Results

When Safe Shores was experiencing staffing changes in our development team, I reached out to Spark Point for support navigating the transition. Their thoughtful and systematic approach helped keep us on-track during our hiring search, and they helped us consolidate and organize all of our foundation deadlines and materials to set us up for continued success. They took time to listen respectfully, quickly understood Safe Shores’ mission, and worked seamlessly and calmly to manage deadlines. Just as importantly, we were able to build a strong rapport in a short period of time, making our work together productive and even enjoyable!

Fair Budget Coalition hired Spark Point to help us build our foundation grants pipeline and do grant writing. I was optimistic, but realistic, in my expectations of what we would achieve. Once the pandemic hit, we like many other small organizations feared the financial repercussions to our organization and our ability to secure new funding in the midst of a global crisis. However, Spark Point went above and beyond for us. The results we got blew our expectations out of the water. Not only did Spark Point help Fair Budget Coalition raise more than $165,000 in six months, their team guided me through a number of conversations with new foundation funders that gave me much greater confidence in my fundraising skills and ability to ask for the funding the organization needs for its work. The project had a high return on investment - both financially and operationally. We are now on the precipice of onboarding a second new hire within the past six months, doubling our staff size and capacity!

DASH began working with Whitney and her team in 2019. Throughout that time, I've been impressed by their collective skill in the full-cycle of non-profit fundraising - from strategy design to implementation and stewardship. With a lens on equity and impact, Spark Point took the time to learn the unique needs of DASH and effectively assisted in the delivery of successful high-yield campaign that surpassed year-end target goals by over 20%!

In almost four years working together, Spark Point and Bread for the City have built a strategic and high-impact partnership that has supported our growth from a budget of almost $11 million to more than $15 million.  During that time, Spark Point's team has raised almost $12 million to support our programs and to help us build our Michelle Obama Southeast Center, which opened in early 2021.  Not only are they great partners, but they are truly a joy to work with.  We love Spark Point Fundraising!

At a time when we are in most need to diversify our donors, Spark Point did a great job at understanding the specific needs, values and priorities of CHANGE. We are incredibly appreciative of the professionalism and dedication shown by Spark Point's team- from developing a list of prospects, to writing letters of interests and proposals for CHANGE to pursue with prospect donors, to thorough follow up on tasks.

I was worried we were going to get a distant consultant who would try to apply cookie-cutter solutions to our organization. Instead, Spark Point provided intensely individualized plans, took time to understand our organization, and created workloads that matched our available resources. They made sure we walked away with a plan that we could implement on our own. They were responsive and gave me the tools to be a better fundraiser.

I love Spark Point. They are nimble and results-oriented. They were able to look at the whole picture—the people, the programming, and the day to day cycle of having multiple people come through the doors -- and see where we had opportunities to make even more of a difference. They made me feel emboldened, renewed, and that I could do more for the community.

In working with Spark Point, we gained a relationship with a team that understands our mission and wanted to use their skills and expertise to further that mission. I felt that Spark Point was invested in our work, even though they weren't here full time, and they are approachable, enthusiastic, and professional. Ultimately, we didn't just win a big grant, we gained a partner that we could run things by and a new level of knowledge.

I thoroughly appreciate the creativity, responsiveness, and professionalism that Spark Point brings to their work with FotoDC. I know we are in good hands with them leading our grant writing efforts.

As a small arts organization, funding is for FotoDC is a constant struggle and a high priority. Whitney really took a personal interest in our projects, which I believe gave her AND us the edge to be successful in these applications. Knowing that this part of the job was handled allowed us to focus on programming and our core mission. In effect, Spark Point helped us grow and mature as an organization.

Whitney Brimfield is an excellent proposal writer, prospector, and strategist for approaches to institutional funders, and I know that many clients love and value her work. She undertook a complex diagnostic project for NYU's engineering school—identifying academic and programmatic areas where we might have potential fundraising success with foundations and corporations, and developing approaches for each field. I recommend her highly, and just this week gave her name to someone looking for a great consultant!

Spark Point’s team has a lot of integrity and they really drive for results. They have the ability to establish credibility quickly, address tough challenges, and move things forward. They are very insightful about the ways that different people approach their work, which makes them a great resource and a real thought partner.

Our experience with Spark Point’s Spark Time was invaluable. It gave us a clear picture of where our fundraising activities were lacking and a plan to move forward. The insights and recommendations we gained from the Spark Time presentation helped us make the case to our Board of Directors to increase our investment in fundraising resources. Overall, if you are looking for a solution that helps you take your fundraising to the next level with insight from a highly-experienced fundraising team at a great value, Spark Time is a great solution.

Spark Point was an amazing thought partner and helped us develop a strategy  that was creative, bold, and achievable, and would enable us to raise the funds needed to implement our strategic growth plan. They tailored their work to our unique circumstances, and they brought experience, expertise, and fantastic listening skills, and it led to an incredibly strong set of deliverables -  our growth campaign strategy and detailed plan to achieve our goals  Spark Point was responsive to us at every turn, and we really felt they were “in it” with us. They were great to work with throughout the process and I am grateful for our strong partnership.  If we need to go through another planning process like this in the future, we will definitely reach out to them.

Working with Spark Point is the easiest way to increase our fundraising impact. As an experienced fundraising professional, I know firsthand the stress of managing a complex grant calendar. It can be challenging to balance reports and proposals with individual donor outreach and relationship development. The team at Spark Point takes the stress out of this process. They allow my team to build meaningful connections while seamlessly managing our grant writing and reports. In addition, the staff has the expertise that comes from years of practice in the field. The team at Spark Point isn’t just a group of contractors- they are full-fledged members of our team. They took the time to get to know our organization and our staff on a deep level. I trust each team member because they genuinely care about our staff and our clients. They laugh with us, celebrate with us, and cheer us on through tough times.Investing in Spark Point’s services is an investment in any organization’s future financial sustainability. I wholeheartedly recommend them to any organization navigating the ever-changing funding landscape.

In almost two years working with Spark Point we've been able to refresh and expand our foundation fundraising strategy and bring several new funders into our portfolio. It's been incredibly helpful to have them keeping track of all of the details, giving me and my team time to focus on relationship building and management. We've learned a lot from their strategic guidance and it's led to some big and exciting wins.

I am so appreciative of Spark Point's partnership, optimistic team, and assistance in navigating a complex and competitive fundraising landscape. With Spark Point by my side, I was able to focus on the internal strategy work that my organization needed. They identified almost 50 prospective funders, helped us build relationships, and crafted compelling LOIs. I feel confident that moving forward, we have the fundraising tools we need to be successful. I will certainly miss working with these dedicated, authentic, and tenacious experts!

At a time when we were seeking to diversify our revenue and build our fundraising infrastructure, the recommendations that came from our Spark Time engagement helped set us on a strategic path to pursue our goals. The analysis and recommendations that we received are resources we rely on to meet our needs. We’re grateful to have worked with Spark Point!