Fundraising and Gift Acceptance Principles, Policies and Guidelines
FUNDRAISING AND GIFT ACCEPTANCE PRINCIPLES, POLICIES AND GUIDELINES
PRINCIPLES
Welcome
Thank you for considering hosting a fundraising event to benefit Special Ops Survivors. By making this choice, you are choosing to make a real and positive difference in the lives of the surviving spouses of our fallen Special Operations warriors and their families.
The charitable contributions from your event will be used to continue our work providing surviving spouses with peer-based emotional support, financial assistance and life-skills resources.
Special Ops Survivors will only support events that are approved by our Development Committee and are conducted in accordance with the policies and procedures contained within these guidelines. Following these guidelines will help you put on a successful fundraising event that is conducted within the parameters of the Internal Revenue Service.
Mission and Rationale
The mission of Special Ops Survivors is to embrace and empower surviving spouses of Special Operations personnel to build healthy post-loss futures.
Fundraising activities benefiting Special Ops Survivors serve at least two important purposes beside the obvious one of raising needed money. First, these activities raise awareness of the specific mission, importance, and need for our services. Second, fundraising activities help to build a community of friends for Special Ops Survivors and enthusiasm for our services.
Principles
In order to promote the mission and values of Special Ops Survivors and to act respectfully towards the surviving spouses we serve, these principles are offered as a foundation for any fundraising events:
· The fundraising activity itself must be compatible in its content and the way it is conducted to the identity, mission and values of Special Ops Survivors;
· Groups, in planning their fundraising activities, must be respectful of the needs and feelings of our surviving spouses;
· The group raising funds should inform Special Ops Survivors, in a timely manner, before, during, and after any fundraiser as to the goals and accomplishments of those fundraisers, including prompt reporting of final totals, and acknowledgement of volunteers and supporters of the fundraiser.
Special Ops Survivors cannot support any fundraiser that is sexual or political in nature.
EVENT PLANNING
1. Decide on an event
Use your imagination! Some popular events that have proved successful in the past include house parties, athletic events, boat and motorcycle rides and auctions.
See our Fundraising Event Guidelines for further guidance on the types of events we can support.
2. Select your date
Keep in mind who your potential supporters are, dates of other events that may be in the area, and your potential volunteer base. When possible, we ask that you submit three possible event dates to Special Ops Survivors to allow us to allocate our resources to best support you.
3. Set a budget and fundraising goal
Use our Fundraising Event Budget worksheet to help you determine a realistic budget and goal.
Unless an exception is requested and accepted in writing as part of the event approval process, Special Ops Survivors cannot provide funding or incur financial risk for any fundraising events. Please see our Fundraising Financial Guidelines for further information on financial requirements for event organizers.
4. Obtain event approval
You can either submit your event application through our website or by completing the Fundraising Event Application and e-mailing it to . You will receive a notification from the Special Ops Survivors Development Committee within 2 weeks of submission.
Receiving event approval from Special Ops Survivors allows us to promote your event, provide a letter of support to validate your event, and provide promotional materials for your event.
5. Put your event
Once you have obtained event approval, the fun really starts! We suggest enlisting a team of volunteers to help you if you haven’t already done so. Then, begin working backwards from the event date to set a timeline of when things need to be done (securing the venue, advertising the event, sending out invitations, etc). As a courtesy to Special Ops Survivors, please remit this timeline to us within 30 days of receiving event approval.
See our Sponsorship, Promotion and Liability Guidelines for how we can support your event.
6. Soliciting Donations
As you ask for donations, contributions, and sponsorships for your event, please be sure to tell potential contributors why you have chosen to support Special Ops Survivors. As Special Ops Survivors is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, contributions to the organization may be tax deductible. All donation checks should be made out to Special Ops Survivors.
Review our Gift Acceptance Policy for which gifts and contributions we can accept. Refer to our Donor Privacy Policy to answer any donor questions about how Special Ops Survivors uses their information.
7. At the event
Please remember to collect the names and contact information of all attendees, participants, sponsors, donors and volunteers. Take pictures and have fun!
8. After the event
Send the donor and volunteer information and any donations received to Special Ops Survivors within 30 days of the conclusion of the event so that we can send timely thank you notes and written contribution substantiations to donors. Special Ops Survivors can provide you with a form to help you organize this information.
Please send your proceeds in a single installment using our Fundraising Event Donation Form.
All donation checks should be made out to Special Ops Survivors. Please do not send cash donations; instead convert cash donations to a cashier’s check or money order. If you plan to solicit electronic payments for your event, please first check with Special Ops Survivors so that we can advise you on how to proceed so that your event receives proper credit.
If you have any pictures or video from your event, we would love share those on our website, social media outlets and upcoming publications. By sharing your pictures and videos, you can serve as an inspiration to others to support the special families that Special Ops Survivors serves.
Fundraising Event Guidelines
Special Ops Survivors encourages you to use to your imagination and creativity when deciding on the type of fundraising event you want to pursue. Some things to keep in mind as you are deciding on your event:
· Fundraising events should fit the mission and promote the appropriate image of Special Ops Survivors and the surviving spouses we serve.
· Fundraising events must be self-sustaining. Special Ops Survivors cannot provide seed money for events to cover deposits. Special Ops Survivors can provide in-kind donation receipts for deposits. Exceptions to this policy must be made in writing, in advance of the event. For any events where Special Ops Survivors is asked to pay expenses, event organizers will be asked to provide periodic progress reports on the event to Special Ops Survivors. Special Ops Survivors will only pay expenses at the conclusion of the event and the monies must be paid out of event proceeds. Special Ops Survivors will not pay expenses greater than the lesser of the event revenues or the previously agreed upon expenses.
· Special Ops Survivors cannot approve any fundraising event that involves an agreement with any organization or individual to raise funds on a commission, bonus or percentage basis.
· Special Ops Survivors cannot approve any sales-driven fundraising projects, including arrangements where percentages are offered from the sale of magazines, credit cards, or other services offered to the public.
· Due to the extensive licensing and reporting requirements surrounding gambling, Special Ops Survivors cannot approve any fundraising event that includes gambling activities without prior written approval. Gambling activities are defined by the IRS as games of chance, such as bingo, or raffles (such as selling raffle tickets for a vehicle, boat, etc).
· Special Ops Survivors reserves the right to decline approval of the event if other non-profits or for-profit organizations are the beneficiaries of and/or are involved in the event. The values and missions of other organizations that might be involved in the fundraising event must align with the values and mission of Special Ops Survivors.
Because fundraising rules and guidelines vary among states and counties, it is the responsibility of the event organizers to ensure that the type of event selected conforms to local and state regulations.
At the event, please use the registration form provided by Special Ops Survivors and return the even proceeds with the registration form within 30 days after the conclusion of the event.
Fundraising Financial Guidelines
Because of our commitment to our surviving spouses, Special Ops Survivors cannot be financially liable or assume financial risk for any fundraisers. Before undertaking a fundraising event, please make sure your event adheres to the following guidelines:
· Fundraising events must be able to sustain themselves financially without additional financial support from Special Ops Survivors. Any deposits needed to cover costs such as space rental, travel expenses, etc. must be supplied by the event organizers. Special Ops Survivors can issue in-kind donations receipts for those deposits.
· Special Ops Survivors will not be financially liable for any event expenses that exceed event revenues or event expenses that are in excess of the approved budgeted expenses.
· Exceptions to these guidelines must be requested in writing during the event application process and must be approved in writing by an authorized Special Ops Survivors representative.
See our Fundraising Event Budget worksheet to help you determine the financial viability of your event.
Sponsorship, Promotion and Liability Guidelines
Sponsorship
· As available, Special Ops Survivors may solicit sponsors for your event.
· Special Ops Survivors cannot provide you with information about our donors or specific information about surviving spouses who receive our services.
· The values and missions of any sponsors that might be involved in the fundraising event must align with the values and mission of Special Ops Survivors.
Promotion
Event organizers are responsible for submitting any promotional materials to Special Ops Survivors for approval prior to producing or distributing any such materials.
· All promotional materials must clearly indicate that you are raising funds to benefit Special Ops Survivors.
· All promotional materials must be in accordance with Special Ops Survivors branding guidelines (to be provided to the event organizers upon event approval).
· All promotional materials must clearly indicate to potential donors the amount of the event proceeds that will be donated to Special Ops Survivors. As an example, if a donor purchases a $100 ticket to attend a gala dinner and the value of the goods and/or services that the donor receives for attending the gala is $30, then all promotional materials will need to include a statement similar to the following. “We estimate the value of goods and/or services (dinner, drinks, swag bags) to be $30 per person. The remainder of the ticket price is tax deductible.” Also include Special Ops Survivors tax identification number: 81-0567790. Please see IRS Publication 526 on Charitable Contributions to obtain clarification on what contributions may or may not be tax-deductible.
Once a fundraising event has been approved by Special Ops Survivors, we will work with the event organizers to promote the event in an appropriate manner. Possible promotion venues may include:
· Special Ops Survivors website with a link to your event of fundraising page
· Special Ops Survivors social media pages (including but not limited to Facebook, Twitter, etc)
· Special Ops Survivors newsletters
If requested by the event organizers, Special Ops Survivors will attempt to provide a representative (board member, staff member, surviving spouse) at the event.
Liability
The event organizers are responsible for determining whether any permitting, licensing, or insurance is required for the event. The event organizers are also responsible for obtaining any necessary permits, licenses, or insurance.
Gift Acceptance Policy
Special Ops Survivors solicits and accepts gifts that are consistent with its mission.
In the course of its regular fundraising activities, Special Ops Survivors will accept donations of money, real property, personal property, stock, and in-kind services.
Due to the special liabilities they may pose for Special Ops Survivors, certain types of gifts must be reviewed and approved by our Board of Directors prior to acceptance. Examples of gifts which will be subject to review include gifts of real property (including real estate), gifts of personal property (including art, jewelry, firearms, and vehicles), and gifts of securities.
Special Ops Survivors reserves the right to refuse any gift, donation, sponsorship or service that is not consistent with our mission and values.
Donor Privacy Policy
Special Ops Survivors values and respects our donors’ right to privacy. The following is our donor policy, which guides our team on how we may and may not use your personal information while honoring your rights as a donor. Our entire team affirms that our fundraising practices protect against unauthorized use of our contributor lists.
Special Ops Survivors does not sell, trade, rent or share names, addresses, telephone numbers, or e-mail addresses of our donors. Special Ops Survivors also will not send donor mailings on behalf of other organizations.
Special Ops Survivors collects and uses personal information from donors that includes: name, address, telephone number, e-mail address and donor comments when a donor voluntarily provides it to us. Special Ops Survivors also keeps a record of each donor’s giving history. This information is kept on file for IRS purposes and is also used in our development process to analyze overall giving patterns in order to make accurate budget projections. Donors to Special Ops Survivors, whether donating on-line or at an event, can choose the personal information that Special Ops Survivors receives and can opt to remain anonymous. All credit card transactions are conducted over a secure server. No credit card information is stored on Special Ops Survivors’ servers.
Special Ops Survivors will use contact information (e-mail, telephone number and address) of donors for these purposes only:
· Distribute receipts for donations
· Thank donors for their donation
· Inform donors about news, upcoming Special Ops Survivors fundraising events and other activities
· Internal analysis and record keeping
· Reporting to relevant U.S. and State agencies (these reports are not for public inspection)