Animal Welfare Professionals

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

We have found it very difficult as well to find grants for our sanctuary. We are in a rural area but we take in farm and exotic animals. Grants to help farm animals are even more scarce. We do have good luck with local community foundations in neighboring cities though. You may want to look locally. Also we have applied for Walmart Spark Good grants. They have a very simple application but are hit and miss. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Thanks for the reply, Lisa. Yes, I have gotten Walmart grants. What i was trying to say is that the larger grants like Bissell are only giving partner grants to large existing shelters, not rescues. This seems to be a trend, like Best Friends will not give grants to areas they consider "no-kill". If a county only has a "dog warden" that does not make them  no-kill. Some grantmakers are only giving to shelters and excluding rescues who often do all of the heavy lifting in their areas.

We have found it very difficult as well to find grants for our sanctuary. We are in a rural area but we take in farm and exotic animals. Grants to help farm animals are even more scarce. We do have good luck with local community foundations in neighboring cities though. You may want to look locally. Also we have applied for Walmart Spark Good grants. They have a very simple application but are hit and miss. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

We have found it very difficult as well to find grants for our sanctuary. We are in a rural area but we take in farm and exotic animals. Grants to help farm animals are even more scarce. We do have good luck with local community foundations in neighboring cities though. You may want to look locally. Also we have applied for Walmart Spark Good grants. They have a very simple application but are hit and miss. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

I'm in the process of submitted a grant to Cold Noses Foundation. I noticed on the form (which is due today, unfortunately) that the animals serviced include farm animals, wild life and other categories. They are a world wide giver, so they may be an option. Take a look and be prepped for next year. I hope this helps.

We have found it very difficult as well to find grants for our sanctuary. We are in a rural area but we take in farm and exotic animals. Grants to help farm animals are even more scarce. We do have good luck with local community foundations in neighboring cities though. You may want to look locally. Also we have applied for Walmart Spark Good grants. They have a very simple application but are hit and miss. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Best of Success Buck.  We received a Cold Noses grant last year  for around $5K for veterinary care (our largest operating expense). They were easy to work with and the reporting requirements were not overly time-consuming.  What I strongly suggest, if you get the grant, is to send them regular emails and photos of what the animals their grant is assisting.  They love that! 

I'm in the process of submitted a grant to Cold Noses Foundation. I noticed on the form (which is due today, unfortunately) that the animals serviced include farm animals, wild life and other categories. They are a world wide giver, so they may be an option. Take a look and be prepped for next year. I hope this helps.

We have found it very difficult as well to find grants for our sanctuary. We are in a rural area but we take in farm and exotic animals. Grants to help farm animals are even more scarce. We do have good luck with local community foundations in neighboring cities though. You may want to look locally. Also we have applied for Walmart Spark Good grants. They have a very simple application but are hit and miss. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

I'm in the process of submitted a grant to Cold Noses Foundation. I noticed on the form (which is due today, unfortunately) that the animals serviced include farm animals, wild life and other categories. They are a world wide giver, so they may be an option. Take a look and be prepped for next year. I hope this helps.

We have found it very difficult as well to find grants for our sanctuary. We are in a rural area but we take in farm and exotic animals. Grants to help farm animals are even more scarce. We do have good luck with local community foundations in neighboring cities though. You may want to look locally. Also we have applied for Walmart Spark Good grants. They have a very simple application but are hit and miss. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Agree. The grant makers are increasingly eliminating the grass roots organizations from consideration-which is very sad and very short-sighted. In my area (central AZ) it is the GRASS ROOTS organizations such as mine (we assist with spay-neuter costs for low income pet owners and feral cat caregivers) that work to address pet overpopulation so that our shelters are able to work toward becoming no-kill!

This said, however-Bissell has never been realistic about  funding even when they would support non-profits such as mine, they would fund only 25$ toward a cat surgery and 35$ toward a dog. This meant that we have had to schedule MORE surgeries than we could actually afford, simply so we could "use up" the Bissell grant. Not cost effective.  

I have had NO luck with Walmart-perhaps success depends upon area in which one is located.

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

I actually have not experienced this!  We are a TN-based grass-roots cat rescue with a $250K annual budget.  In the past 18 months we've received 7 different grants from foundations across the US (none from TN!).   They've ranged from $2,000 to $12,500 and total over $50K.   I feel our success comes from serious research about each foundation BEFORE you apply.  I look up their officers on-line, look at 990s,  and check them out any way I can.  Then I am able to craft the grant request to match their interests very closely.  One thing we have done that helps with focusing grants is we ask for specifics, not general operating funds.  We established a Veterinary Fund, a Transport Fund (we transport most of our rescues out-of-state), a Foster Fund (aimed at providing our foster homes their needed supplies), and a Facilities Fund (to help cover big ticket items for our physical facility -just had to replace HVAC unit for example).  So the more specific you can be in seeking grants, I feel the more successful you'll be!  

Agree. The grant makers are increasingly eliminating the grass roots organizations from consideration-which is very sad and very short-sighted. In my area (central AZ) it is the GRASS ROOTS organizations such as mine (we assist with spay-neuter costs for low income pet owners and feral cat caregivers) that work to address pet overpopulation so that our shelters are able to work toward becoming no-kill!

This said, however-Bissell has never been realistic about  funding even when they would support non-profits such as mine, they would fund only 25$ toward a cat surgery and 35$ toward a dog. This meant that we have had to schedule MORE surgeries than we could actually afford, simply so we could "use up" the Bissell grant. Not cost effective.  

I have had NO luck with Walmart-perhaps success depends upon area in which one is located.

------------------------------
L.A Nesbitt
President
Pets In Need Action League
Casa Grande, AZ 85130

Original Message:
Sent: 07-29-2024 06:01 PM
From: Mary Stevanus
Subject: Excluding Rescues from Grants

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

I actually have not experienced this!  We are a TN-based grass-roots cat rescue with a $250K annual budget.  In the past 18 months we've received 7 different grants from foundations across the US (none from TN!).   They've ranged from $2,000 to $12,500 and total over $50K.   I feel our success comes from serious research about each foundation BEFORE you apply.  I look up their officers on-line, look at 990s,  and check them out any way I can.  Then I am able to craft the grant request to match their interests very closely.  One thing we have done that helps with focusing grants is we ask for specifics, not general operating funds.  We established a Veterinary Fund, a Transport Fund (we transport most of our rescues out-of-state), a Foster Fund (aimed at providing our foster homes their needed supplies), and a Facilities Fund (to help cover big ticket items for our physical facility -just had to replace HVAC unit for example).  So the more specific you can be in seeking grants, I feel the more successful you'll be!  

Agree. The grant makers are increasingly eliminating the grass roots organizations from consideration-which is very sad and very short-sighted. In my area (central AZ) it is the GRASS ROOTS organizations such as mine (we assist with spay-neuter costs for low income pet owners and feral cat caregivers) that work to address pet overpopulation so that our shelters are able to work toward becoming no-kill!

This said, however-Bissell has never been realistic about  funding even when they would support non-profits such as mine, they would fund only 25$ toward a cat surgery and 35$ toward a dog. This meant that we have had to schedule MORE surgeries than we could actually afford, simply so we could "use up" the Bissell grant. Not cost effective.  

I have had NO luck with Walmart-perhaps success depends upon area in which one is located.

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

We have neglected maintenance on our rescue as we use most funds for spay/neuter and vet surgeries. I haven't seen a grant like you explained.  We are a small rescue in Georgia. Would you be willing to share grant information?

I actually have not experienced this!  We are a TN-based grass-roots cat rescue with a $250K annual budget.  In the past 18 months we've received 7 different grants from foundations across the US (none from TN!).   They've ranged from $2,000 to $12,500 and total over $50K.   I feel our success comes from serious research about each foundation BEFORE you apply.  I look up their officers on-line, look at 990s,  and check them out any way I can.  Then I am able to craft the grant request to match their interests very closely.  One thing we have done that helps with focusing grants is we ask for specifics, not general operating funds.  We established a Veterinary Fund, a Transport Fund (we transport most of our rescues out-of-state), a Foster Fund (aimed at providing our foster homes their needed supplies), and a Facilities Fund (to help cover big ticket items for our physical facility -just had to replace HVAC unit for example).  So the more specific you can be in seeking grants, I feel the more successful you'll be!  

Agree. The grant makers are increasingly eliminating the grass roots organizations from consideration-which is very sad and very short-sighted. In my area (central AZ) it is the GRASS ROOTS organizations such as mine (we assist with spay-neuter costs for low income pet owners and feral cat caregivers) that work to address pet overpopulation so that our shelters are able to work toward becoming no-kill!

This said, however-Bissell has never been realistic about  funding even when they would support non-profits such as mine, they would fund only 25$ toward a cat surgery and 35$ toward a dog. This meant that we have had to schedule MORE surgeries than we could actually afford, simply so we could "use up" the Bissell grant. Not cost effective.  

I have had NO luck with Walmart-perhaps success depends upon area in which one is located.

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

This is the 3rd time I've tried to reply…cross your fingers. I think the key is framing the project correctly…instead of reduce backlog maintenance, from it as a renovation of the cats living area. Most grants I've seen don't fund operating expenses ie maintenance but may do rehabilitation. I've recently learned that if you find a funding source that may match your needs, give them a call and ask. We've asked for funds for improve the living conditions of our cats by replacing worn out cat trees and increasing their number. The Cold Noses Foundation has just closed it's 2024 grant submissions (1 July - 31 July) but see if you can down load their grant application questions and prep for the next possible grant and for next year. Hope that helps.

We have neglected maintenance on our rescue as we use most funds for spay/neuter and vet surgeries. I haven't seen a grant like you explained.  We are a small rescue in Georgia. Would you be willing to share grant information?

I actually have not experienced this!  We are a TN-based grass-roots cat rescue with a $250K annual budget.  In the past 18 months we've received 7 different grants from foundations across the US (none from TN!).   They've ranged from $2,000 to $12,500 and total over $50K.   I feel our success comes from serious research about each foundation BEFORE you apply.  I look up their officers on-line, look at 990s,  and check them out any way I can.  Then I am able to craft the grant request to match their interests very closely.  One thing we have done that helps with focusing grants is we ask for specifics, not general operating funds.  We established a Veterinary Fund, a Transport Fund (we transport most of our rescues out-of-state), a Foster Fund (aimed at providing our foster homes their needed supplies), and a Facilities Fund (to help cover big ticket items for our physical facility -just had to replace HVAC unit for example).  So the more specific you can be in seeking grants, I feel the more successful you'll be!  

Agree. The grant makers are increasingly eliminating the grass roots organizations from consideration-which is very sad and very short-sighted. In my area (central AZ) it is the GRASS ROOTS organizations such as mine (we assist with spay-neuter costs for low income pet owners and feral cat caregivers) that work to address pet overpopulation so that our shelters are able to work toward becoming no-kill!

This said, however-Bissell has never been realistic about  funding even when they would support non-profits such as mine, they would fund only 25$ toward a cat surgery and 35$ toward a dog. This meant that we have had to schedule MORE surgeries than we could actually afford, simply so we could "use up" the Bissell grant. Not cost effective.  

I have had NO luck with Walmart-perhaps success depends upon area in which one is located.

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

This is the 3rd time I've tried to reply…cross your fingers. I think the key is framing the project correctly…instead of reduce backlog maintenance, from it as a renovation of the cats living area. Most grants I've seen don't fund operating expenses ie maintenance but may do rehabilitation. I've recently learned that if you find a funding source that may match your needs, give them a call and ask. We've asked for funds for improve the living conditions of our cats by replacing worn out cat trees and increasing their number. The Cold Noses Foundation has just closed it's 2024 grant submissions (1 July - 31 July) but see if you can down load their grant application questions and prep for the next possible grant and for next year. Hope that helps.

We have neglected maintenance on our rescue as we use most funds for spay/neuter and vet surgeries. I haven't seen a grant like you explained.  We are a small rescue in Georgia. Would you be willing to share grant information?

I actually have not experienced this!  We are a TN-based grass-roots cat rescue with a $250K annual budget.  In the past 18 months we've received 7 different grants from foundations across the US (none from TN!).   They've ranged from $2,000 to $12,500 and total over $50K.   I feel our success comes from serious research about each foundation BEFORE you apply.  I look up their officers on-line, look at 990s,  and check them out any way I can.  Then I am able to craft the grant request to match their interests very closely.  One thing we have done that helps with focusing grants is we ask for specifics, not general operating funds.  We established a Veterinary Fund, a Transport Fund (we transport most of our rescues out-of-state), a Foster Fund (aimed at providing our foster homes their needed supplies), and a Facilities Fund (to help cover big ticket items for our physical facility -just had to replace HVAC unit for example).  So the more specific you can be in seeking grants, I feel the more successful you'll be!  

Agree. The grant makers are increasingly eliminating the grass roots organizations from consideration-which is very sad and very short-sighted. In my area (central AZ) it is the GRASS ROOTS organizations such as mine (we assist with spay-neuter costs for low income pet owners and feral cat caregivers) that work to address pet overpopulation so that our shelters are able to work toward becoming no-kill!

This said, however-Bissell has never been realistic about  funding even when they would support non-profits such as mine, they would fund only 25$ toward a cat surgery and 35$ toward a dog. This meant that we have had to schedule MORE surgeries than we could actually afford, simply so we could "use up" the Bissell grant. Not cost effective.  

I have had NO luck with Walmart-perhaps success depends upon area in which one is located.

------------------------------
L.A Nesbitt
President
Pets In Need Action League
Casa Grande, AZ 85130

Original Message:
Sent: 07-29-2024 06:01 PM
From: Mary Stevanus
Subject: Excluding Rescues from Grants

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

I have done over 50 online applications and have gotten three donations. So many organizations are outright not included when you look at their mission and it is not aligned with the animals. I used Shareway which at this point I don't know if it is worth my cost. Wondering if anyone else has used something like Shareway and had good results. The downside to it as well has been to go to apply to a company and be told you must mail in request, take their form in person to the store, and so forth because I thought the purpose of using something like was to not have to go store to store? 

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Morning Heather! I understand your frustration. It's getting harder and harder for rescues to receive grant funding. I have been using grantgopher.com for a few years, and it's only $9/month.  It offers quite a lot of leads for a pretty minimal cost. The bulk of the leads are foundations, so I am now working toward building relationships with these foundations prior to the "ask".  I have gone to several workshops and watched many webinars, and most seem to agree that it takes 2-3 years of relationship building before a grant application is funded. So we have created a simple "impact report" that we are emailing/mailing out with a letter of introduction. We will follow that up with a newsletter, and so on. We are hoping that once they see what we do, they will be more inclined to join us in our mission. Hope this helps!  Good luck! We all need it!    P.S. I am attaching a copy of our "Impact Report" in case that's helpful. 

I have done over 50 online applications and have gotten three donations. So many organizations are outright not included when you look at their mission and it is not aligned with the animals. I used Shareway which at this point I don't know if it is worth my cost. Wondering if anyone else has used something like Shareway and had good results. The downside to it as well has been to go to apply to a company and be told you must mail in request, take their form in person to the store, and so forth because I thought the purpose of using something like was to not have to go store to store? 

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Morning Heather! I understand your frustration. It's getting harder and harder for rescues to receive grant funding. I have been using grantgopher.com for a few years, and it's only $9/month.  It offers quite a lot of leads for a pretty minimal cost. The bulk of the leads are foundations, so I am now working toward building relationships with these foundations prior to the "ask".  I have gone to several workshops and watched many webinars, and most seem to agree that it takes 2-3 years of relationship building before a grant application is funded. So we have created a simple "impact report" that we are emailing/mailing out with a letter of introduction. We will follow that up with a newsletter, and so on. We are hoping that once they see what we do, they will be more inclined to join us in our mission. Hope this helps!  Good luck! We all need it!    P.S. I am attaching a copy of our "Impact Report" in case that's helpful. 

I have done over 50 online applications and have gotten three donations. So many organizations are outright not included when you look at their mission and it is not aligned with the animals. I used Shareway which at this point I don't know if it is worth my cost. Wondering if anyone else has used something like Shareway and had good results. The downside to it as well has been to go to apply to a company and be told you must mail in request, take their form in person to the store, and so forth because I thought the purpose of using something like was to not have to go store to store? 

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Hi @Jenna Ricci

Last year we held our first golf outing with the help of a retired golf pro. We were pleased how it went. Basically we reached out to past community sponsors and had our volunteers reach out to biz owners they know as well as local golf clubs and golf related businesses. We didn't get a lot of the higher dollar sponsors but we did have sponsors for every tee and every table. We also had inkind sponsors that donated all our signs/printed materials, and items for our golfer goodie bags. We are excited about hosting for a second year. 

I am attaching our sponsor signup sheet and other information that our golf pro shared with us. I hope it helps. Also you can visit our website to see results from last year's event at http://farmhousescramble.org 

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Thank you so much for sharing this information, Lisa!  I think I need to go to a golf tournament to understand everything lol.  Without seeing it in person, it's difficult to put together what the sponsorships are for or what the money they paid goes to.  I am guessing there is a table at each hole with goodies/water, etc. and other prizes that sponsorship money goes towards.  

This gives me a great start to look into, thank you!

Hi @Jenna Ricci

Last year we held our first golf outing with the help of a retired golf pro. We were pleased how it went. Basically we reached out to past community sponsors and had our volunteers reach out to biz owners they know as well as local golf clubs and golf related businesses. We didn't get a lot of the higher dollar sponsors but we did have sponsors for every tee and every table. We also had inkind sponsors that donated all our signs/printed materials, and items for our golfer goodie bags. We are excited about hosting for a second year. 

I am attaching our sponsor signup sheet and other information that our golf pro shared with us. I hope it helps. Also you can visit our website to see results from last year's event at http://farmhousescramble.org 

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

@Jenna Ricci, 

It can be a bit confusing. We were very lucky to have a retired golf pro guide us through it all. The sponsorships help to offset the cost of advertising, food, drinks, etc. plus raise funds in general. We had a registration table set up in the clubhouse near the raffles and silent auction items. We didn't have tables at every hole only at specific ones like the "hole in one" hole. We had sponsor signs at each hole. On our webpage we have a slider of images that may be helpful. http://farmhousescramble.org

Thank you so much for sharing this information, Lisa!  I think I need to go to a golf tournament to understand everything lol.  Without seeing it in person, it's difficult to put together what the sponsorships are for or what the money they paid goes to.  I am guessing there is a table at each hole with goodies/water, etc. and other prizes that sponsorship money goes towards.  

This gives me a great start to look into, thank you!

Hi @Jenna Ricci

Last year we held our first golf outing with the help of a retired golf pro. We were pleased how it went. Basically we reached out to past community sponsors and had our volunteers reach out to biz owners they know as well as local golf clubs and golf related businesses. We didn't get a lot of the higher dollar sponsors but we did have sponsors for every tee and every table. We also had inkind sponsors that donated all our signs/printed materials, and items for our golfer goodie bags. We are excited about hosting for a second year. 

I am attaching our sponsor signup sheet and other information that our golf pro shared with us. I hope it helps. Also you can visit our website to see results from last year's event at http://farmhousescramble.org 

Thanks for sharing this information, Janice!  I am in the initial stages of possibly planning a golf tournament for next year.  Can you provide any insight into what sponsorship and prizes you have done in the past?  For example, what does the sponsorship actually sponsor?  Are your prizes typically golf related or dependent upon what you get for donations?  

The charity Golf tournament we do costs the rescue nothing so we do not have a budget to spend on it. What the golfers pay cover the costs of the tournament. Sponsorships cover other expenses and all prizes are donated. Our tournament is in August, I start in October looking for sponsors and donations.  You need a letter explaining your rescue, the event and what you are looking for. The key to getting a lot is asking for more. I probably contact 400++ businesses to get maybe 100 donations. A lot of it is done by online applications.  Your personal connections get you the most: Employers, friends, family. 

We have a fairly young, inexperienced fundraising team and are looking for ways to improve our efforts.  We have sights set on a gold fundraiser for next year & maybe even a gala. How do you go about approaching  and encouraging vendors and sponsors to play a role. And what does your budget for events like this look like?

I have found this year was harder for getting sponsors for our Charity Golf Tournament which is our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is already hard for rescues as a lot of large corporations only focus on health, children, food insecurities, all people related causes. what I dont understan is the big dog food companies will send products or items but not do a sponsorship. 

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia

Recently, several large grants (Bissell and one other) have announced they are focusing grants for s/n, etc. on shelters, esp. no-kill shelters. I do not say that shelters are not critical to rehoming and reducing overpopulation, but in many rural areas there ARE NO shelters, often only animal control or "dog wardens". These are often small, understaffed who take in dogs only, no cats. In these cases, rescues are on only ones who step up to try to rescue, care for, and s/n cats and kittens often out of our own pockets. Cats don't get to shelters if none exist. Some rural counties will not work with rescues to transport community cats to larger shelters/rescues who can care for them and find new homes.

It seems as if available grants are getting scarcer and scarcer and this is add to the crisis of animal overpopulation in rural areas.  Not my imagination.

Mary Stevanus

West Virginia