The tsunami disaster showed the world how generous people can be and how much more they are willing to give. As the money flowed in, news reports were full of stories about how nonprofits feared the money going to tsunami relief efforts would decrease donations elsewhere. This week we talk to the Louisville Area Chapter of the American Red Cross about this issue and about how they have used the Benevon Model to integrate tsunami donors into their regular fundraising efforts.

In our next issue, we will interview the American Refugee Committee International, based in Minneapolis, whose phones haven't stopped ringing since the tsunami hit.

Just days before the tsunami hit, the Louisville Area Chapter of the American Red Cross initiated a direct mail campaign for its local operations. When the money came back, much of it was earmarked for tsunami relief, says Logan McCulloch, the chief development officer for the chapter. "It does present a challenge at the local level," he said.

McCulloch said he doesn't believe there is less money for other nonprofits, but he is a little concerned about donor fatigue.

"It's not that donors have run out of money, but they get worn out," he said. "The tsunami could lead to some whipsaw effect for donors to be less receptive to other appeals. But the flip side is that the tsunami could raise the consciousness level of philanthropy in general."

McCulloch said the disaster is proving why nonprofits now more than ever need to personally connect with donors.

"The donor population is very attentive to philanthropy because of the tsunami. It's time for nonprofits to say, 'Here's why we are relevant and here's what we are doing every day.' If you build that relationship, it will weather all types of storms—tsunamis or tornados."

McCulloch said the American Red Cross is well-known for two things—blood and disaster. Responding to high-profile disasters is what they've been doing since the late 1800s. In 1900, the U.S. Congress granted the American Red Cross a charter to "prevent, prepare for, and respond" to disasters at home and abroad. The Congressional Charter also made the American Red Cross responsible for providing emergency communication services to the Armed Forces and their families.

American Red Cross chapters do not receive government funding to carry out these responsibilities, but every chapter has an obligation to carry out these essential services regardless. And when a large disaster hits, such as the hurricanes in Florida, all the chapters raise money for the disaster and contribute volunteers and materials. These donations go toward specific relief efforts as requested by the donor, and at times these national and international events result in diminished donations to the local Red Cross chapters. McCulloch said during the hurricanes last fall, most of the Red Cross disaster vehicles from across the country were sent to the nine different states that suffered severe storm damage from Florida up through the Southeast and the Eastern seaboard.

But what many people don't realize is how much each of the more than 900 local American Red Cross chapters provides on a daily basis as part of their mission to prevent, prepare, and respond to emergencies and disasters in their own communities.

The Louisville Area Chapter, for example, responds to a single-family fire almost every day, providing food, shelter, and clothing. They also operate a transportation program, driving medically fragile people to critical medical appointments. Last year, they made over 130,000 of these passenger trips. They also collect blood to be used to respond to life threatening emergencies every day. And they run a twenty-four-hour call center handling emergency communications between the Armed Forces and their families and providing disaster dispatch for 122 Red Cross chapters in twenty-eight states. When an emergency strikes, they mobilize volunteers and disaster response resources where they are needed.

Since most of their local services aren't high-profile disaster needs, the Louisville Area Chapter has been challenged with how to get people in their community invested in their mission. Now they will be working to cultivate tsunami donors into a longer-term relationship.

"What we need is to do a better job becoming personally relevant to the local population," said McCulloch. "We can only do that by working our individual relationships at the local level."

At the Louisville Area Chapter, that philosophy starts with its CEO, Brian Quail.

"Making a personal connection with donors has never been more important, and in my opinion that relationship begins with the CEO. I sign every acknowledgement letter that leaves our building, and I wrote personal thank you notes to every one of the over 140 contributors from our first Ask Event^™. I plan to write twice as many this year," he said.

The Louisville Area Chapter of the American Red Cross went through the Benevon 101 Workshop a year-and-a-half ago, and with the help of their fundraising coach, they have put together a powerful Point of Entry^® introductory event called "Crossing Paths" to expose people to the critical day-to-day need for helping people via their local programs and services.

On the second Wednesday of every month, they hold a free lunch. When guests come into their auditorium, they come into a mock disaster area with a display of cots and safety supplies. They eat in a cafeteria line under a tent. On every table is a "comfort kit" showing guests the toiletries the organization hands out in an emergency. After lunch, the guests rotate through one of four stations in the room to understand more about their services. They have about twenty guests per month, said McCulloch.

McCulloch even invites other nonprofits to these events to encourage them to communicate their own missions better.

"The more we teach a culture of philanthropy, the better off we all are," he said.

McCulloch is convinced that all nonprofits can work together to increase the level of philanthropy in this country. He said his team came out of the Benevon 201 Workshop in December with the desire to increase expectations in the community for a new vision of a better community.

"We should all think of raising the water level so all the boats float higher," he said. "We want to encourage people to give from a consciousness of abundance. Many nonprofits operate from a mindset of scarcity. It's an old paradigm. Cooperation and collaboration can lead to exponentially greater results. We want to market ourselves as the vital and essential community asset we are."

"We are not asking donors to give as an after-thought, but we hope to inspire them to raise the vision of what they want their Red Cross to be."