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Tough economy: Nonprofits absorb impact of fewer donations
| Saturday, Jun 28 2008 12:00 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Jun 30 2008 8:14 AM
After a successful spring of paying for feral cats to be spayed or neutered, The Cat People stopped its voucher program and limited aid given to low-income cat owners because of a decrease in donations. Worse yet, the number of pets needing help is increasing.
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$38.52: The billions foundations gave to charities nationally through grants in 2007.
$15.69: The billions corporations gave to non-profits in 2007.
$102.32: The billions given to religious congregations in 2007, which was an inflation-adjusted increase of 1.8 percent from 2006.
SOURCE: Giving USA report produced by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University
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“People are abandoning their animals when they walk away from foreclosures or when they move out,” president Barbara Hays said. “Some don’t want to pay the turn-in fee, or if the cats are sick, they don’t want to take care of them.”
In the coming year, Hays doesn’t see the money situation getting any better.
Hays’ sentiments echo those of several local non-profits. Most say their organizations absorbed the impact of fewer donations this year as people weathered the tough economy.
It’s next year they’re worried about.
Philanthropy usually feels the impact of economic downturns six to nine months later, said Edith Falk, vice chairwoman of Giving USA Foundation.
“We’ve heard next year our clients are being more fiscally cautious and budgeting for no big jumps in donations or flat or slightly declining donations,” said Falk, who is also CEO of Campbell & Co., a non-profit consultant firm based in Chicago.
In 2007 donations to charities nationwide exceeded $3 billion for the first time, which is a 1 percent increase over the previous year when adjusted for inflation, according to an annual study by Giving USA Foundation. The report, Giving USA, is produced by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.
Individual giving declined by 0.1 percent from 2007 to 2006, and corporate giving decreased by about 1 percent when adjusted for inflation, according to the report. However, foundation grantmaking increased by 7.3 percent.
WHAT'S HAPPENING IN KERN
United Way of Kern County saw about a 1 percent increase in funding for fiscal year 2007-2008 compared to the previous year, according to Della Hodson, the director of community impact. Even so, United Way is preparing for possible donation decreases by applying for more grants and searching for new donors.
“We know we cannot be dependent on one revenue source,” Hodson said. “It is critical for those who can give to dig a little deeper.”
Even people without a lot of money can help.
The United Way’s car wash coupons have brought in about $600 or $700 a month for the past two years. Hodson said the fundraiser is appealing because people get a more expensive car wash for less money.
“Everyone is trying all sorts of ways to have people give without thinking about it while doing day-to-day activities,” she said.
Money has been tight at the Kern chapter of the American Red Cross because of an increase in local emergencies, especially fires, said Steve Rodriguez, the director of operations and response. Plus, the organization sent two volunteers to help with the Midwest floods.
It has handled declining donations by limiting and combining trips, researching prices before purchasing equipment and postponing non-essential projects, Rodriguez said.
Other nonprofit leaders said they haven’t felt the effects of a tough economy.
While Habitat for Humanity donations worldwide are down 20 percent, said Bakersfield executive director Dennis Wallace, locally givers are holding steady. He attributes the international loss to high gas prices and the global economy.
The budget at the Bakersfield-based International Christian Ministries actually rose 25 percent from the first half of 2007 to the first half of 2008, said Darryl Bowe, vice president of U.S. operations.
“People are motivated to donate out of their religious faith, so they will try to stay constant with their donations as long as they can,” he said.
For another religious group, Jesus Shack, major corporate sponsors are already committed for the year, and so it hasn’t faced a donation drop, executive director David Voss said. But he noted the nonprofit could see a decrease two quarters from now when corporations re-evaluate sponsorships.
SEARCHING FOR SOLUTIONS
Nonprofits have taken notice of the economy and are planning ahead for the next fiscal year.
Falk said her fundraising consulting firm works with clients to be mindful of the economy and advises them how to make their fund raising recession-proof.
The best way: Get existing donors to increase their gifts to make up for a possible lack of new donors.
A fairly new monthly giving program has provided small yet steady donations for The Cat People.
“Members find it easier to donate $5 or $10 because when they are not making one lump sum payment, it is not as hard on the pocketbook,” Hays said.
The Cat People has also seen a couple extra dollars from members’ use of iGive.com, a Web site that donates to charities a percentage of what people spend online. She estimates they have received $20 so far.
“For us, every little bit counts,” Hays said.
The Bakersfield SPCA, a pet advocacy organization, is listed as a donor organization on both iGive and GoodSearch.com, which donates to charities based on how many times people use its Yahoo-powered search engine. It has yet to see money from either Web site.
“Everybody has Yahoo or Google, so they aren’t going to switch their search engines just to send a few pennies to their favorite charity,” SPCA spokesman Chuck Nordstrom said.
HOW DONORS RESPOND
Despite the tough economy, Rebekah Ganiere said her family would never consider skipping a donation to church.
“We don’t decrease because we are tithing,” she said. “It is the first thing we pay every month no matter what.” But Target employee Christina Surratt said she had to cut back her donations to the United Way because of the economy. In January, she dropped her donation that comes directly from her paycheck from $10 to $5.
“It bums me out that I can’t help more,” she said.