The National Park Foundation: The Official Charity of America’s National Parks

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
I.
3-Year Overview & Funding Breakdown
II.
Executive Summary
III.
Fundraising Plan

Major Gift Program

Direct Mail Program

Corporate & Foundation Fundraising Program

Gala

Magazine Concept
IV.
Roles & Responsibilities
V.
Development Staffing Plan
VI.
Communications/Marketing Tools
VII.
Calendar
VIII.
Development Staff Roster
P a g e | 1
2
3
21
23
25
26
The National Park Foundation
4
4
10
11
14
17
19

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
Objective: To secure short-term financial viability and sustainability of the National Park
Foundation projects, while positioning the Foundation for long-term sustainability and success (FY12-FY14).
The Foundation will focus on securing funding from three avenues: individuals, foundations and corporations. Gifts from individuals will be solicited as annual contributions, with select program restricted requests to targeted individuals. Proposals to foundations will be focused on specific program needs. In addition, corporate funding opportunities will center on licensing, cause-related marketing, sponsorships and promotional campaigns.
In cases where potential donors specify that they will only support the Foundation if their gift is directed to a specific program/project, they will be allowed to select appropriate opportunities from an approved list of programs/projects that will be conducted over the FY12-FY14 years.
Direct Mail
Individual Gifts (in-house)
Foundation
Event (Gala)
Corporate
FY11
$1,625,543
$2,050,000
$0
$0
$2,200,000
FY11 ACTUALS
$2,003,757
$2,252,615
$107,049
$0
$1,722,618
FY12
$2,200,000
$2,280,000
$100,000
$0
$2,200,000
FY13
$2,400,000
$2,700,000
$197,000
$800,000
$2,500,000
FY14
$2,450,000
$3,306,550
$210,000
$900,000
$3,000,000
Total Unrestricted Revenues $5,875,543 $6,086,039 $6,780,000 $8,597,000
FY11 FY11 Actuals FY12 FY13
Grants & Programs
African American Experience Fund
American Latino Heritage Fund
$9,866,550
FY14
Total Restricted Revenues
P a g e | 2 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
The strategy for the National Park Foundation’s fundraising effort will be to continue to steward current and past donors while simultaneously appealing to a broad cross-section of the U.S. population that embrace our National Parks. The majority of our effort will be to:
 strengthen existing donor relationships;
 elevate current donors to the next gift level; and
 increase the number of donors in each of our donor categories (individual, foundation, and corporate) and gift levels.
The Foundation has an active direct mail program in place. Over the last three years a concerted effort has been made to show incremental growth of the Foundation’s house file (i.e. active donors in the database). The direct mail program has traditionally brought in high potential donors that can grow into more substantial supporters to the Foundation. Our goal over the next three years will be to aggressively grow our donor base through targeted direct mail campaign so that by FY16 we will have an active house file of more than 90,000 individual donors. In addition, we will continue to improve our ability to retain and upgrade donors within the file.
For donors giving at the $1,000+ level, the preferred method of asking for gifts will be on a personal basis. It should be understood that on occasion several personal cultivation meetings may be required to secure an acceptable gift.
P a g e | 3 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
MAJOR GIFT PROGRAM – STEWARDSHIP CIRCLE
D OUBLE R EVENUE G ROWTH BY FY14 (Over a 3 year period)
There are two main objectives for the major gift program:
1.
Increase donor engagement a.
Visits: FY12=225; FY13=250; FY14=300 b.
Trips: Day Hikes (8 over next 3 years); Expedition (1 per year) c.
Staff relationships
2.
Identification and movement of donors up the giving ladder a.
Establishment of new $2,500 level b.
“Moves” Management process c.
Renewal strategy
O VERVIEW OF THE R EVENUE :
Category FY11 FY12 FY13 FY14
Pioneer Society $ 343,000 $ 358,000 $ 380,000 $ 396,000
Wilson Society $ 62,500 $ 235,000* $ 285,000 $ 337,500
Roosevelt Society $ 150,000 $ 175,000 $ 210,000 $ 270,000
Rockefeller Society $ 90,000 $ 110,000 $ 140,000 $ 200,000
Century Society $ 175,000 $ 225,000 $ 300,000 $ 450,000
Total Revenue $ 820,500 $ 1,103,000 $ 1,315,000 $ 1,653,500
*This amount represents 25 current Wilson Society members plus 20% of the FY11 Pioneer Society members that will be elevated to this new gift category.
O VERVIEW OF D ONOR N UMBERS :
Category
Pioneer Society*
Wilson Society^
Roosevelt Society
FY11
343
25
30
FY12
358
94
35
FY13
380
114
42
FY14
396
135
54
Rockefeller Society
Century Society
9
7
11
9
14
12
20
18
Total # of SC Donors 414 507 562 623
*suggests a 18% increase from $500 level donors (or 84 individuals)
^suggests a 20% (or 69) of pioneer members will be upgraded to this new level
P a g e | 4 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
S TRATEGIES FOR B UILDING THE S TEWARDSHIP C IRCLE
1.
Upgrade 20% donors to Stewardship Circle from Trailblazer level ($500) via one time gifts or through monthly (sustainer) giving. a.
Increased focus from direct mail b.
Use Board member matching challenge grant as incentive for upgrade c.
Upgrade phone calls to $500 donors d.
Personal visits supplementing major donor trips
2.
Eight targeted day hikes – goal to upgrade 25% of attendees
3.
Five hosted events/house parties a.
Upgrade 25% of current donor attendees b.
Generate a minimum of 10 new Stewardship Circle donors per event
4.
NPF Gala a.
Secure additional gift from current donors / upgrade b.
Generate new Stewardship Circle members through marketing outreach and onsite appeal during event program
U PGRADE S TRATEGY D ETAIL
The Foundation’s major gift program is entitled, Stewardship Circle, and begins at the $1,000 gift level.
This gift can be given in one lump sum or in multiple gifts during the fiscal year. An upgrade strategy for
Stewardship Circle donors will be done on a yearly cycle on the anniversary of their last gift date as part of our ongoing effort to brand the Annual Fund concept with our existing donors. Monthly renewal reports will be generated three months prior to the individual’s anniversary date. An initial renewal letter will be sent three months prior to the anniversary date with a personal note from the appropriate staff member. As appropriate, a strong message will be contained within the letter to inspire the individual to increase their gift at a minimum of 25%. However, if the staff has reason to believe the donor has the capacity and possible inclination to give at the next highest giving level that is the request that will be made in the renewal letter. If the donor does not respond to the first solicitation, a second letter will be sent two months prior to their gift anniversary date. A third renewal will be sent a month prior to their anniversary date. If we have not received the renewal/upgrade 30 days prior to their anniversary date, staff will reach out to the donor via phone call or email. When possible, a personal visit may be conducted with the donor anytime during the renewal process to attempt to encourage an upgraded gift. If a donor reaches their anniversary date without sending in a gift, they will be marked as a “lapsed donor” in the database. The table below indicates the number of donors that will be upgraded/renewed in FY12 on a monthly basis. (Note: the figures below do not reflect board member
gifts.)
Stewardship Circle Upgrade/Renewal Schedule
Pioneer Society
Roosevelt Society
Rockefeller Society
Century Society
Oct '11
12
2
2
Nov '11 Dec '11 Jan '12 Feb '12 Mar '12 Apr '12 May '12 Jun '12 July '12 Aug '12 Sept '12
28 153 12 19 20 37 31 22 12 15 7
4 15
3
1
1
1 1
1
2 2
1 1
2
3 3 1
Currently, there are 414 individuals that participate in NPF’s Stewardship Circle program, representing a little more than $800,000 in unrestricted revenue for the Foundation. NPF’s Stewardship Circle has had relatively flat growth over the last two years. In recent history, NPF has relied too heavily on the direct
P a g e | 5 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks mail program to upgrade/renew Stewardship Circle members and had not stewarded these donors well through personal outreach. Moving forward, NPF will focus strategically on growing from within by elevating our current donors to the next respective gift level using personal solicitation.
In general, donors giving below that $1,000 level tend to be very direct mail responsive. Therefore, our
Direct Mail program will play a key role in upgrading our $500 donors to the $1,000 point of entry of the
Stewardship Circle member category.
NPF has received feedback from supporters that moving from the Pioneer Society ($1,000) to the
Roosevelt Society ($5,000) is too big of a transition. Therefore, we have created a new gift category at the $2,500, the Wilson Society, named for President Woodrow Wilson who established the National
Park Service as a part of the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1916.
Our goal for the three year period, between FY12-FY14, will be to grow each category in incremental stages each fiscal year to ensure a significant increase in unrestricted revenue over the three year period.
Moves Management Approach
As part of the overall Individual Gifts Program, we will be implementing a Moves Management System as a tool to help identify, validate and move upgrade prospects into a cultivation phase and a subsequent solicitation stage. The “moves” management system will coordinate and track the following phases:

Gather the names of all current Stewardship Circle members;

Distinguish between “suspects” and viable upgrade prospects;

Conduct donor research and rate upgrade prospects (i.e. assessing their ability and willingness to increase their giving);

Develop individualized upgrade strategies to cultivate prospects;

Solicit upgrade prospects; and

Conduct follow-up by acknowledging, recognizing, and stewarding donors through the next donation request stage.
Through an annual multi-touch “moves” management program, the Foundation should be able to ultimately surface true major donor upgrade prospects. We will do this through a series of phone calls, emails and personal visits.
D ONOR /N EW P ROSPECT E NGAGEMENT S TRATEGIES
Personal Visits
NPF hears consistently that our most significant donors do not have enough personal connections with the key staff. Therefore, a key element of the plan will consist of face-to-face visits and solicitations.
Four NPF staff members will be responsible for carrying individual donor portfolios. These individuals will consist of the President, the SVP of Development, the VP of Individual Giving and the Director of
Major Gifts. It is anticipated that 225 face-to-face individual donor visits will be conducted in FY12, 250 visits in FY13, and 300 visits in FY14. These visits will take place in areas with the largest concentration of NPF major gift donors. Key areas include:
P a g e | 6 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks

California

Texas

New York

Chicago

Boston

District of Columbia and surrounding Metro area

Washington State

Portland Oregon
Hosted Events in Targeted Cities
We will use this tactic as an opportunity to engage Board members with the fundraising effort particularly the need to grow our donor base with “new” high net worth prospects and donors. Board members will be asked to populate these events with potential major gift prospects that exist in their personal and business networks. We will create a standard presentation, or “road show” that focuses on the following:

Mission of NPF and our partnership with NPS;

History of the organization;

Vision and direction for the overall organization;

How their direct support can impact the parks and their future vitality by providing specific examples.
Our goal will be to implement up to 5 hosted events in targeted cities such as Boston, Chicago, Los
Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Dallas, and Houston. Each event will have an invited speaker, preferably an NPS ranger, from a national park to discuss some of the threats/issues facing the parks and how a grant from NPF helped open a new opportunity.
The goal for each of these hosted events will be to invite 10 new donors and raise a minimum of
$20,000 per event (or $100,000 per year from hosted events).
Regional Day Hikes for Donors
The purpose of the day hikes is to provide an easy way to get our donors in the parks. They are intended as both a cultivation tool for current donors and a way to gauge interest and capacity for increased giving. Initially, the hikes will be within an easy drive of a major metropolitan area and provided at no cost. The hike will be presented as a “thank you” for past support. All donors will be formally solicited to support NPF at the Stewardship Circle level or upgrade to the next level if they are already a member.
The hike will consist of a welcome from the park superintendent and a ranger led interpretive hike and thank you from the National Park Foundation.
August 20, 2011 Mount Rainer National Park (Seattle and Portland)
August 29, 2011
October 2011
November 2011
January 2012
February 2012
Grand Teton National Park (Jackson, WY)
Muir Woods (San Francisco Bay area)
Governors Island or other NYC site (New York City)
Joshua Tree National Park/Death Valley (Los Angeles area)
Everglades (Miami)
P a g e | 7 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
May 2012
June 2012
Shenandoah National Park (DC)
Rocky Mountain (Denver)
Partnering with the Parks
Our greatest assets are the parks and the rangers that protect them. NPF members respect them as experts on all aspects of the parks and, in fact, they are our best fundraisers as they have significant contact with prospective NPF donors. In an effort to capitalize on this goodwill, NPF will work with the
NPS to create a membership brochure that will be distributed in every visitor center and park entrance gate across the national park system. By distributing these brochures NPF will not only see an increased number of general members but it will also give us a new pool of donors to possibly cultivate into new
Stewardship Circle members. In FY12 we will pilot this initiative in 3 parks.
Taking this idea one step further, NPF will develop deeper relationships with some of the largest concessionaire companies that service the national park system (such as Xanterra, Delaware North and
Aramark) so they will actively distribute an NPF membership information in their facilities.
NPF Expeditions
Our Expeditions offer members a “behind the scenes” trip to a national park, giving our donors access and experiences not available to the average visitor. The purpose of NPF Expedition trips is twofold: first, they are excellent tools to steward major gift donors and give them the opportunity to see the impact of their donations; and second, they are an excellent mechanism to help identify lower level supporters that have the capacity and inclination to give much more. The trips will provide unique experiences that are difficult, if not impossible to do so without the National Park Foundation. Each trip will require a long lead-time to market and should be announced at least a year in advance. Century
Society members will be given the right of first refusal, however trips will be marketed to the full
Stewardship Circle and other prospects. The anticipated Expedition schedule is as follows:
Summer 2012
Summer 2013
Fall 2014
Summer 2015
Katmai National Park
Yosemite and the High Sierra Camps
Glacier National Park
Rafting the Colorado River through Grand Canyon
P LANNED G IVING
Each year the Foundation will continue to market the National Park Legacy Society through targeted stewardship and correspondence with long-term donors. Two mailings are scheduled to take place in FY
12 – both mailings will inform donors of the opportunity to make estate gifts to the Foundation. In addition, current members of the Legacy Society will be highlighted in the newsletter and will share their stories as to why they felt it necessary to include the Foundation in their estate planning. A planned giving piece will also be included in donor acknowledgement letters – educating donors about how they can increase their support to the Foundation. In addition to targeted mailings, we will begin discussions with NPS to elevate planned giving opportunities through their channels, such as:

The distribution of an NPF Planned Giving Brochure with the purchase of a Golden Age Pass;

An article in “Arrowhead” written by Director Jarvis highlighting the importance of legacy gifts to the parks and information on how to make a planned gift to the Foundation;
P a g e | 8 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks

NPF staff conducted information sessions at NPS Fundamentals Training to educate Park Service employees on how to be ambassadors of the planned giving program; and

Featured articles in park newsletters highlighting opportunities and examples of how donor planned gifts have aided the parks.
P a g e | 9 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
DIRECT MAIL PROGRAM
Our overall goal with the direct mail plan for FY12 through FY16 is to implement an aggressive high volume acquisition scenario in which the number of active donors grows from a little more than 28,000 in FY11 to more than 92,000 in FY16. We will make a significant investment in acquisition mailings.
DIRECT MAIL PLAN IS BEING DEVELOPED
**********
P a g e | 10 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
CORPORATE & FOUNDATION FUNDRAISING PROGRAM
The Foundation’s Corporate Partner Program continues to evolve as we increase our outreach to potential partners, streamline our program offerings and work ever more closely with NPS to establish partner guidelines to maximize partner opportunities while meeting NPS’s needs.
Our outreach to corporations involves contacting multiple departments within various organizations to marry NPF offerings with the corporation’s objectives. A snapshot of NPF Offerings as they related to the various Corporate Objectives follows.
Corporate Objectives
NPF Offerings
Our goal is to continue to reach out to as many corporations and departments within the various corporations as possible to inform them about the related NPF opportunities in the framework of the current environment.
P ARTNERSHIP C RITERIA
While no two partnerships are the same, the criteria for finalizing a Corporate Partnership must be defined and will include mission alignment of the corporation, its ability to advance NPF’s mission and messaging, overall net benefits to NPF such as:

Financial benefit
P a g e | 11 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks

Brand benefit

Audience exposure

Long-term Partner potential

Opportunity to include Friends organizations

Impact of staff time & resources

Reputation of Partner

Partner’s willingness to commit staff and resources to partnership promotion
C ORPORATE T RENDS
Current trends in corporate fundraising will also shape our outreach to corporations and ultimate effectiveness:

Giving Flat. 74 of 107 corporations surveyed recently by the Chronicle of Philanthropy said they expect their giving to remain unchanged for 2011.

Comprehensive/High Impact Solutions. Companies are looking for comprehensive and high impact solutions to critical concerns.

Integrated Approaches. Companies are looking beyond "checkbook philanthropy" and want to find a true partner that can engage their employees, can make a difference in the communities they care about and have broad support. They are looking for multi-platform, integrated approaches that allow them to demonstrate their capabilities to their target audience.

Interdepartmental Alignment. Corporate marketing, HR, corporate giving, public affairs departments and foundations are working more closely together to generate activity that aligns across all areas of the organization.
The more we are able to offer comprehensive, high impact, integrated solutions that provide an opportunity for corporations to demonstrate their capabilities in a targeted fashion, the more successful we will be.
T ACTICS
We will employ a variety of tactics to reach our revenue goals.

Account Lists. We have put together a list of approximately 500 corporate targets and divided them between the VP/Corporate Partnerships and the Director/Corporate Partnerships. To date, they have collectively submitted proposals to over 100 of these companies and will continue to reach out, giving priority to projects based on timing and revenue opportunity.

Programs. As we near the end of our strategic planning process, we will continue to work with the appropriate people at NPF and NPS to help develop programs that will both support NPS and attract potential corporate partners.

NPS Partnership. In order to deliver the solutions corporations are seeking, we will need to continue to work closely and cooperatively with NPS.

Corporate Recognition. We have developed a Corporate Recognition program but we are always looking for more ways to enhance the benefits for corporate partners. At the February board meeting, it was suggested that NPS provide a list of ways that corporations can be recognized in the parks. We look forward to resuming that conversation so we can adjust our program accordingly.
P a g e | 12 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks

Corporate Partnership Meeting. We will kick off our first annual Corporate Partnership Meeting on November 1, 2011, the day before the Park Summit. The goal of this annual meeting will be to: o Re-engage existing partners and create a renewed enthusiasm for national parks and
NPF. o Provide a platform for partners to connect with each other. o Gain an understanding of our partners’ needs and how we can better serve them.

Other Events. We will continue to leverage the National Christmas Tree Lighting and other events such as NPF Hikes as opportunities to entertain current and potential partners.

Conferences. While many of the industry conferences do not facilitate networking with corporate partners, we managed to make some good contacts at the IEG Sponsorship and Cause
Marketing Forum conferences this year so we plan to not only continue to attend those conferences but look for opportunities to speak at these events in the future. Additionally, we will attend the Outdoor Retailer show in the summer each year.

Communication. We will work with the NPF Marketing team to communicate NPF’s corporate partnership opportunities via the new website and corporate marketing materials.
C ORPORATE A DVISORY C OUNCIL
As part of the ongoing corporate fundraising efforts, development of a high level Corporate Advisory
Council will be initiated in FY12 and evolve in following years. This targeted strategy will be focused on developing relations with high-level executives at specific corporations. Specific elements for the
Council will include:

CEO/Executive level representation from the Corporate Partner

Meet at least once a year to discuss major issues facing the National Park Service and NPF’s action plan for confronting these issues, the Secretary’s priorities, and Partner’s opportunity to add input;

This group may be tasked with taking on a particular issue/challenge that NPS is facing in an effort to gain insight from captains of industry while developing a strong strategic solution; and

As part of the overall interaction with the Council, NPF will create and maintain a “road show” to discuss relevance issues in the environmental/conservation community and the Park Service, and define why the Public/Private Partnership is of value to the effort.
F OUNDATION F UNDRAISING
Most foundations prefer to fund a particular project or program and require in depth proposals, evaluation, and reporting. NPF has had limited success with private foundations. At present, NPF has three or four foundations that have consistently given grants over $25,000. To be successful in this area of fundraising, the Board must play an integral role in the introduction and stewardship of key contacts at the targeted foundation. We will work to leverage Board personal and professional contacts/relationships that could be advantageous to our overall fundraising plan. We are in the process of developing a list of foundation prospects whose funding priorities and criteria align with the mission, goals and vision of NPF.
P a g e | 13 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
AWARDS GALA
Today, there are nearly 400 US national parks that represent some of our country’s most treasured places. The Foundation’s proposed Awards Gala will continue this rich tradition of citizen involvement as the premier national fundraising event for our national parks. The Gala will be designed to celebrate the grandeur of America’s national parks along with the Foundation’s role in their continued preservation, while honoring the individuals and companies that make this work possible. Initial planning for the Gala has begun and the event will take place in FY13 in the month of October 2012.
IGHLIGHTED
ONORS FOR THE
WARDS
ALA
To demonstrate NPF’s partnership with NPS and to also honor the good work of our corporate community, we will include the following awards in our celebration:
Theodore Roosevelt National Park Medal of Honor
As part of this celebration the Foundation will re-establish and re-introduce the Theodore
Roosevelt National Park Medal of Honor. Established in 1995, the Medal was meant to honor and recognize an outstanding private citizen for his/her deep personal commitment to the preservation of America’s national parks for now and the future. The Medal of Honor is presented by the President of the United States and/or the Secretary of Interior in a private ceremony at the White House. The Foundation has awarded the Theodore Roosevelt National
Park Medal of Honor only two times in its history; in 1995 to Laurance S. Rockefeller and in 2000 to Lady Bird Johnson.
The Medal of Honor recipient will have demonstrated the following:

A long-term personal commitment to the preservation and well-being of America’s greatest treasures, the National Parks.

Significant, on-going impact on the National Parks with tangible and intangible benefits
(i.e. environmental preservation, conservation initiatives, educational outreach, etc.).

A true understanding and belief in National Park values, the National Park Service’s mission, and the National Park Foundation’s overall mission and vision.
Corporate Stewardship Award
Corporate citizens are important catalysts in helping to raise awareness and inspire the preservation and protection of our magnificent national parks. This award will be given to a corporation that is truly committed to the environment, conservation efforts, and enhancing our national parks. In addition, prospective companies will also use environmental innovation and sustainable practices in everyday business activities. In previous years, the Foundation has celebrated the following companies: Unilever (2006) and Discovery (2008).
Harry Yount Park Ranger Award (National)
The intent of the Harry Yount Award is to honor rangers who have consistently gone out every day and performed the traditional, generalist ranger duties of protecting the resources and serving the visitor; and, who has done it well in the eyes of their peers over time. The award was initiated in the Midwest Region in 1992 and became Service wide in 1994. The Award consists of a national and regional nomination and selection process. Eligibility for the Yount
Award is extended to any current National Park Service employee whose position requires a
P a g e | 14 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks variety of traditional ranger duties including: resources management, interpretation, resource and visitor protection and service, or the direct supervision of these duties. The award is not officially limited to law enforcement personnel, although this is frequently the case. All seven regions select their individual regional award winners. A committee composed of 21 current and former NPS employees then evaluates and ranks the regional winners, nominating one of the seven for the national Yount Award. The NPS Associate Director for Visitor and Resource
Protection has the authority to approve the national award recipient.
The George and Helen Hartzog Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service
George B. Hartzog, Jr., served as the director of the National Park Service from 1964 to 1972 and created the Volunteers-In-Parks (VIP) Program in 1970. In retirement, he and his wife established a fund to support the program and honor the efforts of volunteers. The awards were started in 2002 to recognize the time, talent, innovation, and hard work contributed to national parks through the VIP Program. In 2009, our parks had 196,000 volunteers spend 5.9 million hours assisting the National Park Service. There are five Hartzog awards: The Hartzog
Individual Volunteer Award; The Hartzog Youth Volunteer Award; The Hartzog Enduring Service
Award; The Hartzog Volunteer Group Award; and The Hartzog Park Volunteer Program Award.
While all five awards will be celebrated, one will be highlighted during the Awards Gala each year.
Awards Gala Host Committee
The Awards Gala Host Committee is comprised of both Board members and non-Board members who are committed to the National Park Foundation and are willing to lend their resources and time toward ensuring the event’s success by raising support for the Foundation’s Awards Gala.
To carry out his or her role, each Committee member is asked to:

Participate in all Gala Host Committee meetings and conference calls.

Help sell sponsorship packages that ensure budget goal.

Purchase a sponsorship package/ticket to the Gala.

Raise support from others--by “opening doors” to prospective sponsors or contacting and meeting personally with prospective sponsors -- while partnering with staff and other committee members.

Work with staff to plan the event.
As part of the Host Committee, the Foundation will secure several elected officials to serve as
Honorary Host Committee members. These individuals will serve as Ambassadors to the
Foundation’s Awards Gala by lending their prestige and name to the Committee. Some of their responsibilities include:

Agree to allow use of their names in all relevant Awards Gala materials and at the event.

Agree to endorse the Foundation by signing their name to a targeted letter that works to raise awareness for the National Park Foundation and the upcoming Awards Gala.
P a g e | 15 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
P ROPOSED FY13 G ALA P ROJECTIONS
SALES TARGETS
Sponsorship cost at this level
Number of
Sponsors at this level needed to meet fundraising goal INCOME
Table/Ticket Sales
National Park Trailblazer
National Park Explorer
National Park Pioneer
National Park Adventurer
National Park Naturalist
National Park Supporter
National Park Patron (only NPS &
DOI)*
Subtotal
Auction
Items/Trips
Subtotal
Other
Contributions
$100,000
$50,000
$25,000
$10,000
$1,750
$500
$150
$16,000
0
0
4
8
25
14
45
30
43 tables
6
0
Total Gross Income
Seats Sold at this
Level
0
40
80
250
14
45
30
429
0
0
* limited seats at this level
EXPENSE PROJECTIONS
CATEGORY
Catering**
Catering markup (22%)
Catering additional (bartenders, coatcheck, etc)
Printing
Mailing
PR
Production
Auction
Other
Subtotal
Total Projected Expenses
** Based on 464 meals at $135 (total of 50 tables)
TOTAL NET REVENUE
Total
$62,640
$13,781
$10,000
$50,000
$12,000
$4,000
$170,000
$50,000
$25,000
$397,421
$397,421
$400,079
Total
$0
$200,000
$200,000
$250,000
$24,500
$22,500
$4,500
$701,500
$96,000
$96,000
0
$797,500
P a g e | 16 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
MAGAZINE CONCEPT
The National Park Foundation published four editions of Parks magazine over a period of about 3 years.
The 52-page magazines were beautifully produced by Time Inc. Content Solutions with oversight by NPF
Marketing and a print run of roughly 100-150K. The magazine was intended to lure corporate partners.
In addition, donors who contributed $35 or more were told they would receive a complimentary copy of the magazine. Unfortunately, there was not enough advertising sold to cover the cost of producing the magazines. The cost to the Foundation to produce this publication was $340,000-$400,000 per edition.
The magazine was discontinued after the 4 th edition because it was a significant expense which NPF was not able to recoup.
We propose resurrecting Parks magazine under a revised distribution, production, content, product and business model.

Distribution. We propose a model where paid distribution through retail – both in-park bookstores/gift shops and through the newsstand - is the primary distribution channel. National
Publisher Services, LLC can manage the printing and distribution process for us.

Production. We can contract with independent freelance designers, writers and editors to produce the magazine for a fraction of the cost that we were charged by Time Inc. Content
Solutions.

Content/Product. In order to distribute on the newsstand, we would need to beef up the content from 52 to 100 pages. We envision using the original Parks editorial plan as the framework, expanding those features and adding Backpacker-type content related to the parks.
Additionally, we would need to adjust the trim size to manage costs and fit better on the newsstand.

Business model. We propose forming a joint venture with National Publisher Services where we share the costs and revenue on a 50%-50% basis.
NPF will manage the production of the magazine and advertising sales while National Publisher Services will manage printing and distribution. Under a joint venture agreement, NPF and National Publisher
Services will share all costs and revenue on a 50-50% basis (excluding the donor copies which will be an expense passed to NPF’s Individual Giving department, legal fees, and existing staff time).
We can produce a much more inexpensive product by hiring a freelance designer, editor and writers.
Additionally, we can cull most of the content from “internal” sources (NPS, parks, user-generated content, etc.) for free. The Editor will be responsible for pulling together all the content for the magazine and editing the final version. The Designer will be responsible for importing the content gathered by the editor and designing the magazine according to spec. While we think we can produce most of the magazine using content from “internal” sources, we have included a budget for content acquisition (licensed content, freelance writers, photos, etc.) as well.
Per issue production budget
Designer
Editor
$10,000
$10,000
Content/Photos
TOTAL
$20,000
$40,000
P a g e | 17 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
A few different scenarios have been outlined in the attached pro forma and are summarized here:
Joint Venture Summary "Break Even" 100K in Parks + Ads
Total print run 129,000 201,000
200K in Parks +
Ads
301,000
Newsstand copies/issue 50,000 50,000 50,000
Park store copies/issue
Online copies
28,000
1,000
100,000
1,000
200,000
1,000
Donor copies/issue
Ad pages/issue
Sell thru
Net Revenue/yr.
NPF Share/yr.
50,000
0
15%
$8,904
$4,452
50,000
10
15%
$738,672
$369,336
50,000
10
15%
$1,573,072
$786,536
Additional NPF costs (not shared)
1x legal fees (contract)
Existing NFP staff time*
Taxes**
Total Additional NPF costs
$1,000
TBD
TBD
$1,000
$0
TBD
TBD
$0
$0
TBD
TBD
$0
Net Magazine Profit to NPF $3,452 $369,336 $786,536
At present, the Development Team is working with the NPS Partnership office to determine the viability of launching the magazine as the official magazine of the parks. We are surveying the concessionaires and the cooperating associations to determine their interest in carrying the magazine provided it is the official magazine of the parks. We are continuing the due diligence stage but anticipate that a possible launch would take place in late FY12 or early FY13.
P a g e | 18 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
The Development Committee is the fundraising team for the National Park Foundation. Supported and coordinated by the professional leadership and staff at the Foundation. The Committee’s charge is to raise the revenue funds as outlined in the Foundation’s budget.
The Committee is comprised of both Board members and non-Board members who are committed to the National Park Foundation; are willing to lend their reputations, resources and time toward its success; and are positioned to support and raise support for the Foundation’s programs and projects.
To carry out his or her role, each Committee member is asked to:

Be an informed and vocal advocate for the National Park Foundation.

Participate in all Committee meetings and conference calls.

Advise on fundraising strategy, tactics and prospective sources of support.

Make a personal annual gift to the Foundation (in the first quarter of the fiscal year).

Assist with prospect review and evaluation and to identify key prospects, and to provide entrée to them.

Raise support from others--by “opening doors” to prospective donors or contacting and meeting personally with prospective donors -- while partnering with staff and other committee members.

Work with staff to plan and develop solicitation strategies for prospects.
The National Park Foundation Board of Directors, under whose authority and leadership the success of the Foundation ultimately rests, must take an active role in the fundraising effort. Some of the responsibilities of the Board during the year include the following:

Making early personal gifts to the Foundation fully commensurate with their means and interest
(Board members will be asked to complete a pledge commitment within the first two months of the fiscal year).

Board members will be asked during the year to accept responsibility for a reasonable number of high-level solicitations.

Each Board member will have a fundraising work plan with specific tasks and goals for fiscal year.

Some Board members will also be asked to assist with prospect review and evaluation and to identify key prospects and, if necessary, to provide entrée to them.

Throughout the year, the Board will receive updates on fundraising progress and activity through reports from the Development Committee.

Some board members will be asked to participate in and host events for the Foundation.

The board will need to participate in a board orientation and training for fundraising purposes.
P a g e | 19 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
Members of the Honorary Congressional Committee serve as Ambassadors to the Foundation and reinforce the Foundation’s mission and vision by lending their prestige and name to the
Committee. Some of their responsibilities include:

Agree to allow use of their names in all relevant Foundation materials and at all appropriate Foundation events.

Agree to endorse the Foundation by signing their name to a targeted letter that works to raise awareness for the National Park Foundation.
Please note: Mindful that Development Committee Members, Board Members, and Honorary
Congressional Members, will be individuals with other personal, professional, and community responsibilities, every effort will be made to utilize each person’s time in a targeted and efficient manner. Each leader will have the full support and back-up of the development staff.
The National Park Foundation development staff will be the strategic coordinators of the overall fundraising effort. Staff members will participate in the following ways:

As assigned, work closely with Volunteers to plan and implement the overall components of each of their respective work plans

Help identify and cultivate prospects including individuals, foundations and corporations

Educate Volunteer leadership of the development activities and goals

Provide support, whenever necessary, to Volunteers

Participate in high-level solicitations

Assist in on-going cultivation efforts

Ensure that all donors are appropriately acknowledged for gifts and pledges

Keep fellow members of the staff informed as to any activities involving VIP prospects.

Maintain and implement gift recognition program and make recommendations regarding appropriate recognition enhancements

Present recommendations regarding the ongoing stewardship of donors

Produce monthly developing progress reports outlining status to goal
P a g e | 20 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
Staffing Additions & Proposed Timing
STAFF TITLE RESPONSIBILITIES PROPOSED
START
FY12 Development
Coordinator/Researcher
Coordinates development team activities as they relate to donor visits, partner meetings, donor research, coordination of plan elements – functions much like a traffic controller
Development Assistant Helps coordinate activities with the
Development Coordinator and the team
Corporate Account
Manager
Major Gift Officer
Manages relationship and activation activities of corporate partners
Manages relationships with high net- worth individual donors and prospects
Mid-FY12
FY13
FY13
Chief Fundraiser and NPF Spokesperson:
President & CEO – Operates as the organization’s national spokesperson and is also the lead fundraiser.
As President & CEO of a national 501c3 non-profit organization, a minimum of 75% of his time should be spent engaged in active fundraising in coordination & collaboration with the Development department – including cultivation, stewardship, and solicitations. In most cases a member of the Development team will coordinate the meetings and attend as appropriate.
Frontline Fundraisers:
SVP, Development – responsible for the overall strategy and implementation of the development plan – ensuring year-to-year revenue growth. Sets the priorities for the team and plays a leadership role in all fundraising activities.
VP, Individual Giving – Oversees all aspects of individual giving: donor cultivation, stewardship, solicitations. Manages Director of Major gifts and Manager of Donor Relations.
VP, Corporate Partnerships – Oversees corporate partnerships. Responsible for deepening current partnerships and growing opportunities with new partners. Manages director of corporate partnerships.
Director of Major Gifts – Directs major gift program. Responsible for managing extensive portfolio of major gift donors and works with development team to set moves management strategies for entire major gift program.
Director of Corporate Partnerships – Oversees current corporate partnerships and works closely with
VP, Corporate Partnerships to identify opportunities to bring in new corporate partners.
P a g e | 21 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
Director of Foundation Relations – Oversees foundation relationships. Responsible for building relationships with Foundation partners, submitting grant proposals and reports. Works closely with the
Grants and Programs team to provide written information about NPF program offering for the entire development team.
Back-office Team:
Donor Relations Manager – Manages donor stewardship for the development team including acknowledgments and donor benefits. In coordination with the Vice President, Individual Giving manages day to day direct mail program and supports major gift solicitation.
Manager, Database – Manages Raiser’s Edge database, ensures database integrity, works closely with direct mail program to build queries and provide reporting. Provides regular support for development reporting and constituent relationship management processes.
Coordinator, Donor Relations – Enters all gifts into Raiser’s Edge database, regularly updates donor records, processes matching and tribute gifts, provides general support for all frontline fundraisers.
P a g e | 22 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
The Development team will be working more closely with the Communications & Marketing team to develop marketing materials and tools that will be utilized during donor cultivation & solicitation meetings, fundraising events, prospect outreach and constituent engagement.
Special Events:
EVENT/FUNCTION EVENT DATE NEEDED MATERIALS
Regional Day Hikes
Mt Rainer
Grand Teton
Muir Woods
Governors Island
Joshua Tree
Everglades
Hosted Events
Shenandoah
Rocky Mtn
Boston
California
Chicago
New York
Texas
Expeditions
Acadia
Katmai
Yosemite
Glacier
Grand Canyon
Yount/Hartzog Awards
Luncheon
NPF Awards Gala
FY13
FY14
8/20/2011
8/29/2011
10/2011
11/2011
01/2012
02/2012
05/2012
06/2012
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
09/21/2011
Summer 2012
Summer 2013
Fall 2014
Summer 2015
10/26/2011
Fall 2012
(September/October)
TBD
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Promo Flier
Invites/Programs
Invites/Programs
Invites/Programs
Invites/Programs
Invites/Programs
Promo flier/invites/welcome packet/itinerary
Promo flier/invites/welcome packet/itinerary
Promo flier/invites/welcome packet/itinerary
Promo flier/invites/welcome packet/itinerary
Promo flier/invites/welcome packet/itinerary
Invites/Program
Invites/Program/Signage
Invites/Program/Signage
P a g e | 23 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
Online Appeal Activity:
FUNCTION TARGET DATE NEEDED MATERIALS
Year-end Email Appeals
Email Flight 1
Email Flight 2
11/2011
11/2011
Email Flight 3
Email Flight 4
Email Flight 5
Email Flight 6
Email Flight 7
Email Flight 8
Stewardship Circle Newsletter
Issue 1
Issue 2
Issue 3
Issue 4
Spring Email Appeal s
Email Flight 1
Email Flight 2
Email Flight 3
Email Flight 4
Web site
Corporate pages
Corporate Activation Activity:
Donor pages Fall/Winter
2011
FUNCTION TARGET DATE
11/2011
12/2011
12/2011
12/2011
12/2011
12/2011
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
03/2012
04/2012
04/2012
04/2012
Fall 2011
Thanksgiving Template
Thanksgiving Template repush
Holiday Template
Holiday Template
Holiday Template
Holiday Template
New Years Template
New Years Template
Template
Template
Template
Template
Template
Template
Template
Template
Update look and feel
Update look and feel
NEEDED MATERIALS
Corporate campaign
Activation
FaceBook
Twitter ongoing ongoing
Messaging tied to campaign
Messaging tied to campaign
Special requirements ongoing Development of product, i.e. top ten lists, special hike guides, etc.
Slider updates/messaging Web site ongoing
In addition to these defined marketing elements, we will begin developing the concept for two specific brochures, one for planned giving and one for an overall membership/informational brochure about the
Foundation.
P a g e | 24 The National Park Foundation

3-year view
The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
P a g e | 25 The National Park Foundation

The Official Charity of America’s National Parks
National Park Foundation
1201 Eye Street, NW, Suite 550B
Washington, DC 20005
Karen R. Davis
SVP, Development
Phone: 202-354-1802
Mobile: 703-447-4756
Email: kdavis@nationalparks.org
Lauren Harnishfeger
VP, Development
Phone: 202-354-6472
Mobile: 703-625-8886
Email: lharnishfeger@nationalparks.org
Christy Hartsell
VP, Corporate Partnerships
Phone: 202-354-6492
Email: chartsell@nationalparks.org
Anika Davis
Director, Corporate Partnerships
Phone: 202-354-6477
Email: adavis@nationalparks.org
Matthew Boyer
Director, Major Gifts
Phone: 202-354-6468
Email: mboyer@nationalparks.org
Diane Carillo
Director, Foundation Relations
Phone: 202-354-6498
Email: dcarillo@nationalparks.org
Karen Nagel
Manager, Donor Relations
Phone: 202-354-6470
Email: knagel@nationalparks.org
Erica Simms
Manager, Database
Phone: 202-354-6484
Email: esimms@nationalparks.org
Jennifer Romero
Coordinator, Donor Relations
Phone: 202-354-6461
Email: jromero@nationalparks.org
P a g e | 26 The National Park Foundation