Nonprofits here say fundraising efforts so far this year have been encouraging—and in some cases tremendous—despite the continuing recession. That, they say, is very good news, considering that social-service needs are rising in the down economy, while funding from government sources is falling.

"We've seen a serious tightening of the belt in government funding. You've heard that the state's budget is in trouble, and that impacts the assistance they give to service providers," says Dia Maurer, executive director of Transitions, a Spokane nonprofit that offers shelter for homeless women and children, as well as a job-training program for those women and a therapeutic day-care center for children who have been homeless.

"The organizations that we're supporting have seen really significant reductions, primarily in state and local government funding," says Tim Henkel, president and CEO of Spokane County United Way. "There have been some federal stimulus dollars that have started to flow into this sector," but so far it hasn't been enough to offset the funding losses, he says.

Amidst that trend, however, nonprofits say they've been pleased with the response they've received from donors, both individuals and companies, as they seek to offset reductions in other funding.

Spokane County United Way, for example, has raised twice as much money as it thought it would by this time in its fall campaign. Henkel credits that surge in large part to several companies here—Avista Corp., Itron Inc., Potlatch Corp., Bank of America, Valley Hospital & Medical Center, and Deaconess Medical Center—that collectively made a $50,000 challenge grant early in the fundraising process to spur other donations. Despite the economy, United Way expects to raise more money this year than last.

"We've got a goal this year that's about 7 percent above what we raised last year," Henkel says, adding that this year's goal is $4.8 million, compared with $4.5 million in fall 2008.

So far, six donors—Rosauers, Potlatch, Avista, Deaconess Medical Center, Valley Hospital & Medical Center, and Spokane Transit Authority—collectively have pledged 36 percent more in this campaign than they did last year, Henkel says.

"This community in general recognizes in these times that there's a 'responsibility for me to do more,'" he says.

Kathy Stuart, internal communications manager and manager of corporate philanthropy at Liberty Lake-based Itron, says the big utility-meter technology manufacturer has changed the way it is approaching its United Way campaign this year, which gets under way Nov. 1, to boost the overall participation of the company and its employees, rather than just increasing the company's contribution.

"We are planning to match employee contributions up to (a total of) $50,000 this year, to incent them to give more," Stuart says. Last year, Itron gave a straight corporate contribution of $20,000, plus what its employees gave, and it will give at least that much this year, but Stuart says the company hopes to reach the full $50,000 match, plus what its employees give.

If it's successful, it plans to institute the same program at its other U.S. locations in 2010.

"It's one of our core beliefs that we invest in the communities where we live and work," she says. "We really wanted to strengthen that in this year, whether it's involvement or monetary contributions."

"People stepped up"

Maurer says Transitions raised much more in donations and pledges than it had anticipated at a fundraising breakfast it held recently. The event resulted in more than $217,000 in pledges, some of which are multiyear pledges, compared with $155,000 in pledges at last year's event.

"We're very pleasantly surprised," Maurer says.

Meanwhile, the Women Helping Women Fund, which relies predominantly on one big luncheon event to raise most of the money it distributes to Spokane-area nonprofits through a grant process, decided to raise the minimum donation at its annual luncheon to $125, from $100, says Kris Mason, its communications chairwoman.

"Even though it was little risky because of the economy, people stepped up to the plate," Mason says.

The organization raised $240,000 at its luncheon, held last spring, which she says wasn't the most it has raised at a luncheon, but pretty close to the highest amount.

Maurer says she has observed that donations from companies in some industries have been off some, due to the health of that industry, while those in less-impacted industries have remained stable.

"Corporate is down, and it depends on the type of industry folks are in. Some banks have remained steady, and some financial-product suppliers have much decreased their gifts," she says. "Those industries where profits have been decimated greatly reduced their gifts."

Henkel says United Way hasn't really noted any particular new trends or patterns in giving in recent years.

"What we've seen are what I will call normal occurrences in a campaign, companies that go up or down for a variety of reasons," Henkel says.

He does say there's been an emphasis on people giving more of their time, though, which he credits for helping get this year's campaign off to a brisk start.

"I think there's been a heightened awareness around the need for the gift of time. The president has started that momentum, but I believe the local communities very much recognize that's an important way we generate enthusiasm," Henkel says.

Investment income still off

Another challenge many nonprofits are facing is that their income from investments and endowments took a big hit last year. Many nonprofits rely on disbursements from such accounts to pay for a portion of their operating costs.

"Some foundation gifts have literally dried up due to the stock market plunge and have not recovered sufficiently to begin disbursements again," Maurer says. She says the four orders of Catholic nuns that support Transitions similarly have seen the value of their assets fall.

"They had their money in the stock market as well. They are struggling, as are most entities," she says.

"If there's a place where organizations in general have little control, it's what their investment income has been," says United Way's Henkel, adding that asset bases fell by up to 30 percent in some cases late last year.

The Inland Northwest Community Foundation, which handles endowment funds for a number of nonprofits here, has done a great deal of work to minimize that risk, Henkel says.

"We do have an endowed fund that rests with the Inland Northwest Community Foundation, and I don't know how much the asset may have shrunk or grown, but it had a minimal impact to us," he says.

The Inland Northwest Community Foundation says it uses a 13-quarter rolling average as part of a formula to determine a fund's distribution for the following year, allowing the asset base to smooth out the "bumps in the road."

Though most of Women Helping Women's funds for grants come from its annual luncheon, Mason says the organization also has an endowment, and although the endowment had fallen, it has bounced back quite a bit since the stock market drop last year.

Watching dollars

With the expectation of being down about $200,000 in revenues from its anticipated budget, Transitions has worked to cut costs where it can, Maurer says.

"We've had to make adjustments in expenses, had job furloughs, reduced staffing, and (made) benefit changes," she says, adding that it also has cut some of the supplemental services it has provided that required a lot of extra cash.

Still, Maurer and others say that the need for services has continued to increase despite a reduction in resources.

"We are seeing more than 100 women a day at our women's drop-in shelter," Maurer says.

Adds Mason, "We saw the need continue to increase," over the last year. The amounts that nonprofits have requested in their grants have risen, as those agencies have seen more requests for services coupled with reductions in other funding sources.

"We just finished the grant cycle and although we have about the same amount of applications, the dollar amount they are requesting is higher than previously," Mason says.

"The overall not-for-profit community has had to realize that they are doing more with less. There are more people coming to the door at all kinds of levels of services," Henkel says.