--- title: The Untapped Pot of Funds for Fatherhood Programs description: Read Christopher A. Brown's newest post showing the common pitfalls of funding for fatherhood programs and where to find help. image: https://www.fatherhood.org/hubfs/Untapped-Funds.png --- [Skip to main content](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/untapped-funds-for-fatherhood-programs#main) - [![NFI mark](https://www.fatherhood.org/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI%20mark.svg)FATHERHOOD.ORG](https://www.fatherhood.org/) - [STORE.FATHERHOOD.ORG](https://store.fatherhood.org/) [![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=149&height=82&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=119&height=65&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=119&height=66&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ![NFI_logo_blue_left (1) 1](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/NFI-Assets/images/NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png?width=89&height=49&name=NFI_logo_blue_left%20(1)%201.png) ](https://www.fatherhood.org) - [How To Build Strong Families](https://www.fatherhood.org/build-strong-families) - [Why Father Inclusion Matters](https://www.fatherhood.org/why-father-inclusion-matters) - Show submenu for Get Involved Get Involved - [Fatherhood Programs](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/programs-and-resources) - [Train Your Staff](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/staff-training) - [State, County, and City Agency Services](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/collaborative-services) Open main navigation Close main navigation - Show submenu for Get Informed Get Informed - [How To Build Strong Families](https://www.fatherhood.org/build-strong-families) - [Why Father Inclusion Matters](https://www.fatherhood.org/why-father-inclusion-matters) - [Father Stats & Infographics](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistic) - Show submenu for Get Involved Get Involved - [Fatherhood Programs](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/programs-and-resources) - [Train Your Staff](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/staff-training) - [State, County, and City Agency Services](https://www.fatherhood.org/solutions/collaborative-services) - Show submenu for Get Started Get Started - [Find Your Stage of Father Inclusion](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-inclusion) - [How Father Friendly Is Your Organization?](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-friendly) - [Get In Touch](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) [Store](https://store.fatherhood.org/?hsLang=en) [Get In Touch](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) [Store](https://store.fatherhood.org/?hsLang=en) Show submenu for Get Started Get Started - [Fatherhood Data & Statistics](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-absence-statistic) - [How Father Friendly is Your Organization?](https://www.fatherhood.org/father-friendly) - [Other Free Resources](https://www.fatherhood.org/nfi-free-resources) - [Talk With us to Get Started](https://www.fatherhood.org/get-started) National Fatherhood Initiative Blog / [Latest Articles](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood) [Fundraising](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/topic/fundraising) # The Untapped Pot of Funds for Fatherhood Programs 2 min read ![Christopher A. Brown](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Images/chris_circle_icon.png?width=100&height=100&name=chris_circle_icon.png) [** Christopher A. Brown ** ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/author/christopher-a-brown) Chris serves as the President of National Fatherhood Initiative® (NFI), where he is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of NFI's strategic plan and business model, as well as its operations and fundraising efforts. If your [fatherhood program](https://www.fatherhood.org/keeping-fathers-interested-in-fatherhood-program) relies solely or primarily on funds from foundations or government, it's crucial that you expand the focus to include donations from individuals. One of the pitfalls I often see is the reliance of a fatherhood program on a single source of funds, typically a foundation or government grant. Even when a program has more than one source of funds, I rarely see one with more than two or three sources, and those sources almost never include donations from individuals. Why is it important to expand the focus? ![Untapped-Funds.png](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Untapped-Funds.png?width=452&name=Untapped-Funds.png "Untapped-Funds.png") First, the vast majority of giving in the U.S. to charities comes from individuals--some [70% to 80% of the $400 billion given annually](http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/how-trumps-election-boosted-some-nonprofits/?utm_source=kw_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2016-11-29)! Second, it's vital to diversify funding sources. Just as with diversity in investments, diversity in funding sources provides a hedge against a reduction or elimination of funding from a specific source. **I've seen a lot of programs disappear when their lone funding source stops funding them.** The challenge for many program staff is not knowing how to talk to individuals about giving. It's one thing to know how to write a great proposal for a foundation or government grant. It's another to know how to connect with individual donors. So here are two recommendations for how to do that. - **Get into the heads of individuals committed to donating to charities. **Find out what they're thinking or, actually, what they're being told to think. Believe it or not, there are organizations that cater to these folks by helping them understand what they should be thinking about when donating to charities. One such organization, for example, is [The Center for High Impact Philanthropy](http://www.impact.upenn.edu/). The center speaks to donors about how to achieve "high impact," a buzzword in the giving community. Subscribe to their blog and download their free resources, such as their [High Impact Giving Guide](http://www.impact.upenn.edu/high-impact-giving-guide/), to gain insight into how to connect your program to what donors care about. This [group of blog posts](http://www.impact.upenn.edu/category/five-myths-and-a-question-about-impact/), for example, helps donors understand what high impact means, and how they can achieve it with their giving.   Another popular resource for individual donors is [GuideStar](https://www.guidestar.org/Home.aspx). This website helps donors decide which organizations to donate to by providing extensive background information on thousands of charities. Charities complete profiles that have components that donors care about (e.g. programs offered and outcomes). By completing a profile, you can build credibility for your program or organization. (Click [here](https://www.guidestar.org/profile/23-2745763) for National Fatherhood Initiative's [NFI's] profile.) After you create your profile, you can place links to it on your program's donation page and in solicitations for funds (e.g. emails that are part of annual giving campaigns). - **Register for and obtain NFI's Father Engagement Certificate™. **One of the five sessions that are part of this popular training is on fundraising. The focus of that session is on raising funds from private sources, including individual donors. So what are you waiting for? Start learning how to expand your program's funding sources to include individual donors. **Does your program have funding from individuals?** **If your program doesn't have such funding, what's kept you from securing funding from this untapped source?** **Are you a dad looking for help? Please visit our Fatherhood Program Locator™ and enter your city and state on the map to find programs and resources in your community.** Date Published: 12/28/2016 Last Updated: 05/18/2018 ## Learn How to Build a Fatherhood Program That Works Download this free guide for a proven 7-step roadmap—from making the case and securing funding for your program, to launching and measuring real results! [Get The Guide Now!](https://www.fatherhood.org/starting-a-fatherhood-program) ![7-steps-starting-a-fatherhood_program](https://www.fatherhood.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Images/7-steps-starting-a-fatherhood_program.png?width=700&height=700&name=7-steps-starting-a-fatherhood_program.png) [ Previous ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/mentoring-ebooks) [ Next ](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/6-tips-powerful-fatherhood-event) ## Related Articles ### [Funding A Father-Inclusive Effort For Non-Governmental Organizations Image created with GPT Image 2. Many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) struggle to identify funding sources for fatherhood initiatives and programs. After all, beyond the ... Read More](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/funding-a-father-inclusive-effort-for-non-governmental-organizations) ### [The Fatherhood Funding You’re Looking For Is Already There—You’re Just Not Seeing It Yet Image created with GPT Image 2. If you work in a nonprofit, you’ve probably had some version of this conversation: “We know father engagement matters, we just don’t have the ... Read More](https://www.fatherhood.org/championing-fatherhood/the-fatherhood-funding-youre-youre-just-not-seeing-it-yet) ### [New Federal Rule Offers Opportunity for Fatherhood Programs Proactively identifying creative ways to fund your fatherhood program using private and public sources is vital for program sustainability. A new rule announced recently by the ... 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