relationships and understanding motivations by conducting personal interviews with arts donors. Materials and questions created by Alan Brown, an innovator in this field, are available here.

All activities reported here were conducted as part of Communities Advancing the Arts, a major funding initiative of The James Irvine Foundation.

Filed under: Engaging donors