Transylvania Regional Hospital Recognizes Community Donors

August 19th, 2009

In celebration of the completion of a successful capital campaign to build a new inpatient wing, the Transylvania Regional Hospital recently installed donor recognition elements naming areas of the hospital in honor of major donors.  In addition to the area namings, a display at the entry to the new wing lists members of each of the Foundation’s giving societies who participated in this campaign. This installation is the culmination of several years of planning and reflects the Transylania Regional Hospital’s commitment to positive relationship building with the community. Continue reading »

Gwinnett Medical Center’s Second-Generation Philanthropy Center Installs

July 30th, 2009

The Philanthropy Center installed July 28 & 29 in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Mirrored alcoves at the entrance to the hospital’s new lobby recognize the key role played by those who give of their time, talent and treasure in support of quality healthcare in the Gwinnett community. This new installation represents an expansion in the scope and volume of the previous Philanthropy Center, first begun in 1994, and highlights philanthropy as a core value to the Gwinnett Medical Center. Continue reading »

Electronic Media and Donor Recognition: Is Anyone Using it?

July 28th, 2009

It’s a very competitive philanthropic marketplace these days for community hospitals. I was reminded of this last week while at the Georgia Association of Development Professionals’ conference (GADP), a segment of the Georgia Hospital Association.  Most of their members are located in small communities and represent the primary health provider for their county or region. I live in Atlanta. Fundraising events and success here in this city are now daily news items. We are home to 100s of non-profits and maybe more Foundations. Not so, currently, in the rest of the state. In those small communities, medical center fundraisers face tremendous challenges even when the economy is more stable than it is today. CEOs enjoy the income that their Foundations provide, yet they often offer little in the way of day-to-day support or, in many cases, any real understanding of the CEO’s role in acquiring and stewarding donors. Many of these organizations are considered “small shops” and the titles bestowed on  many of the chief fundraisers by the CEO and/or Boards, i.e. Development Officer, Development Coordinator, and the like, are less than confidence-building and may be counter-productive, as they strive to solicit corporate CEOs, Marketing VPs, major Foundations and major donors. I wonder if they know that.

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Roundtable: The Implications of Digital Media on Stewardship and Enhanced Giving

July 23rd, 2009

I’ll soon have a 2nd opportunity to facilitate this roundtable with hospital fundraisers. The results of our  first try at AHP meeting in Nashville last month pleasantly surprised us due to the turn it took. See our June blog, “Social Networking for Healthcare Philanthropy”.

We  had thought the digital media subject would evolve related to donor recognition within an organization’s website, its facility’s interactive touchscreens or digital signing.  Instead, attendees were actively engaged sharing experiences and gaining insight related social networking and its impact on giving and stewardship. Current social network options (Twitter, Facebook, Linked-in, etc) were all evaluated, yet more interestingly, the realization that traditional organizational techniques used for community engagement work well, with modification, on line, too. Most of the same rules apply, while new ones evolve. Cautionary tales were many.

This new healthcare roundtable is scheduled for Friday morning, July 24 at the gathering of the Georgia Association for Advancement Professionals in St. Simons Island, GA. I look forward to facilitating this discussion too. Together, we’ll ride their wave of interest where it leads. Will present a summary report following the meeting.

Written by Robin E. Williams

Product Critique: H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center

July 15th, 2009

As donor recognition consultants, we emphasize the importance of an on-going, changeable display format to keep the viewing audience interested and excited, both in the present and during future visits. I recently came across an article about the new donor recognition display at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida . At Moffitt, the Pittsburgh-based design firm, ThoughtForm, chose a more static interpretation of the theme, “One person can make a difference.”

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