Recession strategy: Shore up relations with grant makers

Easter Seals Colorado, in Denver, is embarking on a yearlong effort to get in touch with more than two dozen foundations and state agencies that have long provided 25 to 30 percent of the charity’s operating budget.

“At every meeting I go to hosted by a foundation, they’re saying they are not so impacted in 2009, but 2010 will be a different story,” explains Lynn Robinson, chief executive officer of Easter Seals Colorado.

Giving by individuals has already dropped by 15 percent, she says, so those donations will not make up for the foundation losses the organizaiton is likely to face in the coming years..

“I am going to meet with as many funders as I can to make sure they understand we are not taking them for granted,” Ms. Robinson says. “I am also writing them a letter to talk about the internal steps we are taking.”

Those steps, she adds, include canceling raises for the organization’s staff members and looking for other ways to cut costs without reducing services in any significant way.

In addition, Ms. Robinson says that she has armed herself with statistics, showing that Colorado is 46th among the 50 states in the amount the state provides to aid people with disabilities.

In some studies, Colorado also ranks at the bottom in charitable giving, even though its per-capita income is in the top 10 among the states.

“Funders need to know: The fact that citizens and the government are not overly generous means that nonprofits are picking up the tab for services to special-needs populations,” says Ms. Robinson.

— Holly Hall and Paula Wasley