Book Bites August 2025: Don't Make Me Fundraise!: A Guide for Reluctant Fundraising Volunteers

Why This Book:

Most leaders of volunteers never even think about fundraising and/or chalk it up to be the job of the Fundraising and/or Development Department. Others, when considering volunteer roles, would never even think to have a fundraising volunteer role. This book was eye-opening in that it introduces the notion that you should consider fundraising volunteers and reminds us that board members, who often have a fundraising responsibility, are volunteers.

This book is an easy read with 84 pages. It has powerful anecdotes and is chock full of templates and practical guidance and tools how to create and implement

You Should Read This Book If You:

• Are looking for a new volunteer role for your organization
• Have Board members whose responsibility is to fundraise for the organization
• Want to deepen your understanding of what fundraising volunteers do
• Learn how to assist your Development/Fundraising department with their volunteer needs

Introduction

Chapter 1: Taking the First Step

The author comically reenacts the feeling that most people get when they have to fundraise for an organization for the first time. She captures the moment perfectly, almost sheer panic lol. This first chapter takes the fear out of fundraising and provides a cheat sheet for highly effective fundraising volunteers to ease the nerves of anyone embarking on this journey.

Chapter 2: Assessing the Situation

This chapter provides the background of all the tasks and logistics that have been put into place before you start fundraising on behalf of your organization. This is to provide comfort to you to know that there is a process and support already built in to set you up for success. It also defines different types of campaigns to help you understand the different types of fundraising you may be involved in depending on the organization.

Chapter 3: Planning for Success

My favorite part about this chapter is the “Ghostbuster List.” It is the list of essentially “Who ya gonna call?” during different aspects of your fundraising journey so you know the appropriate person to direct your questions. To be honest, I thought it was a list of people who ghosted you during the process! LOL. This chapter helps you plan your meetings, meeting agendas and how to keep the fundraising process moving. It also reminds you that, “virtually no one gives to a sinking ship. You need to live in the space between “need” and “a positive difference…” and then provides examples of how to position your ask.

Chapter 4: You First

Leading by example is often one of the best ways to convince others to give. If you believe in the cause enough to give yourself, that speaks volumes to others you are inviting to give. The author encourages you not to “give until it hurts, give until it feels good.”

Chapter 5: Know Thyself, Thy Cause, and Thy Prospect

“No matter what type of person you are, fundraising allows you to learn more about yourself.” It teaches you to listen (to understand) and think about ways to express the impact your organization is having. If nothing, you will learn about humility and learn quickly about and understand your comfort zone. All of this plays a critical role as you prepare to fundraise for your organization because it helps your ask come across genuine. This chapter also encourages you to really understand the cause that you are asking someone to support as well as the person or organization that you are asking to support. Research can go a long way to help solidify a gift for the organization.

Chapter 6: Practice Makes Perfect

Practice, Practice, Practice. Just like everything else, fundraising gets easier the more you practice. Practice in the mirror to get comfortable with the words. Then, practice with your family and/or friends, and maybe even colleagues or other volunteers to help get the butterflies out and prepare for unexpected questions and scenarios.

Chapter 7: Push Yourself Out the Door

You have practiced, you have practically memorized the script, but it now comes off as genuine because you really mean the words you have practiced. You have imagined every scenario and practiced answers for that too. You are ready. Now you just have to start. It is like standing at the edge of the diving board and staring into the water. You have done everything to prepare…now it’s time to jump in and start. The great thing about this chapter is she gives guidance so, essentially, instead of jumping off the high dive, with sample scripts and tested tips and tricks, she helps you ease into the process similar to entering the pool through the shallow end and gives steps to help you get to the deep end so it isn’t such a shock.

Chapter 8: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and Now How

You are ready to go! She gives examples and tips on the how along with a checklist of must-have materials to legitimize your ask.

Chapter 9: It’s Not Over Until It’s Over

This chapter is all about follow up. The follow-up after the yes, the follow up after the no, the follow up after the maybe and how to handle the ghosting scenario where you just never hear from them again.

Chapter 10: Conclusion and Lessons Learned

This quick chapter is a recap and condensed synopsis of main lessons learned in the first 9 chapters.

The Last Bite

Before reading this book to settle my nerves around this topic, I considered fundraising as one of the other “F” words. I just wouldn’t say it or use it in a sentence, and definitely not in public. This book has not only eased my nerves but also helped me to better understand what my development colleagues encounter on a daily basis. It also opened my mind up to the possibility of having fundraising volunteers, not only in the development department via the board, but even on a smaller scale, building the role into our overall volunteer engagement strategy for the organization. Who better fundraise for your organization than, as the book points out, the people who are already passionate about your organization and believe in the cause. Done the right way, it can be another way your volunteers can not only support and contribute to the impact in the community, but also to the bottom line of the organization, proving yet another way why volunteers are critical to any organization.

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