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Blog

Filtering by Tag: support raising

The Driving Force of Passion

BonniePonce

Bonnie writes about the things that she is passionate about. Passion compels us forward into action. While there are several things I support, there are a few that I am passionate about.  I am passionate about being holistically pro-life, my personal theology, and as shallow as it comparatively sounds, reading a good book.

I love to read so when I read a really awesome book or story I am totally absorbed in the plot, the characters, and the emotion – yes, I occasionally laugh or cry as I read. I get so invested in the plot that real life fades a bit – I go through the motions but my mind is on the story. After I finish a novel I always feel a little deflated and sad that my story is over and sometimes I wonder what the characters would do next.

Passion also drives us to invest in the things that we care about, either through volunteering or giving financially. It also means that we invest our time in the things that are important to us. I would like to say that while our LoveRelief campaign is over, consider giving back to a journal that supports great stories.

Bonnie Ponce is the Director of Support Raising for Relief and lives in Huntsville, Texas with her husband and betta fish. She has a BA in English from Sam Houston State University. After work she enjoys relaxing with a good book or working on her novel.

Acts of Kindness

BonniePonce

Bonnie shares about how an act of kindness can really impact a life. I was standing in line at the grocery store and I noticed how rude the person in front of me was acting to the cashier.  Talking on her cell phone and ignoring the cashier's attempts at conversational pleasantries, she was too busy to be polite.   On the other side, waiting on people who are angry or impatient can be tough.  In college I worked for the university's Information Resources and answered the help desk phones.  Some people were patient as I walked them through the steps to fix their computer problems.  Other people would almost reduce me to tears.  I remember one particularly conversation in which a faculty member accused me of trying to delete all of her emails!

It doesn't take a lot to be nice - a smile, a casual, how are you doing? or a complement can make someone's day.  We often take for granted the people that serve us throughout the day - a waiter, janitorial people, cashiers at Starbucks, toll booth workers, or secretaries.  It only takes a small gesture of kindness to brighten someones day.  But often times it is the rude people we encounter or bad experiences that stick with us an color our whole day.  Which is why I want to share a story about how much it can affect someone or even a whole entity when consideration for others is lacking.  Sam Davidson shares an experience with a non-profit that led him to stop donating.

At Relief, we know that you are the life-blood of what we do. We want to thank you for your donations, for buying subscriptions, for supporting great literature and being loyal to our mission. We want to know what your experience has been with Relief.  We ask for your support so we can continue to provide new stories, poetry, and inspirational creative fiction for you to read. Share your experience with us! If you connect with us, share why you gave or consider giving a gift if you have been encouraged or inspired by Relief.

Inspired to Give

BonniePonce

Bonnie Ponce challenges those who have not contributed to the Love Relief campaign to read these stories and give to Relief.

As I was browsing through the internet, I came across this website of a company who helps charities raise support with capital campaigns.  I thought I would share this story to inspire you about why we ask you to give.  In the stories, the donors give $15,000 and $35,000 but we are only asking that you consider a gift of $25 or $50 or whatever you are inspired and able to give.  This story is from cdsfunds.com

“If you ever needed affirmation about why we do this for a living, these two tales carry a strong message.”

By: Greg Bowden

Fundraising can become such a mechanical process, in which we focus on rating prospects, writing proposals and scheduling logistics. This is never truer than in the midst of a capital campaign, when the pace of activity must be very high and everyone is focused on the bottom line of the campaign’s financial goal. In these instances, we can lose sight of the fact that we are meeting with real people and challenging them to think about their charitable priorities. Often, those donors take our requests very seriously and make decisions that broaden their philanthropy and demonstrate the impact of successful fundraising.

I am currently conducting a campaign for a YMCA resident and day camp based in the Berkshire Mountains of Massachusetts, which serves predominantly Connecticut, Massachusetts and metropolitan New York. We recently had two solicitations that produced surprising and very touching results. It was a reminder to me that our work allows us to have an impact on the lives of our donors as well as our organizations.

A few months ago we met with a couple who are very involved, charitable residents in the local community. While they had not given to the camp in the past, they were friends of the camp’s director. They agreed to meet with us, and were frankly shocked when we asked them for a pledge of $25,000 over five years. The wife commented that was more than they contribute to their church. The husband suggested they might be able to do something in the neighborhood of $15,000 and they would give it some thought.

When we followed up with them, the husband confirmed that they would pledge $15,000 to the campaign. He went on to say that our request had really stretched them, which had forced them to examine what they could truly do, rather than easily saying yes to a modest request. Their deliberations had further prompted them to take a look at all of their charitable priorities. How much did they contribute overall? If they seriously wanted to make this gift, but had trouble budgeting it, what did that say about their philanthropy? What changes were they able to make in their life that would allow them to meet their charitable goals?

All of these deliberations resulted in a lifestyle change for the couple. When the husband informed us of their decision, he explained that they had decided to sell their new BMW and buy a used Volkswagen, freeing up additional funds to make this pledge possible. As we were running a campaign for a children’s camp, I immediately thought of that saying, “A hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car you drove, or what sort of house you lived in, or how big your bank account was. But the world may be better because you were important in the life of a child.”

The second story came from an alumnus of the camp, who now lives in a town in coastal Connecticut. Both his parents were now deceased and, without siblings, it fell to him to sell their home and resolve their estate. He decided that he would put some of the proceeds from the house sale toward certain charitable projects. Despite the fact that he had no idea they were conducting a capital campaign, his first thoughts were of the Camp that had provided him such a significant experience in his childhood. He called the Camp’s executive director—actually calling twice before he got the director on the phone—and told the director that he wanted to make a significant charitable gift.

The donor’s objective was to make a gift to the endowment, the income from which would fund scholarships for less fortunate children to attend Camp. He was considering giving $15,000. The Camp’s executive director pointed out that, in order to maintain the principal in perpetuity that would not generate much income each year. With some polite probing, the Camp’s director was able to learn that the donor’s true intent was to fund four scholarships each year. That would require a gift of about $35,000. Once the Camp’s director was able to communicate what would be necessary to achieve the donor’s goal, the alumnus readily agreed to make the gift.

We do so much work changing the lives of those people who receive our services, it is easy to forget that we are often changing the lives of our donors as well. Helping people raise their sights in these ways is a critical step in their philanthropic lifespan. It will have a leveraged impact far beyond the value of their current gift, as they will apply their new philosophy to all future charitable decisions, as well.

Bonnie Ponce is the Director of Support Raising for Relief and lives in Huntsville, Texas with her husband and betta fish. She has a BA in English from Sam Houston State University. After work she enjoys relaxing with a good book or working on her novel.

An Offering of the Heart

BonniePonce

Bonnie Ponce reflects on the book of Nehemiah and how the people sacrificed to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and how that relates to supporting Relief. Recently our church began to study the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah is a book about a man, Nehemiah, who sees a need to lead his people to rebuilding the Jerusalem’s wall, which has been destroyed. He brings hope to his people and inspires them to work hard. In chapter 3 of Nehemiah, there is a list of all the people that work on the wall – the important people, servants, nobles, people that work on the wall without the support of others. People from different back grounds work together. Even how much work they do is noted.

“Nehemiah…made repairs as far as a point opposite the tombs of David, and as far as the artificial pool and the house of the mighty men.” Neh. 3:16

“Benjamin and Hasshub carried out repairs in front of their house. After them Azariah the son of Maaseiah, son of Ananiah, carried out repairs beside his house.” Neh. 3:23

Relief inspires people to write, to read, to think, and to build up the Christian community with engaging literature. Relief units people of all beliefs to see Christian literature in a new light – what it can be when it is well written and deals with tough issues. Giving should be an offering of the heart. At Relief, we ask you for your financial support because we have a financial need.

Some people are able to give a lot and some people are only able to give a small gift but the important thing is that everyone sacrificed their time and efforts and did what they were able to do to build the wall in Jerusalem. At Relief we ask that if you support our efforts to bring amazing literature to print then please consider a gift – give what you are able to sacrifice. Our campaign will end on April 15, so listen to your heart and give to Relief!

Each of you should give whatever you have decided. You shouldn't be sorry that you gave or feel forced to give, since God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7 (God’s Word translation)

Bonnie Ponce is the Director of Support Raising for Relief and lives in Huntsville, Texas with her husband and betta fish. She has a BA in English from Sam Houston State University. After work she enjoys relaxing with a good book or working on her novel.

A Philanthropic Mind

BonniePonce

Bonnie talks about the history of Philanthropy. Philanthropy is not a new concept.  According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, charitable groups existed in ancient Rome and Greece.  Plato's Academy was supported by an endowment for 900 years.  Even the medieval Christian church began trusts to use for benevolent purposes. "Starting in the late 19th century, large personal fortunes led to the creation of private foundations that bequeathed gifts totaling millions and then billions in support of the arts, education, medical research, public policy, social services, environmental causes, and other special interests."

The ideas of charity and philanthropy are important in the history of humanity.  While everyone gives for different reasons, I think that people give to elevate society.  The arts, education and research all help to enrich our lives and raise our standard of living.

Charity comes from the Latin word "caritas" which means unconditional love.  Show Relief your unconditional love right now and give to a journal that is elevating the standards of Christian fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction!

Read more: http://www.answers.com/topic/philanthropy#ixzz1GAPib0QA

Bonnie Ponce is the Director of Support Raising for Relief and lives in Huntsville, Texas with her husband and betta fish. She has a BA in English from Sam Houston State University. After work she enjoys relaxing with a good book or working on her novel.

An Encouraging Story

BonniePonce

Bonnie shares an encouraging story about how donations can save print media. In this age of technology, digital media has overshadowed printed materials.  Looking around it seems like everyone has an e-reader of some type.  While the pros and cons of e-readers are a topic of debate among literary connoisseurs it is hard to ignore the growing number of people who use them.  Even in my family it is a topic of debate.  I have one and enjoy it and my husband feels negatively about them.  With the growing number of people reading from digital files, it is growing increasingly harder to sell printed material like books, journals, and magazines.  I found an encouraging article about one such magazine that turned to donations to keep going in this technology-saturated age.  I hope that if you read their story that it will encourage you to give to Relief Journal.

In this age it is hard to believe that there is any hope for print media.  Paste is a small independent music magazine that shares a story of financial triumph in hard times by turning to donations from loyal readers to stay in print.  By asking for donations and changing their magazine’s format for a short while they were able to continue to pay their staff and print their magazine while increasing their subscriptions.

Relief, run by volunteers, offers authors a creative outlet and provides exciting new stories to interest readers.  It is important to realize that subscriptions don’t cover all of the costs of printing, so for print media to survive, donations are needed.  Please consider a gift to Relief so we can keep on printing.  While digital media is growing, there is nothing quit like sitting on the couch with a good book in your hands.  Please show Relief some love.

Bonnie Ponce is the Director of Support Raising for Relief and lives in Huntsville, Texas with her husband and betta fish. She has a BA in English from Sam Houston State University. After work she enjoys relaxing with a good book or working on her novel.

Share a Story

BonniePonce

Bonnie Ponce encourages Relief readers  to love Relief through donations. When I think about helping Relief through support raising, I think about my current job - support raising at a university.

Support raising, I think can have a negative stigma.  Asking for money, even for a really good cause like Relief Journal, can be awkward for people.  But the support raising process can lead to rewarding new friendships and shared stories.

Relief Journal allows authors to bare their souls through their writing and they reach a unique audience. Great questions are asked through poetry, fiction, and shared experiences. We support raise because we want people to continue to find their voice and share it with others.

I remember when I first heard about Relief.  I was a little confused by the name but after I read the mission statement, I understood that Relief was raising the bar on Christian literature and bringing a fresh new point of view.  I was thrilled to find like-minded people that wanted to write and read faith based fiction that dealt with the sinful and painful side of humanity but also the hope that we have in Jesus.  I knew that I wanted to be a part of this group, to help support raise so these stories could continue to be shared.

Relief News Tuesday 7.20.2010

Ian David Philpot

Welcome our new staff member!

Last week, Relief added a new staff member, Bonnie Ponce.  Bonnie will be the Director of Support Raising. We are all super excited for her to be on our staff.

Here's a brief message from Bonnie:

"I am so excited to join the Relief staff, as the Director of Support Raising!  I am a native Texan and currently I live in Huntsville, Texas.  I earned a BA in English from Sam Houston State University. I am married to the love of my life, Tim.  I enjoy watching anime, drawing, and doing crafts.  I am very excited to work with Relief because it is exactly what I was looking for, a place for people to express the grittiness of life with the hope of Christ.  I am so blessed to be a part of Relief!"

Please join us as we welcome Bonnie to our staff!