NEWS and NOTES from the Director’s desk
Red Envelopes are getting mailed!
October 8, 2025
- $50 prizes (3) to Bainbridge Public Library, Island Coop Preschool, and Kathleen Sutton Fund
- $75 prizes (2) to Bainbridge Chorale and First Year’s Children’s Center
- $100 prize to Squeaky Wheels
Next, another big round of gratitude to those who helped with hand-addressing and then sealing & stamping another 500+ envelopes these past couple of days. Again, the work was made so much easier with a great group of volunteers!
All envelopes are due to be delivered by early next week, followed by the special supplement to The Bainbridge Review which will go out to all Bainbridge mailboxes on Oct 31st.
Time to raise awareness and inspire everyone to give!
Cheers –
It’s that time of year = more news from OCFA!
September 19, 2025
Hi all –
A few more updates regarding our new 2025-26 Red Envelope Campaign, just to keep you in the loop:
1) First and foremost, thanks to everyone who attended a Red Envelope 101 webinar! It was great to see faces to go with your names 🙂 The slides from the presentation have now been uploaded to our Partner Agency Resources page for your reference. [SEE BELOW ON THIS PAGE]
2) Next up (at the risk of sounding like a broken record) is our annual stuffing party on Friday, Oct 3rd at the Filipino American Community Hall on Bainbridge (7566 High School Rd NE). Feel free to drop in anytime between 9 am and 12 noon to help stuff envelopes, connect with OCFA board members and other partner agency reps, grab a cup of coffee, etc. No need to RSVP, just come on by. Unlike last year, we will NOT need to keep envelopes in numerical order (hooray!), so this should allow more freedom to mingle and chat while you stuff 🙂 We’ll also have OCFA support materials (white envelopes, yard signs, buttons, magnets) on hand if you’d like any.
3) Do you have good handwriting? We need some volunteers to help us hand-address a few hundred red envelopes that are not part of our bulk mailing. If you are available to drop by the Marge Williams Center (which houses the OCFA office, at 221 Winslow Way W) for a stretch between 12 and 2 on either Tuesday, Oct 7th or Wednesday, Oct 8th please let me know.
4) And last but not least, the BI Parks & Trails Foundation community grant cycle is open! Please see attached flyer, or visit https://
Cheers –
-Lisa
September updates from OCFA
September 3, 2025
- Weds Sept 10th, 7-8pm
- Fri Sept 12th, 10-11am
- Thurs Sept 18th, 12-1pm
Please let me know if you’re interested in attending a particular session, and I’ll forward you the corresponding Zoom link. The webinar is a great way to learn the important details about OCFA, and a chance to ask questions. I highly recommend it for those who are new to their organizational roles, or for anyone from our new partner agencies. Feel free to invite staff, board members, or volunteers from your organization as appropriate.
- Tell Your Impact Story: Program Evaluation for Fundraisers: Thurs Sept 25th from 10-12 at Bainbridge Performing Arts (BPA)
- Nonprofit Management Mini-Course: Thursdays in October (10/2, 10/9, 10/26 and 10/23) from 3-5pm at BCF
- Succession Planning for Nonprofit Leaders: Thurs Nov 13th from 10-12 at BPA
- Financial Management for Nonprofit Board Members: Thurs Dec 4th from 10-12 at BPA
Lisa
Slides from the Sept 2025 Red Envelope 101 webinar
Click here to view the Google slides from this year’s Red Envelope 101 webinar. One of the most helpful graphics is the below snapshot of our annual timeline, which can be an informative overview to share with everyone at your organization, to help them understand our annual cycle and how things flow with the Red Envelope Campaign:
How to make the most of your partnership with One Call For All?
We have a few ideas, including (but certainly not limited to) the following:
>> Make a plan
Download a Red Envelope Planning worksheet: Red-Envelope-Plan-2025 to complete with your team (board, volunteers, staff) to make the most of your participation in the campaign this year. This is a Word document so you can edit it for your specific needs and add your own ideas.
>> Spread the word
- Incorporate our logos: Right-click on any images you’d like to save and use on your site or in social media.
- Wear/distribute buttons and magnets: We have buttons for your board, volunteers, staff, and donors to wear. They say “Ask me where I give!” (see above) and we hope they will help you spark conversations about what matters most to YOU — your organization. We also have bumper magnets that say “I GIVE!” We’ll mail these out to donors if they request one. Make sure you request one when you make YOUR gift. We hope to see a lot of these around town, celebrating philanthropy!
- White envelopes: We have small reply envelopes for you to use in mailings, in person, and at events. The best timing for use of these would be November and December (or anytime for off-island donors). Let me know if you’d like some!
- Display yard signs: If you have a OCFA yard sign, place it where you work, where you live, at your nonprofit, at a place of business, or anywhere else you think it would help make the campaign more visible. You can return these at the end of the active phase of the campaign, keep them year-round, or store them to use again. If you don’t already have one, let us know. Feel free to stagger your use of them throughout the campaign season. If you have events of any kind (program events, concerts, fundraising events, volunteer events, etc.) bring a sign so that it helps people remember to give. Hopefully it will end up in photos as well 🙂
- Create and display posters: If you have the ability to easily make color copies, you can use the artwork from our yard signs to create posters or visuals that you can display anywhere that makes sense and will help remind people to give.
>> Keep us informed
We’re genuinely interested in the good work you’re doing, and the more we know about it, the more we can do for you. Tell us stories about what’s going on with your agency, invite us to events or for a quick site visit, or just email if you want to share some news or ask for help.
>> Your Board of Directors
Board members are KEY to success in the Red Envelope Campaign. We are happy to have a OCFA ambassador visit your board meeting to talk about this. Please put One Call For All on your board agenda for October, and include this Board To-do list. Give everyone an “Ask me where I give!” button and encourage them to start conversations with friends, neighbors, and colleagues.
>> Paid ads
In the past, many of you have (wisely) purchased ads in the Bainbridge Review special insert section, which will be sent out the last Friday in October. There are also advertising options in PNW Bainbridge and Tideland magazines, ads on the ferry, and the Islander (published by the Kitsap Sun).
>> QR Codes
Email us if you’d like us to create a QR code for you.
This is a great opportunity for touch-free fundraising in person. When someone points their smartphone camera at a QR code, they’ll be automatically connected to your organization’s unique URL, making an online donation on the spot super quick and easy. Great to use on posters, flyers, postcards, etc.! It’s also a great option if you are approached by supporters or volunteers who offer to hold a fundraising event to benefit your organization… they can do this on their own and it’s so low-maintenance!
Be sure to remind people to give to you through OCFA if you’re emailing your supporters. You can use the OCFA logo, Give! icon, or “Remember Us!” icon in any html-created email newsletters or just include a link to www.onecallforall.org if you’re sending an unformatted message. If you’re using a direct link, you’ll want to use your organization’s unique URL; format = https://donations.onecallforall.org/donate/xxx, where “xxx” is your agency’s 3-digit ID#. (If you don’t know yours, find yourself in our nonprofit directory, then click through on the “Donate Now” button.)
>> Printed materials
Be sure to include the One Call For All logo on all printed materials that you send out, including brochures, fundraising campaigns, flyers, posters, event invitation, or annual reports, especially during Q4 (Oct/Nov/Dec) to highlight year-end giving.
>> On your organization’s website
Please include the One Call For All or Red Envelope “Give!” logo, linked to your unique URL on our site. You can also use your own “Donate” button. For your organization’s unique URL, find your organization on our website by clicking on our Nonprofit Directory: https://onecallforall.org/non-profit-directory/ Click on your organization’s name, and then click on “Donate Now.” The page that you see is your unique URL.
If you have a blog, post a story about how One Call For All funds have helped those served by your agency, and link to www.onecallforall.org or your agency’s unique URL.
You may also use the “Remember Us” or “Give!” social media icons. They can be sized to fit other social media icons, so that you can put the red “Give!” button right next to the square Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram buttons.
>> Social media
1. Be sure to like “One Call For All” on Facebook and follow us on Instagram (@onecallforall) both as yourself and as your organization’s page or profile. Once you’ve “Liked” our page, please Share with your personal friends.
3. If you’re into this sort of thing, use these hashtags on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram: #bainbridgeisland #1call4all #philanthropy #whatmattersmost
4. Once you’ve made your own personal gift, change your profile photos to the “I Gave!” icon. Share this with board, volunteers, and donors. Be sure to include your organization in the description of the image, as well as www.onecallforall.org
5. Share photos with us! We’d love to help promote your organization by posting photos and links.
6. Let us know if you have events or activities coming up, so that we can be sure to LIKE and COMMENT on them on your social media pages.
7. Include your One Call For All yard sign in photos that you post on social media.
8. We were very pleased to offer, with the help of the Bainbridge Community Foundation, a Social Media Marketing Training for our partner agencies back in 2016. Though some of the tips & tricks may be outdated, many of them are still applicable! Here are the tools and checklists our presenters developed just for you.
>> Year-End Tips
Download and review our End of Year Toolkit for some ideas on how to make the most of the campaign’s biggest week, the last week of the calendar year.
Donor Data
Your initial 2024-25 data (for donations received 8/1/2024 through 12/31/2024) is now available on the Partner Portal. (Donations received from 1/1/2025 through 7/31/2025 will be part of the final disbursements for the 2024-2025 campaign in August.) If you don’t have your agency’s login and password for the portal, check with your organization’s Primary Contact. If you are unable to find it, email Lisa. Remember that all donors have received a gracious acknowledgement/tax letter from One Call for All, so do not send acknowledgement letters or tax receipts. You may call, email, or send an informal note to thank them, if you’d like. Remember that most donors have given to MANY organizations and do not do not want to be inundated with notes.
Grants, Learning Opportunities, and Other Events
For those who are interested, below are a few opportunities/events of note. Feel free to let me know if you know of something that would be beneficial to share with your fellow Partner Agencies.
- The Bainbridge Community Foundation (BCF) has two annual grant cycles; many of you may be eligible to apply here as well. See https://bainbridgecf.org/grants/how-to-apply-for-a-grant for schedule and more details. The Community Grant Cycle typically opens for applications in late February (their Capacity Building Grants are generally in the Fall); contact Debbie Kuffel at BCF if you need more info.
- The Bainbridge Island Rotary‘s Community Grants application cycle is typically open in October. You can learn more about the eligibility requirements and application process on their site: https://www.bainbridgeislandrotary.org/community-grants/
- The Nonprofit Learning Lab offers free nonprofit webinars on a variety of relevant topics, from fundraising and marketing to IT and DEI; check out their latest lineup.
Previous Posts
2024-25 final disbursements are in the mail!
August 14, 2025
Hello friends,
Following the exciting news that our 2024-25 campaign reached $2.5 million as the year wrapped up on 7/31, I’m pleased to let you know that your checks are in the mail!
Over the last couple of weeks, we have been busy calculating every organization’s individual totals. These disbursements are for all donations received from January through July of 2025 that were designated for your organization, plus your share of the Community Fund* (minus any early disbursements taken). Supporting documentation will accompany your check, so that you can make sense of the accounting on your end, too.
*Any donation of $20 or more throughout the entire 2024-25 campaign (from 08/01/24 through 07/31/25) earned you a share of the Community Fund. This year, thanks to all our donors who contribute to this pool, each eligible donation nets you an extra $4.10!
As for your donor data, we are working to upload it to our partner portal as soon as possible. I’ll send another email with directions for accessing that data when it becomes available, but please know that all donors have been sent an appropriate tax acknowledgement from One Call For All.
If you are continuing as a OCFA partner agency for the 2025-26 campaign, we look forward to working with you in the coming year. More info will follow about upcoming activities in September (Red Envelope 101 webinars) and October (the annual stuffing party). You can always keep an eye on this Partner Agency Resources page, too.
Thank you for everything that you do to enrich our community! We are so happy to support you in your work.
All the best,
Lisa
6 weeks to go in the 2024-25 Campaign!
June 18, 2025
If you’re so inclined, now is a great time to reach out to your donors for one final push for our 2024-25 Red Envelope Campaign. This year’s campaign will wrap up on July 31st, and we’re inching towards $2.5 million for our annual total!
It’s also a great time to remind donors that OCFA is open for donations at any time, from anywhere, in any amount. Charitable giving is always welcome! Just visit our donation page to make an online donation, or download and print out a donation form and mail it in.
More info to come soon as we wrap up this campaign and launch the next!
Cheers –
Lisa
Email: director@onecallforall.org
VM: 206-842-0659
Applications are being reviewed for the 2025-26 Campaign
April 7, 2025
The OCFA board members and I are currently in “due diligence” mode, making sure that everyone who applied is good to go! If any follow-up is required for your application, we will reach out. (If you don’t hear from us, it’s likely that no news is good news.) We will be voting on the slate of partner agencies later this month and will let you know when the process is complete!
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Applications are ready for the 2025-26 Campaign!
March 1, 2025
So apparently this year it was February that came in like a lion and went out like a lamb… which brings us to March! Here at OCFA, March is the month for accepting applications for our *next* Red Envelope Campaign. Yes, it takes a lot of advance planning to have everything ready to go by August 1st.
If you are intending to participate as a partner agency again for this upcoming campaign (8/1/2025 – 7/31/2026), please complete your application by March 31st.
Here’s a step-by-step way to ensure you’ve got all your ducks in a row and that the actual completion of the application will be a snap:
1) Who will complete the application? Check in with the other contacts from your agency and decide who will complete the application, in order to prevent duplicate submissions.
2) Review our Memorandum of Understanding (MOU): Next, please review our MOU (updated for 2025), which you can share with your board or others in your organization to ensure you are aware of the parameters of participation and can commit to the partnership required to be part of the campaign.
3) Start to gather the information you’ll need to complete the application. Have your tax ID # (EIN) handy, as well as necessary contact names, phone numbers, and email addresses of your agency representatives. We’ll also need your mailing address (which may be different from your physical address).
4) Ensure that you are up to date with the WA Secretary of State Charities Division, and determine your renewal date. (Visit the WA SOS Charities site, and use the Charity/Fundraiser/Trust search on the bottom left of the page.)
5) Review how you’re currently represented in the Nonprofit Directory on our site. Find your name on this alpha list and take a peek at the 150-word description; from there, click on the embedded “Donate Now” button and check out your 35-word description.
Once you’ve checked off all of the above, you can find the application here [now closed]. If you’ve got all your info lined up and ready to go, it should only take 10 minutes to complete.
Best,
Lisa
PS – We’ve still got 5 months to go in our current campaign, so don’t hesitate to reach out with questions or for support there, too! It’s true that the biggest fundraising push for us is at year-end… but we do process donations year-round. Our current 2024-25 campaign runs through 7/31/2025 — so there’s still lots of time to encourage folks to give! Donations received from 1/1/2025 through 7/31/2025 will be part of your August disbursements, when you will also receive your shares of the Community Fund (1 share for every donation of $20+).
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Welcome to 2025!
January 21, 2025
Hello all, and welcome to 2025!
Great job on the year-end push by everyone. Lots and lots (and lots and lots) of donations arrived within the final hours of 2024. Whew!
When all the dust settled, our numbers had climbed to $2,350,194.63. Amazing!!
At long last, we have fully reconciled all these donations, and have cut the first round of disbursement checks, i.e. your allocations from this $2.35M received between 8/1/2024 and 12/31/2024. The checks have been mailed over the MLK weekend, and should find their way to you within a few days.
Also, your corresponding (Fall 2024) donor data is now available on the Partner Portal. If you don’t have your agency’s login and password for the portal, check with your organization’s Primary Contact. If you are unable to find it, email me. Please remember that all donors have received a gracious acknowledgement/tax letter from One Call for All, so do not send acknowledgement letters or tax receipts. You may call, email, or send an informal note to thank them, if you’d like. Remember that most donors have given to MANY organizations and do not want to be inundated with notes.
Again, although the biggest push is at year-end, we do process donations year-round. Our 2024-25 campaign runs from 8/1/2024 through 7/31/2025 — so there’s still lots of time to encourage folks to give! Donations received from 1/1/2025 through 7/31/2025 will be part of our August disbursements, when you will also receive your share of the Community Fund (1 share for every $20+ donation).
And if you’re planning ahead, applications for participation in the 2025-26 Red Envelope Campaign (which will run 8/1/2025 through 7/31/2026) will be available coming in March. You’ll hear from me again at that time 🙂
Other Resources
Here are some resources for Board Development: Board Evaluation 2017, Board Job Description 2017, Board Meetings 101
Here are the resources from Katie Davis’s presentation on Strategic Planning: OCFA Strategic Planning Session 4.13.17 core and least core matrix