First official FRIENDRAISER

At our Spring Retreat, Tricia Schulte and Amanda Strauss unrolled the design for FriendRaising, complete with a sample invitation, invite list, script for a house party and forms for guests to fill out. The purpose for hosting a gathering of your own is to raise awareness about One to One, inform potential referral sources, and raise funds to support our organization. Susie Strauss and I decided to take advantage of a built-in time slot for some of our friends. We belong to a writing group called Women Writing (for a change) – pun intended. Our last class of the semester was approaching so we told our friends that we would be sending them an invitation to come and learn about an organization that we are passionate about. Susie sent an E-Vite which made it easy to see who was coming. We explained to anyone we spoke to that there would be an opportunity to make a contribution (at the party or at a later date) but none was necessary. We met at Susie’s home and offered coffee and iced tea plus muffins, cheese and crackers, and veggies with dip. We had seven guests.

We began with our personal stories of involvement in One to One. Then we showed the DVD and entertained questions. Our group included women who care deeply about women and the conversation was lively. There was interest in our clients but also the organization itself – particularly that it is designed and run by women for women.

What we learned:

1. It is EASY to generate excitement about One to One – particularly using the elegantly designed template created by Trish and Amanda.
2. Move swiftly to the DVD – it answers most of the basic questions that people are curious about and leaves time for them to ask the unanswered questions which leads to a deeper exchange.
3. The dreaded “ask” (for those of us who avoid fund raising) flowed naturally and our guests DID contribute generously. The fact that they knew and we knew it would have been a success merely to have spread the word removed any awkwardness or pressure.

Next week we have a second gathering scheduled. My daughter is a social worker at Children’s Hospital here in Birmingham. After hearing about the Friend-Raisers, she asked me if we would invite her staff to come and learn about One to One. She sent an e-vite to her staff making the connection between us evident. This will no doubt have a different feel since we don’t know the group personally, but they work with women in dire straits all day every day. I look forward to learning from them about the needs that they see. We are meeting after work for a wine and cheese party. Feedback to follow…..

Meredith A. Titus