It’s a challenge for many charities to cut through the clutter of the holiday season to communicate awareness for their stakeholders in need.
In this issue of The Observer, we profile CommCore client and national non-profit, Operation Homefront whose mission is to build strong, stable, and secure military families so they can thrive—not simply struggle to get by – in the communities that they’ve worked so hard to protect.
Tell us about Operation Homefront
Since our founding 20 years ago, we have operated with a common core belief…to serve our military families – our fellow citizens who have serve for our nation.
Our organization has made brighter futures possible for hundreds of thousands of military families through a wide range of highly valued relief, resiliency, and recurring support programs. While we have accomplished much, the need is increasing. Our milestones in 2022 include:
- Delivering our 500,000th backpack through our Back-to-School Brigade program saving military families more than $55M in school expenses.
- Serving holiday meals to 600K military family members.
- Graduating our 675th family from the Permanent Homes for Veterans program and providing over $100M in home equity;
- Housing more than 2,300 military family members defraying more than $7M in rent and utility costs in our Transitional Housing -Villages program.
- Fulfilling our 50,000th request for help and providing more than $35M through our Critical Financial Assistance program.
Stories about some of the families we have served can be found on our website at operationhomefront.org.
What are the challenges trying to raise money during the holidays?
The holidays can be a strain for many, but they also bring out the best in people during the season for families who are struggling and need help now, more than ever.
Our messaging reminds our audiences that active-duty military families, who are usually serving far away from friends and family, not only feel financial strain but may not have a solid support system nearby. Our requests for Critical Financial Assistance have increased dramatically over the past several months, our transitional housing programs are in great demand, and we’ve seen increased interest in our recurring support programs like our Star-Spangled Baby Showers, Back-to-School Brigades and Holiday Meals for Military. Because of that, we are able to share data-driven insights that demonstrate the need as well as the significant impact our programs have for this very deserving group of our fellow Americans.
Can you describe special communications strategies OH uses to reach out to potential donors and to keep stakeholders informed during the holiday season?
In November, we launched our third annual 11 Days of Impact which challenged our supporters to help us raise at least $250,000 during Military Family Appreciation Month with a focus on Veterans Day. We surpassed that goal, raising more than $463,000.
For Giving Tuesday, which immediately follows Thanksgiving, we were fortunate to have a corporate donor match which allowed us to utilize a multi-faceted strategy of direct response emails, paid and organic social content as well as incentivizing staff and volunteers to engage to broaden the reach. We raised nearly $160,000 in one day!
As we close out the year, we remind people that military families’ have ongoing struggles that may be compounded by the holidays, the cold weather, being far from their families, and much more, and we encourage people to finish the year strong by standing by those who defend our freedoms … they have certainly earned and deserve our support.