What You Should Know: Fundraising for Women’s March on Washington

The minute I learned of the original Women’s March on Washington, I booked my tickets to DC. (Yes, that’s an overjoyed me on the day of with Gloria Steinem.) A few days later, I jumped on a call for volunteers in Washington State. I went to that first meeting with ordinary intentions: a few hours here and there for a cause I believed in. I left chairing fundraising with my trusty side-kick, friend, and niece, McKenzie Wilson. I had minimal experience fundraising, but having run NRG for twenty odd years, I thought I was resourceful enough to pull it off.

Don’t know? Google it.

Quality over quantity

Focus, focus, focus!

Find other experts who are willing to help. Shout out to Suzanne Ragan Lenz and Karen Besserman. They both helped us get super clear that we were not going to get big donations from businesses: this cause was too political, with too little notice. The small donations from community members were key!

Organizing this was like creating a start-up, pop-up business in less than two months. With over 1,500 volunteers, there was no time-efficient way to vet people. We took them at face value. Sometimes that worked out great, and sometimes not so much! What’s for sure is that one great volunteer is better than ten flaky ones.

When you do something in a volunteer group, make sure that everyone works within their own area of responsibility. We brainstormed day one, wrote a mission statement day two, and when ideas arose that were not related to our mission, we created a “throw” document to toss these thoughts to the correct team.

Be Aware of taking on sensitive issues.

Your experience isn’t the only one.

Many women don’t have a very powerful relationship with money. Actually, the emotion around money is very disempowering for many. I was stunned at how much suspicion there was because we were raising funds. How did organizers think we would pay for porta-potties, barricades, sound equipment, and expenses around safety? I wasn’t volunteering my hours by the hundreds to waste donor money. This suspicion was stunning. To this day, there is still a huge disconnect among organizers who felt it was inappropriate to inquire about logistical information for our insurance. (More on this subject in subsequent blogs.) Really amazing learning experience for me.

I made many lifelong friends! But those who are not counted among them are those passive aggressive Seattle attitudes. Every politician and community volunteer knows what I am talking about! This idea that we are liberal and nice is an overstatement when it comes to most people. I love that we have ripped the band-aid off of our racism, sexism, etc. and have to stare it DOWN. But, heal yourself! Lots of folks are showing up to this movement (and others) with wounds that can’t be mended with a march. They want to organize around their issues. An organizer is a steward. They should keep in mind more than just their own experience. Otherwise their power, scope, and perspective is limited!

This was a fascinating way to spend a quarter of a year. It was equal parts painful and joyful! I urge you to use your talents, whatever they may be, to get involved in some way. No matter what your politics, this is our democracy. Maybe it is just being better informed! Maybe it is joining a neighborhood watch. Maybe it is subscribing to some of our watchdog press. Maybe it is voting with your dollars by buying from a women owned business (hint, hint!). Whatever avenue you choose, it is not too little. We are all in this world together! And I am so happy for it.