PURPOSE-DRIVEN PROGRAMS
LITERACY PARTNERS | Capital Campaign
Challenge: Hearst is a long-standing corporate partner of the New York-based non-profit, so it fell to me to create a fundraising program that was expected to virtually “sell itself.”
Solution: Knowing senior execs are deluged with complicated asks, the ALPHABET PROJECT was designed to be simple: offering the chance to help change adult students’ lives (from A to Z) by “sponsoring” a letter of the alphabet. The three-year commitment of $10,000 annually—a small donation for large New York-based companies—made giving a no-brainer. While the race to secure a letter (the “W” by Walgreens, Wiley, and The Washington Post, for example) found us “sold-out” in no time.
Results: Campaign raised nearly $800,000 (with all 26 sponsors thanked in the New York Times (ad shown).
Solicitation Materials
New York Times Ad Thanking Sponsors
(At top)
Our students—and all of us at Literacy Partners—owe the corporate supporters of our ALPHABET PRODUCT an immense thank you. By “sponsoring a letter,” they have helped us to continue to ensure that adults have the access to quality education needed to fully realize their potential as individuals, parents, and citizens. Their support has been letter perfect.
(At bottom)
We don’t have to spell it out for you. Low literacy skills cost American business and industry billions of dollars each year in lost productivity. But did you know that 30% of all New York City adults cannot read beyond the fifth-grade level? And that nearly half of its low literacy adults live below the poverty level. Literacy Partners is committed to changing that. And has been at the forefront of free community-based adult and family literacy programs for 30 years. To find out how you can help, visit literacypartners.org.