Assistance League of Fullerton

Assistance League Fullerton's Strategic Plan Goals (Brief):

GOAL #1: To manage finances prudently and with accountability to meet all federal, and state requirements and to provide funding for Assistance League of Fullerton's philanthropic programs.

Goal #2: To operate meaningful philanthropic programs serving North Orange County.

GOAL #3: To recruit and sustain and informed and engaged membership.

GOAL #4: To increase public awareness and support for the philanthropic work of Assistance League of Fullerton

STRATEGIES FOR GOAL 1: Manage Finances and Financial Accountability
• Optimize Thrift Store cash register procedure.
• Inform committee and chairmen of their budget status.

STRATEGIES FOR GOAL 2: Operate Meaningful Philanthropic Programs
• Meet with clients yearly to ensure their needs are met.
• Keep statistics on people served.
• Be open to new opportunities.
• Inform membership of program effectiveness.

STRATEGIES FOR GOAL 3: Recruit and Sustain an Informed and Engaged Membership.
• Establish a new member mentor program.
• Use social and traditional media for contacting potential and current membership.
• Establish a culture of service through friendship and fun.

STRATEGIES FOR GOAL 4: Public Awareness of our Philanthropic Programs.
• Utilize PR/Marketing Committee to showcase Assistance League Philanthropic Programs.
• Seek credit for our philanthropic programs.
• Establish ties with local businesses.
• Develop products for recognition of Assistance League® of Fullerton Chapter.

The Assistance League of Fullerton currently has over 270 members who volunteer approximately 32,000 hours yearly to support our philanthropic programs and our thrift store. This talented pool of dedicated people brings skills from current or previous careers that uniquely benefit our organization, from diverse fields such as marketing, merchandising, medicine, law, information technology, finance, education, school administration, accounting, and homemaking. The ALPHA auxiliary consists of women currently active in their professions and passionate about supporting philanthropic programs. The ASSISTEEN Auxiliary teenagers volunteer in our thrift shop and support our philanthropic programs, community programs, and fundraisers.

Assistance League Fullerton also collaborates with other local organizations such as Pathways of Hope (serving homeless families) and Women's Transitional Living Center (serving victims of domestic abuse) to address the needs of the local community residents in an era where government funding has diminished and Orange County has seen the homeless population increase by 54% (between January 2013 and January 2017: (http://occhildrenandfamilies.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/OCCIR_2017_web.pdf ). We also work cooperatively with the local colleges, such as California State University Fullerton, where public relations students “marketed" our organization in 2017 (http://occhildrenandfamilies.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/OCCIR_2017_web.pdf) and where we have addressed social media as a means to publicize our thrift shop. We also are active members of the Fullerton Chamber of Commerce and the Fullerton Collaborative which contributes to our success and support by the local community.

We are fortunate to have great community patronage and assistance in providing us with ample in-kind donations in the form of salable goods for our thrift store. Profits from our thrift store, which is owned outright, have been able to provide almost 80% of our yearly budget. Successful fundraisers such as the Taste of the Town are supported by the local community and contribute almost 20% to our annual budget. The Assistance League of Fullerton can donate 81% of our revenue to local philanthropic programs. The capability of stable revenue sources gives us the ability to continue to support our local community and philanthropic programs and live up to our motto: “Caring and Commitment in Action."

Assistance League Fullerton has been in existence continuously for 81 years. The organization started small, raising funds with rummage sales in a local church, and through careful fiscal management, we now own remunerative property (thrift shop) and headquarters from which to operate in Fullerton. Philanthropic activities continue to grow each year, serving more and more children and families in crisis, and addressing additional community needs.

In recent years, Assistance League Fullerton has realized the benefits of reaching out to customers through social media. We advertise weekly thrift shop sales via an email list (customers can sign up for the list in the thrift store) and we have a Face Book page. We could probably increase knowledge of our organization and thrift store by increasing membership in our social media.

Because about 80% of our operating budget is derived from thrift shop sales, we would like to increase yearly thrift shop sales. We have already increased yearly sales through some well-received strategies (Christmas boutique, Art Sale, Store-Wide Sales), but we need to remain creative to new ways to attract shoppers. One technique we plan to try again is eBay sales for fine jewelry and small antiques. We also think we could serve customers faster if we had an electronic scanner cash register (we currently hand-enter prices and sometimes a long line forms because we only have room for one (manual) cash register).

All of Assistance League Fullerton's staff are volunteer and all fundraising activities are fulfilled by volunteers. Our grant writing is undertaken by a volunteer member. We hope and expect to increase fundraising receipts and grant income every year by becoming more creative and working harder.