Library Foundation Client Named Nonprofit of the Year
The North Lake County Library Foundation was named Nonprofit of the Year by the Polson Chamber of Commerce and recognized for its Next Chapter Campaign at the chamber’s annual awards banquet Jan. 28, 2023.
“We are so proud of the foundation board for their hard work,” said CampaignCounsel.org President Kevin Wallace. “They truly deserve this honor for taking a volunteer-driven project and making it a success.”
Connie Brownell, president of the North Lake County Library Foundation, accepted the award at the “Moonlight Over Polson, a Roaring Good Time” event, which encouraged attendees to dress up and enjoy a 1920s themed evening. Those who received awards at the banquet were nominated by the public, ensuring people are recognized by their peers for their involvement in the community.
“A special thank you to (the team at CampaignCounsel.org), our trainer, consultant, mentor and friend for this whole process,” Brownell said in an email. “You have taken us from bake sales to professionals in fundraising and for that we are most grateful.”
CampaignCounsel.org began NLCLF’s feasibility study in January 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a pause in the process, which pushed the study completion to 11 months later.
“This extended timeline was necessary because of the pandemic and because this was a volunteer-driven project,” Wallace explained. “There was no staff, no one had capital campaign experience, and the foundation had never received a major gift. That made it challenging to identify, qualify, educate and cultivate prospective donors who could make their $2 million campaign successful.”
NLCLF’s study highlights two very important aspects of the CampaignCounsel.org process.
“First, we do not limit the number of interviews we conduct,” Wallace said. “Second, we do not limit the length of the study. Most consulting companies are not willing, or able, to dedicate this much time to a small, inexperienced group of community leaders. Their capital campaign also took a high level of involvement from our team, but we were happy to help and are so proud of their achievements.”
The Next Chapter Campaign has nearly reached its $2 million fundraising goal, which will allow renovations to the library that will improve accessibility, create new dedicated spaces for children’s and youth programming, and improve access to public computers, free WiFi, and help with technology devices.
Are you considering a capital campaign? We’d love to hear about your project. Contact us to schedule a call.
Melissa Sais is a vice president and partner with CampaignCounsel.org, a consulting firm providing capital campaign leadership, planning and management for nonprofits.
