Our Blog

By Marion Lee, CFRE Most of us have been here before. Throughout our careers, earthquakes, hurricanes, fire and terrorism have dealt our communities and our country blows that resonate with us long after the actual disaster. No one nonprofit is truly exempt...

By Alexis De Sela “He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.”   -- Friedrich Nietzsche We at Lee+ Associates realize that meeting each organization where it is, whether it’s...

By Shannon Kingman “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” asked Alice. “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.” said the Cat. Lewis Carroll’s Cheshire cat of Alice in Wonderland said it best – knowing how to progress...

The Lee+ Associates team recently completed a fun (but surprisingly challenging) poll of some of our favorite things. The resulting responses will give you a snapshot of each of us, including a quirk or two. We hope you will enjoy getting to know us a bit...

By Covita Moroney In working with our clients, particularly in the context of organizational assessments, Lee+ Associates team members consistently encounter nonprofit leaders who fully embrace the importance of demonstrating their program’s impact. My work...

“Summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” --Henry James For most nonprofit staff members, summer typically brings a slight slow-down in program activity, although for some it can be the busiest...

By Alexis De Sela Your Development Director just handed you her resignation. It takes you completely off-guard. You thought this was “the one” who would stay because she was 14 months into her tenure. You had no idea she was looking at other opportunities or...

By Shannon Kingman “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” asked Alice. “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.” said the Cat. Lewis Carroll’s Cheshire cat of Alice in Wonderland said it best – knowing how to progress...

By Amy Phipps If you need a doctor, you wouldn’t choose someone who hadn’t been to medical school. Why then does it seem that nonprofit board members don’t receive the training they need? In a perfect world, board members would be well-educated and informed,...

By Joyce Penland, CFRE Over the course of my time in fundraising, I’ve been told that it’s important in times of chaos and confusion not to bury one’s head in the sand, not to head towards the bunker and not to envelope oneself or one’s organization in a...

By Karen Kegg Batman and Robin, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Bert and Ernie.  These are some of the dynamic duos in pop culture who epitomize a partnership in which each one brings a unique skill to the table to accomplish a goal.  It’s a “dynamic...

By Marion Lee, CFRE The foundation world is changing.  In 2016, across the state, we saw changes in staff and board leadership and shifts in areas of interest and focus in private, community and corporate foundations.  In addition, we heard from foundations...

Marion Lee and her team at Lee+ Associates are revealing the firm’s new name. In announcing the firm’s new name, Lee reiterated that the firm’s passion and commitment to serving nonprofits remains solid.  “The strong foundation begun in 2000 when Mike Bacon...

By Joyce Penland, CFRE As we mark the fourth quarter of the year—typically the most charitable time of the year—we’re reminded that thanking is an essential element of the “giving circle” of cultivating, asking, and stewarding our donors.  We would argue...

By Marion Lee, CFRE Now that we have been through several cycles of annual giving days for nonprofits throughout the U.S., we want to take a closer look at the impact of these special drives and examine whether they are here to stay. As savvy development...

By Karen Kegg Fall is in the air and that can only mean one thing--its gala season in Texas! Fall is the time when charity supporters and party goers get back together after a long, hot summer to celebrate life and support their favorite causes. It’s always...