The Father Factor

Awesome Fundraising Idea for Fatherhood Programs

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Apr 4, 2017

how to fund a fatherhood program

Fundraising is one of the major pain points for fatherhood programs.

Funders don't bang down the doors of organizations with pots of money to fund fatherhood programs. Indeed, funders are often MIA when it comes to seeing the value in fatherhood programs. That's why you must diversify your funding for your fatherhood program through creative fundraising efforts. Too many programs rely on only one or two sources of funds, typically a small public or private grant. When the funding stream(s) disappears, so too does the fatherhood program.

That's also why all of us at National Fatherhood Initiative® (NFI) love learning about and sharing creative fundraising ideas. And not just creative ideas...ideas that work!

Since starting NFI's 24/7 Dad® program in 2010, St. Joseph's Parenting Center (Stamford, CT) has served about 300 dads a year. A key to funding the program in recent years has been a 3 on 3 basketball tournament that has raised north of $50,000! Teams comprised of current program participants, past participants, and other dads pay a registration fee of $300. But the bulk of the money raised is from corporate sponsorships, including a sponsorship from NBC Sports.

Stan Galanski, who serves on the board of the parenting center and is the CEO of one of the corporate sponsors, sums up the importance of this kind of fundraising when he told the Stamford Advocate, "This type of event has become especially critical, as you can no longer rely on the state or federal government to support a program like this because funds are so scarce." 

I couldn't have said it better.

To help you get creative with your fundraising efforts, NFI has a number of resources to help you diversify funding for your fatherhood program. They include:

  • The Father Engagement Certificate™. This affordable, online, on-demand self-paced training includes a comprehensive session on fundraising that focuses on developing a fundraising plan to include funds from private sources (i.e. foundations and individuals).
  • Fundraising for Fatherhood Programs Webinar. This free, on-demand one-hour webinar covers the range of sources you can access for funding a fatherhood program.
  • 7 Steps to Starting a Fatherhood Program eBook. This free, downloadable eBook provides an overview of how to find funding to get a fatherhood program off the ground.

Does your fatherhood program rely on only one or two sources of funding?

What creative ideas will help you diversify your program's funding?

Topics: Fundraising, NFI-Specific Programs & Resources

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