This past July, a cohort of leaders from 11 community foundations throughout the Southern United States gathered in Alabama for a 3-day intensive bootcamp, ready to brainstorm, strategize, and meet the cohort they’d be working with for the next 3 years. Over the course of the program, they broke into small groups, jotted down ideas on flip charts, presented their plans to each other, and headed home ready to build and scale their campaigns.

[PHOTOS: Top: small group cohort members plan out and present their respective campaign ideas. Bottom: team huddle and break leaving bootcamp]

Through monthly virtual sessions, the group continued refining their campaign plans and strategies together. As Madi DuBoise, Marketing Coordinator at the Walker Area Community Foundation, captured perfectly in a recent meeting:  “We’re really shifting from thinking about our job as “marketing the foundation” to “marketing the community”.

This cohort didn’t just meet on Zoom. Members traveled to attend each other’s events, cheering from the sidelines and learning from what their peers were trying in real time. As Emily from Share CENLA and Caroline from Pinebelt Foundation discovered, there’s nothing quite like seeing a campaign in action to spark your own ideas.

[PHOTO: Emily from SHARE Cenla and Caroline from Pinebelt Gives in the photo booth at a Pinebelt Gives event]

Then came launch time! We had so many creative and exciting campaigns:

• The Community Foundation of East Mississippi set the pace in September with Giving Day EMS, raising over $30,000 for 34 local nonprofits and proving you don’t have to wait for December to mobilize your community.
• The Blue Grass Community Foundation made a bold shift, condensing Bluegrass Gives from a weeklong campaign into a single, powerful day that reached new heights with $3.1 million through 12,473 donations for 234 organizations.
• Share CENLA (Central Louisiana Community Foundation) kicked off their campaign with an incredibly joyful party celebrating the nonprofits and community featuring night golf and hourly giveaways that set an energized tone for the campaign. 
• With the support of an amazing team, including some incredible interns, the Tuskegee Macon County Community Foundation Inc. launched ‘Macon It Happen in Tuskegee.’ The 30 Days of Giving campaign runs Dec. 1–30, and will be showcased during the City of Tuskegee Christmas Parade and on the radio with DJ Booty Rush on 100.7FM (WUBZ) in campaign merch to keep the momentum going.
• The Pinebelt Foundation rallied their board with an ice cream social and launched a peer-to-peer text fundraising campaign that turned board members into enthusiastic campaign champions for Pinebelt Gives.
• The Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi hit their goal of $50,000 for Heart of Mississippi Gives in just one week, with support from tons of everyday donors and even the Mayor!

[PHOTOS: Left – Heart of MS Gives community members spin a wheel to find out where they are donating, Right – SHARE Cenla team at their launch party]

• The United Way of Greater Chattanooga responded to their community’s needs in real time with CHAGives, adjusting their approach to address recent food insecurity challenges by dedicating one fund specifically for that urgent purpose.
• The Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky set a goal around bringing in new donors to its affiliate network and recapturing lapsed disaster donors with GiveAppKY, and watched as former supporters who hadn’t given to the region in years came back. The results showed the power of that invitation: 31% brand new donors and 24% converted disaster donors who originally gave during emergencies now supporting the broader region.
• The Black Belt Community Foundation created their “12 Counties of Christmas” for Give for Good, giving each county a dedicated day to celebrate and rally support through the holiday season.
• East Tennessee Foundation brought the energy for East TN Gives on GivingTuesday with their entire staff playing bingo in the office while sending personalized thank-you messages to their many new donors throughout the day.
• The Walker Area Community Foundation hosted a nonprofit luncheon at their local Civic Center for Walker Area Gives, using the gathering as both a celebration and fundraising opportunity for those nonprofits. 

[PHOTOS: Left -Walker Area Community Foundation sets up for their nonprofit luncheon, Right – BINGO at the East Tennessee Foundation office]

Whether launching for the first time or scaling an existing campaign, every single leader in this cohort tried something new this year. Some started from scratch. Others took their campaigns in bold new directions. But every foundation pushed themselves into uncharted territory, and it’s a lot easier to do that when you have a cohort of peers saying “let’s figure this out together.”

None of us have all the answers. What matters is the willingness to experiment, learn publicly, and help others do the same. These leaders are proving that every day. With two more years ahead, we can’t wait to see what they try next.

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