Making the Case for Training Funds in Your Fundraising

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/er24ems/

Would donations towards training this year make your department, your members and your community response stronger? If so, consider a fundraising appeal earmarked for the a goal amount that will move your mission forward. 

The book To the Rescue: Stories From Healthcare Workers at the Scenes of Disasters, edited by Nancy Leigh Harless and Kerry-Ann Morris (Amazon Affiliate link) includes a brief story succinct description of the critical nature of training to today's fire and EMS departments:

 "In a crisis, with expectations changing constantly, how you adapt to your circumstances and the trust you have in your skill sets will ultimately determine your success or failure."

How might this point sound in your fundraising  appeal (which is where your focus should shift to your donor)?

Of course, the strongest appeals are personalized for each of your donors. 

Thank you for enabling your community to be as safe as possible with your support of DEPARTMENT NAME. You make our progress possible.

This year, we need to [Do a brief explanation of your training needs here. Do you have members who want to take the bridge course with the pending changes in EMS certifications in Iowa, as just one example?]

Your gift enables your fire/EMS  department to be as ready as we can be for whatever is at the other end of our pager call. Your support of our training needs makes it possible for us to do everything possible in response to each emergency.

Your gift supports:

[Give two or three examples here of gift amounts and what they support. For example, $X supports the cost of a X class, or a portion of the class if the amount is high. Work in, if you can, the amount of time a volunteer devotes to training each year.]

Your time and consideration of enabling your fire/EMS department members to be as prepared as possible for each pager call is truly appreciated!

What is working well for you on need-specific fundraising for your department? Share your experience below. 

Your Department's Strategic Plan - a Bird's Eye View of an Even Better Tomorrow

Each year, you continue an even better training plan for your members. You adapt to changes in state and federal regulations. You exceed recommendations on the number of hours committed to scenarios like live fire training, school bus extracation, disaster drills and more. You work closely with partner organizations in your city, township, county, district or state to ensure access to important classes like Firefighter I, Firefighter II and Driver/Operator.

If you're involved in EMS services, your commitment to training excellence continues with helping your members move forward with training levels like First Responder, EMT-B, EMT-I and Paramedic. Although these training demand significant time and some financial investment, they pay positive dividends in safer operations, member satisfaction and excellent service.

Your department can plan for an even better tomorrow in terms of excellence through adding one component to your training commitment: strategic planning. One annual meeting with your officers and/or members that focuses on your goals for the next three years is an investment that will pay dividends that ensure your department moves forward and builds on your unique strengths.

Investing in an independent facilitator for your strategic planning helps ensure that all voices are heard and no particular personalities or issue dominate this critical discussion on how to make your department's future even better. Everything invested in strategic planning helps bring about a bird's eye view of where to take your department in 2010 and beyond.

To schedule your department's strategic planning session as you look towards 2010, contact FlashPoint President Dawn Svenson Holland today.