News/Blog

By Michele Hall-Duncan, AFP-NYC Secretary, CEO and President of enCourage Kids Foundation 

As the vaccination effort intensifies and there is a sense of Spring and optimism in the air, I find myself reflecting on the past year. At my foundation, we lost revenue, laid off staff, and restricted programming just like many others. It was a year of loss, both personally and professionally and the lessons learned will stay with me for quite some time.

By Jill Scibilia, CFRE, AFP-NYC President-Elect
Vice President, Development
Phelps Hospital, Northwell Health 

March 11, 2021 was the one-year anniversary of when the World Health Organization declared that COVID-19 was a global pandemic.

I will never forget those early days of the pandemic.  There was an energy fueled by a mix of adrenaline, courage, fear, grit and heart—especially heart.  There are a few moments that will always stand out to me from those days.

First…On my drive to the hospital where I work, I realized my car was the only one on what was suddenly an eerily quiet road.  

By Steve Jacobson, AFP-NYC President and CEO, JCA, Inc.

This past Wednesday, the AFP-NYC Chapter signed onto an amicus brief prepared by our friends at the Nonprofit Alliance for two cases now in front of the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) addressing some states' overreach to obtain donors' private information.  New York is one of those states (California and New Jersey are the other two), thanks to requirements tucked into the 2020-21 state budget legislation by Governor Cuomo last spring during the onset of the pandemic and economic crisis. 

By Craig H. Shelley, CFRE, Chapter Treasurer & Managing Director, Orr Group

It’s a cliché to say the world is different than it was a year ago.  The funny thing about clichés is that they are true, so here we are in a very different world.  As we all adapt every facet of our lives to this difference, the organizers of the conference that was historically Fundraising Day in New York had a realization. Trying to recreate this iconic annual event, which has drawn nearly 2,000 fundraisers together for a day of learning and networking each June, in our current environment was a fool’s errand.  Fundraising Day in New York will return when we’re all back to gathering in large groups and complaining about hotel chicken (what I wouldn’t kill for a mass-produced hotel meal right now!). That won’t be June of 2021.

In late January had the privilege to join three powerhouses in the NYC nonprofit sector to discuss the impact of the events of last year on fundraising and what the 2021 forecast looks like.  Victoria Bailey of TDF, Asha Curran of Giving Tuesday, and Tony Hillery of Harlem Grown discussed the resilience nonprofits have shown and the innovations that are changing how organizations reach their audiences.  Tony shared that “having a team to pivot on a dime during a pandemic and not missing a beat in serving our community is one of my proudest moments."  This resilience and innovative approach to the challenges we faced prove how strong our sector is and how important we are for the communities we serve. 

The new year is a great time for a restart. Whether it’s setting goals for one’s health, personal life or profession, this is the time of year when we refresh and recommit to our goals and start anew. It is only fitting, then, that the chapter’s Mentorship Committee seized the moment to launch its program with a new design and a fresh cohort of mentors and mentees.

AFP-NYC is proud to present the 2021 Ralph E. Chamberlain Award, honoring an area fundraising professional for a lifetime of service to the fundraising profession, and to AFP and our Chapter, to John Hicks, Principal and Founder of DLBHICKS, LLC.

By Jill Scibilia, CFRE, AFP-NYC President-Elect
Vice President, Development
Phelps Hospital, Northwell Health

2020 is now hindsight. I entered the New Year filled with a sense of hope for the healing that is sure to come to our fractured world: a world that continues to battle a global pandemic and a country that faces conflict and division.

Then a few days later, I watched in horror as the events unfolded in Washington, DC. Violence erupted in our Nation’s Capitol. Our democratic process was threatened.  Lives were lost. The fallout and reckoning from the events on January 6^th have only just begun. Lessons will follow from what was a seminal day in our history. 

The challenges we face in this New Year are deep and pronounced. I will admit that when taken all together, these challenges can feel insurmountable to me. Or worse, they can even become like background noise crowding out everything else including the good that is in the world.

I have been asking myself how I can cut through the background noise and face these challenges. What is my role in doing so?  I certainly don’t have all of the answers.  Here is how I am approaching 2021. 

Our long time AFPNY board member and my friend Penny Stoil passed way the morning of December 26, 2020 after a short battle with cancer.  Penny’s talents and contributions have been felt for decades and will continue to be felt for decades to come.

Thank you to our speakers, sponsors, and participants for the incredible conversation and success of National Philanthropy Day on December 8, 2020! The event focused on  culture, strategy, and action to recruit and retain fundraisers of color.  We learned actionable steps to take - now - that will make a significant and immediate impact on any nonprofit or business.