Assistance League of Bellingham WA

Our Vision is to be an integral part of a community that recognizes and supports the unique philanthropy that only Assistance League of Bellingham provides through our Operation School Bell, Enrichment Scholarship, Hospital Patient Support and Care Center Support programs.

Goals:
1. Recruit and sustain an informed and engaged membership to ensure the success of our mission.

2. Provide philanthropic programs of excellence that meet community needs.

3. Assure financial sustainability.

4. Create an environment that assures leaders are developed and supported.

5. Develop quality external and internal Marketing/Communications content to assure the success of our mission.

Goal 1: Ensure new members understand our organization. Update/modernize recruitment. Assure continuous education for all. Strive to meet the needs of individual members.
Goal 2: Determine specific program outcomes. Educate public about philanthropic programs. Monitor programs to determine unmet needs in the community.
Goal 3: Develop communication tools to enhance fundraising knowledge for all members. Continually monitor funding sources. Establish and follow an operation and maintenance plan for our facilities.
Goal 4: Provide leadership skills training. Define scope of leadership positions through job descriptions and establish vice chair positions. Create and maintain up to date committee manuals for leadership purposes.
Goal 5: Maintain a strong Marketing/Communication Committee. Maximize Community exposure by developing ongoing relationships with a variety of media sources. Utilize a variety of resources to foster new donors and supporters.

We are a 100% volunteer organization, with the exception of our grant writer, who is an independent contractor. We continually assess the ability of our members to operate our Thrift Shop, fill shifts, and process new donations. This means that we may have to adjust hours of our Thrift Shop and adjust the days we are open to the public since it requires a lot of "people" power to operate. It is our biggest funding source and we do not want to burn out our members, since most of them are retired. We also assess our other funding programs - Yule Boutique and Spring Fashion Show.

We continue to update our technology for educating members, expanding communication, storing important documents, and managing/scheduling our volunteers. We are training members in G-Suite which has facilitated and supported these processes.

In addition, we updated our Thrift Shop processes for taking in donations, processing donations, storage, and selling items. We are using a new cash register system (Clover) which keeps track of sales and items in a more organized manner.

Our training of new members has continually improved with new classes and processes to assist them in becoming knowledgeable and effective members and leaders.

Our new Teen Team program provides new clothing to high school students who are experiencing homelessness in Whatcom County. We collaborated with high school counselors, and there were over 200 homeless youth in Whatcom County public high schools! Supporting these students is very important to us and high school students are now included in our Operation School Bell.

We currently have developed a new programs called Eating Healthy, which supports youth to attend camps to learn how to grow and prepare fruits and vegetables. The camp is currently operated by Common Threads.

Our education program for members is improving and making a difference. We have sent people to conferences, and we are mentoring new members more extensively. New members are feeling more comfortable taking on responsibilities.

Our marketing program is reaching more community members. People come into our Thrift Shop and report hearing about us from marketing efforts we have developed.

Continued work is needed in all areas, but specifically as we identify new programs to support and the impact on our volunteers.