It’s Time to Give Thanks! | |
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As the holiday season approaches, it is the perfect time to tell your supporters how thankful you are for their support. The staff is taking time the week of November 13 to thank our national donors, and we would love for you to join us in the Thank-A-Thon!
Please take a few minutes to call your donors, wish them a happy holiday season, and share how they have helped you feed kids so far this year. Building and stewarding relationships is the most essential part of fundraising, so take this opportunity while you can!
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Reminder – Giving Tuesday is November 28!
Take this day to reach out and ask your donors for support! Social media posts, email templates, and more can be found on the PC Toolkit here.
To help us feed even more kids, we have a matching gift challenge! That means dollars given in support of Blessings programs on Giving Tuesday will be matched until donations have reached a total of $5,000.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to impact twice as
many children this holiday season!
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Meet the Community Program Council | |
Blessings in a Backpack is excited to introduce to your Community Program Council! Members are volunteer program coordinators from across the country. Council members represent you, our dedicated volunteers, and provide valuable insight to inform strategic initiatives, including how best to support our community programs. | |
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Jan Davis, Chair
Rancho Cordova, California
Fun Fact:
Jan is a NASCAR fan!
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Gina Warner
Pickaway County, Ohio
Fun Fact:
Gina had an article published in a national magazine about her work with a wild animal removal company. She is currently writing a children's book called "Stories from the Farm."
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Craig Traub
Fulton, New York
Fun Fact:
Craig fed thousands of college students weekly before he retired to feed elementary kids in Fulton.
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Susan Traub
Fulton, New York
Fun Fact:
Susan and her husband Craig are co-program coordinators.
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Sharon Brady-McKoy
Las Vegas, Nevada
Fun Fact:
Sharon started a Blessings program in 2021.
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Kathy Bandujo
Boerne, Texas
Fun Fact:
Kathy takes care of feral cats and makes sure they are fed and have a warm, dry place to sleep.
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Laurie Bernard
Tuscon, Arizona
Fun Fact:
In addition to serving kids through Blessings, Laurie is the project coordinator for a homeless outreach program.
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Toni Pierre
Missouri City, Texas
Fun Fact:
Toni has been
kissed by Shamu!
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Adam Sumlin
Getzville, New York
Fun Fact:
Adam loves boating, golf, chess, and meeting people!
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Pam Kindel
Seymour, Indiana
Fun Fact:
I don't like surprises and can't
stand the anticipation.
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Cheryl Northern
Denver, Colorado
Fun Fact:
Cheryl has been a program coordinator for 13 years!
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Packing Events Benefit Local Programs | |
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Corporations often partner with Blessings to host packing events to provide employees with a community engagement opportunity. Employees pack weekend food bags at these events to benefit kids in their local community. Blessings program staff identify nearby Blessings programs to receive the filled bags. Receiving these bags, which are free of charge to a program, helps stretch the money being raised locally. Program coordinators who receive a large donation can often expand their program or add another distribution location. It is just the boost they need to feed more kids in their community.
While there are no guarantees that a packing event will be held in your area, complete this survey if you would like to be considered to receive bags.
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Are you a Blessings in a Backpack Program
Coordinator Facebook Group member?
It's a great way to get questions answered quickly, interact with fellow coordinators, and learn the latest Blessings news, and now it is a great
place to win some Blessings swag. Starting in December, we will draw on the 20th of every month for Blessings swag. All you have to do to enter is be a group member. Click here to join.
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Meet the Marketing Team!
The Blessings in a Backpack marketing department's primary focus is to raise awareness, promote the mission, and engage stakeholders to support the cause. Some of our key responsibilities include:
- Curating and supporting marketing and fundraising campaigns like Giving Tuesday and Back To School through print and digital consumption
- Managing social media presence
- Designing marketing collateral and writing content
- Maintaining the organization's websites, including blessingsinabackpack.org and store.blessingsinabackpack.org
- Developing and maintaining the PC Toolkit and the new Give Gab platform
- Crafting emails that give the latest PC updates
- Storytelling
Our team is small but as strong as our love for the Blessings mission. We love hearing stories about your programs and the lives you touch. We also know that you are the heart and soul of this organization, and we could never thank you enough for your work.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Nikki, Robin, and Paige
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Nikki Grizzle
Chief Marketing Officer
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Robin Rueff
Director, Digital Marketing
and Creative
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Paige Fowler
Digital Marketing Coordinator
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Using Guestlist for Your Event | |
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This school year, the Guestlist ticket site will no longer be accessible by program coordinators due to security concerns. If you have an upcoming event, please fill out this form and the information will be visible on the Guestlist page. Once the form is submitted, a Blessings staff member will reach out with your completed Guestlist page within seven business days.
Weekly attendance reports will be sent leading up to your event. If you have questions about hosting an event requiring a different ticket platform, please email your program manager and Shannon Fitzgerald at
[email protected].
Thank you for being so understanding of the necessary change to this process!
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If you have an event that you would like to be promoted on the national website and social media, please email your event details to Paige at [email protected] |
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