Last Thursday, the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle held its annual fundraising dinner. Attendance at the event increased five-fold over last year, yet it was more intimate than ever before. Roughly 1300 Jews and a few non-Jews — that is as many as were at Bill Clinton’s fundraiser for Maria Cantwell — gathered at the Sheraton on September 28, exactly two months after the hate crime shooting that killed one and critically injured five Federation staff.

The dinner gave the Jewish community an opportunity to move forward in strength. There were people there who have never been connected to the “organized” Jewish community, folks who were old-timers in that regard, young and old, big and potential donors, politicians and the public.

We laughed, we cried, we raised a lot of money.

This event reminds us what community dinners and luncheons are really about, what they can accomplish beyond just the fundraising. As Robin Boehler, Chair of the Federation’s board of directors, said, this event is mostly about connecting. In her parting words, she challenged people to connect to the community this year: Don’t be alone, don’t feel alone, don’t miss this opportunity to build community. We are all stronger from tragedy and move together in strength.

As we read seemingly daily about shootings and deadly accidents, we feel the pain of the victims and can only hope they have strong communities surrounding them, supporting them and sustaining them as they move forward and begin to heal.

If you’ve noticed more news coverage and ads about women and heart disease recently, you’re not alone. In the past two years, more than 365,000 people have logged on to the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Learn and Live quiz, and, more importantly, donated $40 million to the cause. At the same time, individuals from more than 9,500 companies have signed on to help raise awareness that heart disease doesn’t only strike men.
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For anyone involved in online communications at a nonprofit, I’m recommending that you take a look at the book The Mercifully Brief, Real World Guide to Raising Thousands (if Not Tens of Thousands) of Dollars with Email by Madeline Stanionis. Unlike its verbose title, the book is a direct and no-nonsense compendium of tips culled from the author’s experience in online fundraising for a number of large nonprofits. At 108 pages, it’s a quick read with information that is easily applied to areas other than fundraising; such as advocacy, list and traffic building.

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