Grow With Us

Donor Open House

Event Proposal
December 7 2018
Suzanne Fraser

ALLEY ST.
LOUIS
ELENA
COHOLAN
JONATHAN
HYNES
ROHINI
SUNDAR
SHANNA
TALLER
CONTENTS

Introduction
Background
& Rationale
SWOT
Analysis
Event
Description
& Activities
Event
Schedule
Budget
Promotional
Plan
Facilitation
Plan
Conclusion

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Introduction
The Grow With Us
event aims to
showcase the new
Youth Services Bureau
building by presenting
it to current donors
and employees.

INTRODUCTION

Thank you for providing us with the opportunity to present you with the
proposed Grow with Us event.

Promotional events are extremely important for

achieving organizational goals as they allow for
face-to-face interaction with your audience. Which
allows for creating a more personal relationship.

According to G2 Crowd, creating this type of

relationship can ensure a future relationship with
clients (McCabe, 2018).

It is a win-win situation for both the client and the

organization -- the client gets to have an enjoyable
time, while the organization continues to build
their client base.

We propose to hold an Open House event for the new YSB youth
housing development opening in early Fall 2019. The purpose of
this event is to not only showcase the build, but to appreciate
the YSB’s current donors for their financial contributions that
made this building possible, and the YSB employees that work
tirelessly to help Ottawa youth in need.
 Background
AND
Rationale
What is the YSB? What does it do? Who does it benefit? Well, for those who have
never been exposed to their work, these may be the reality of questions faced. The
Youth Services Bureau has been serving youth and their families since 1960.

BACKGROUND In regards to youth beneficiaries, the Youth Services

The pleasure was had to
meet with Ms. Suzanne
Fraser back in September
of 2018. Although there
are so many visions of
how to impact the lives
of youth, the discussion
was able to narrow down
some vital goals and
objectives the Youth
Services Bureau has for
both short term and long
term.
Bureau is one of the largest non-profits in the Ottawa
community. During the last almost 60 years, the Youth
Services Bureau has sought always to put youth first
because they are at the very core of the work conducted.
By establishing a space for them to feel comfortable, youth
are then allowed to develop their vision, their own needs,
their desires, and what they aspire to be. This creates a
better life for them and a better outcome for the next
generation (Youth Services Bureau, 2018).
All actions taken are to impact better the services
provided, their accessibility, and how they affect the
recipients. Within all of these services, there is a goal in
ensuring all these spaces are accessible and safe for the
youth of every background and walk of life.

In being available, it leaves room for early and meaningful engagement today so that
youth do not get so far off track tomorrow. With safe spaces in mind, the Youth Services
Bureau has the goal of establishing sufficient housing available to all youth who require it,
at any point in time. Lastly, these services would be unable to be provided without the
support of employees, leading to our next goal, which is ensuring employees have a
better understanding of the impact they are having and why their work is especially
important.

Once goals have been laid out, it is always essential for objectives to be made to establish
objectives as steps to attain this goal. Ms. Fraser expressed a handful of the objectives
currently in place. When speaking to establishing more safe spaces for youth, one of the
objectives was to ensure donors for the second build on a lot adjacent to that where they
are currently building a youth apartment hub. With donors in mind, there is an objective
of creating stronger connections to help promote long-term support. Lastly, with the goal
of benefitting the morale of employees, who may be overworked as the front line
supporters, there is an objective to make available more opportunities for employees to
witness first had their work in action, in whatever capacity they work within.

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 Background Rationale

BACKGROUND irstly, she listed the donors, to share in appreciation for

their support and with objectives in mind, communicate
the need for support for the next build specifically.
With the Youth Services Secondly, the community was listed as a potential target
Bureau knowing audience. This was for a variety of reasons but specifically
themselves best, insight to establish communication between the Youth Services
was desired as to who a Bureau and the Ottawa community as to what purpose
variety of audiences they the YSB serves and avoid backlash, specifically NIMBYism
felt could be targeted (“Not In My Back Yard”), which is a reaction some may
when planning an event. share about the topic of youth homelessness.
Ms. Fraser was able to
communicate four key In addition to the community, she thirdly listed the
audiences that she employees. There is a series of goals and objectives about
thought would benefit appreciating the employees for their work, and she felt
from an event planned that targeting them for the event would only benefit their
on behalf of the Youth association of impact and importance within their work.
Services Bureau.
Lastly, as always, targeting the youth as an audience. Youth
Services Bureau makes, and therefore it would be fitting to have them as a target
audience. More specifically, she stated youth that has transitioned out of the housing
program, for them to share in their experience, and witness how far they have come
(Fraser, 2018).

In order to facilitate the event planning, we decided that the best SMART (Specific,
Measurable, Achievable, Reasonable, Time-bound) objective for the YSB would be:
‘To share the success of the current build with current funders and further develop
partnerships for the next build by the event of the event. ‘

RATIONALE
We are targeting 50
donors, which will be
measured based on the
number in attendance of
the event. We wanted to
keep a focus on both the
current build and how to
benefit the next one. We
decided that our primary
target audience should
be the current donors of
the YSB Youth Housing
Program.
“When asked about the reasons for donating, the vast
majority (91%) of donors said they felt compassion towards
people in need. The other reasons often cited include the
idea of helping a cause in which they believed (88%) and
wanting to make a contribution to their community (82%)”
(Statistics Canada, 2015). Therefore, we believe that the
current donors have full intention of supporting the YSB
Youth Housing Program to support the current and
potential future build.
Our purpose for us while formulating this event was to
ensure the continued support from established donors
as well as to share the success of the current build with
donors and employees alike. The goal of the event is to
bridge ongoing donor support over into the aid of the
future build.

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SWOT ANALYSIS
WHAT IS A SWOT ANALYSIS?
A SWOT Analysis is a study of an organization that
identifies its internal strengths and weaknesses, as
well as external opportunities and threats.

We have conducted a SWOT analysis for the YSB

to best determine how to run a successful event.

Each box in the graphic belows contains 3-4 brief

strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Each of these components will be discussed in

detail in the upcoming section.

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SWOT ANALYSIS
strengths
1. Internal supports to maintain
relationships with donors.
The YSB has a foundational
administrative group whose
mandate it to develop relationships
with donors.
3. Well respected community
organization.
The YSB is already well proven in the
community with the target
audience we are seeking to attract
(current donors). They are already
engaged with the YSB.
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2. Diverse donor base and contact
list of donors
The YSB has well formed, easily
accessible list of donors ready at any
given time.
4. Committed employees to the
cause of youth homelessness
Based on our secondary target
audience, employees of the YSB are
already very committed to and
passionate about the cause of youth
homelessness. They work tirelessly
to ensure youth are the priority.
SWOT ANALYSIS
weaknesses

1. Over-extended front line

employees
Having employees over-extended in
terms of workload and emotional
strain may impact their enthusiasm
for participating in the event.

2. Limited capacities and funding for

an event
Being that the YSB is a non-profit
organization, they do not have an
unlimited budget to spend on
events, and must have items
donated.

3. Large capital campaign recently

completed.
Recently recruited and invited
donors may impact their attendance
to events.

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SWOT ANALYSIS
opportunities
1. Impactfulness of client personal
stories on donors
Client/youth success stories can help
attract donors and increase their
motivation to keep donating to the
cause
3. Large community discussions
surrounding homelessness.
With donors and YSB employees,
youth homelessness is a top of mind
topic. This can be used as an
oportnity to strengthen relationships
with current donors.
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2. Completed new housing build
The new youth housing build is
completed which can be used as an
opportunity for donors to visit.
4. Strong political ties and
relationships
Having ties with political figures in
Ottawa can attract donors, as they
are typically strong leaders in the
community as well. This creates a
better reputation for the YSB.
SWOT ANALYSIS
threats
1. Negative press or community
reaction to opening of new house
There have been other organizations
that have dealt with NIMBY (not in
my backyard) reactions that have
inevitably garnered negative media
coverage.
3. Multiple time demands on
existing donors.
Donors undoubtedly have other
time commitments which are
important to them. This may hinder
attendance levels at the event.
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2. Competing youth programs in
Ottawa
While there is an opportunity that
youth homelessness is top of mind,
there might be other programs in
the city tht are trying to compete for
donors.
4. Multiple relationship demands on
existing donors.
Similar to the third point, donors
have family and friend relationships
that also may hinder their
attendance at the event.
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EVENT
RECOMMENDATION
AND
DESCRIPTION

The event that we will be hosting is an Open House for the new YSB youth housing
building. The event will take place inside of the new building in a space near the
hub area which provides all the resources youth need within the building. It will be
held in late September 2019, from 3:00-5:30 pm. This is an appropriate time of day
as it will not particularly conflict with a guest’s work day and will be easy to attend
before commuting home for the evening.

We believe that showcasing the new building’s impact on youth, and appreciating
the donors that have made this build possible is very important. In addition to this,
we hope that this engages and strengthens relationships with current donors to
support future builds. Since the event will be held mid day, we suggest Premium
Hors D'Oeuvres to be served along with non-alcoholic beverages.

During the meeting with Suzanne she mentioned that she wanted the event to be
anything but cookie cutter, and that is why we have come up with four main
activities to be something unique and memorable for the guests. These activities
are aimed to strengthen relationships between the YSB community and
employees with current donors. We have ensured to keep in mind the theme of
“growth” when we were coming up with these activities.

ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES
MAINTAIN AND CONTINUE TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH CURRENT DONORS

HAVE THE EXPECTED NUMBER OF GUESTS IN ATTENDANCE

HAVE OUTSTANDING FEEDBACK OF THE NEW BUILD FROM CURRENT DONORS

OBSERVE AN EXPECTED INCREASE IN EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION

 EVENT ACTIVITIES

We believe that holding an event in the new YSB building and involving
employees, will help strengthen future connections with current donors through
activities during our proposed event. Additionally, it will increase employee
motivation by letting them take part in the event while also being appreciated.

While researching event ideas, we came across a foundation that had success
with an event similar to ours. In 2013, a Vancouver based foundation called Central
City Foundation partnered with another local foundation called Aunt Leah’s Place
to host a grand opening ceremony to welcome Aunt Leah’s Place to the
community. The event included light refreshments and dessert, and had many
political figures in attendance (Central City Foundation, 2013). The event was a
success, and was a great way to showcase a new foundation in the community.
We as a group were able to translate some of these ideas to our own event
activities, which you see below.

SILENT AUCTION KEYNOTE SPEAKER

BEHIND THE SCENES VIDEO

GROW WITH US: FLOWER

PLANTING CEREMONY

BUILDING TOUR

SILENT
AUCTION
Our first activity is the Silent Auction. The auction will be starting while the
current donors and employees are being served Premium Hors D'Oeuvres and
helping themselves to non-alcoholic beverages. The purpose of the Silent Auction
is to help offset some of the costs of the event as well as encourage engagement
and excitement amongst guests. Additionally, Silent Auctions are also a way to let
other businesses get more familiar with the organization which can also lead to
further support from them for future events as well (Joe Garecht). A number of
items will donated by community sponsors for example possibly attaining Ottawa
Senators tickets or Nordik Spa day passes. The silent auction winners will be
emailed around a week after the event to pick up their item(s).

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EVENT ACTIVITIES
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Keynote speakers have the ability to promote an event better and at the same
time increase the target audience’s engagement. Thus, we feel that it is beneficial
for the Grow With Us open house to have keynote speakers that would provide
valuable information. We have identified three keynote speakers for the Grow
With Us Open house that would best relate and connect to our target audience.
The first being, Patti Murphy, the executive director of the YSB charitable
foundation. Patti Murphy will begin the keynote speaker session by representing
the YSB organization and enlightening the audience on how the YSB has excelled
this far in relation to the current build. Secondly, getting a youth who has
benefitted from the YSB youth housing program to share their first hand
experience would be an excellent way to show how the new build can provide a
platform for more success stories. Lastly, having the city councillor, Riley
Brockington, give a few words would help enforce a sense of welcoming of the
new YSB house in the Riverside community.

BEHIND THE SCENES VIDEO

After the keynote speeches have concluded, a Behind-the-scenes video will be
shown to commemorate the efforts of current donors as their contributions play a
major role in the success of the YSB. The Behind-the-scenes video will
compromise of snippets showing what donations are being used for and how they
have impacted the organization tremendously.

GROW WITH US: FLOWER PLANTING

The ‘Grow With Us’ flower planting ceremony will be the event that instills a great
significance in the donors’ hearts. Donors’ would be able to leave their own
personal mark in the new build. Each donor will have the opportunity to plant a
flower in the garden of the new build. Apart from contributing immensely to the
YSB organization through donations for the new build, donors are now able to
leave a physical mark that is meaningful. This enforces, encourages and signifies
the idea of further growth within the YSB community.

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EVENT ACTIVITIES
BUILDING TOUR
There will be tours conducted of the new build to showcase the finished product
to current donors. This tour will be done by YSB employees in rotation by splitting
the current donors in smaller groups. This allows for engagement between YSB
employees and the current donors. With the building being presented as brand
new, the current donors will be able to see the resources that the YSB intends to
provide to incoming youths and what progress it plans to give to them. From our
research that we have done on the new YSB housing program, we have learned
that the donors of the new build will have their names prominently displayed
outside each studio unit. We will be bringing this up during the tour of the new
build to let donors know that the YSB appreciates every single contribution made
by them.

GROW WITH
US: OPEN
HOUSE
EVENT SCHEDULE
TIMELINE

3:00 - 3:45 3:45 - 4:15

H’orderves and light beverages will Keynote speakers will begin their
be served. Once event attendees speeches and the behind the scenes
have settled in, the silent auction will video will be shown to current
commence. donors and employees.

4:15 - 5:15 5:15 - 5:30

There will be an hour time frame for We expect the event to end
current donors to tour the new YSB between this time.
building as well as participate in the
Grow With Us flower planting activity

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EVENT
BUDGET

This portion of the report will focus on the financial aspect of the proposed
event. Please keep in mind that all prices were found from various event
planning websites all located in the Ottawa area. The links to each website
where prices were found will be at the end of this section.

Depending on the final number of guests and food plan, the budget will be
approximately between $2,940.00 - $ 3,730.00. We as a group kept in mind that the
YSB does not want to exceed a $5000.00 budget, so we made sure we kept well
under that amount. We wanted to ensure that we are only spending money where
absolutely necessary, and not taking it away from the youth in need.
EVENT BUDGET
INCOME (SILENT AUCTION)
As mentioned in the event description, we will be holding a silent auction at this
event as a way to offset some of the costs of the event, or to simply fundraise
more money for the YSB and future housing buildings. The YSB would be
receiving donations from different local companies, and be auctioning them off to
the guests. We have not yet determined how much will be receiving from the
silent auction yet, as we do not yet know what items will be auctioned off, and
how much they will be sold for. This will be determined at the end of the event,
but we hope to raise at least $750.00.

EXPENSES
DESIGN AND PRINTING
For the event, we will be sending out formal invitations to our potential guests. We
will need to have the invitations printed out, and will likely do it from a local store such
as Staples. We will need to have between 75-80 invitations printed out, which will cost
us around $120 to do. We would also like to have at least 2 large banners at the event,
with the title of our event on them. These would cost $40 to make. Making the total
cost of design and printing approximately $160.

VENUE AND DECOR

The event will be held at the new YSB youth housing building, making the cost for the
venue free.

Simple decorations will consist of balloons around the space, and will cost
approximately $20.00. Since there is a decent amount of room for extra costs in the
budget, we can add more decorations if desired.

For the flower planting ceremony, we will be needing to buy many plantable flowers.
We are thinking of having one flower plant for each donor, which will cost
approximately $125. We will also need to purchase around 80 packets of flower seeds
to attach to each physical invitation sent out, which will cost around $1.50 per pack,
with a total of $120.00 for all 80. These can be purchased at a nearby Canadian Tire or
Walmart.

To capture moments for guests and the YSB’s social media we will need to hire a
photographer. Photographers can be costly and charge by the hour, but they tend to
give better rates to Non-Profit organizations. Keeping the discount in mind, the
approximate cost for a photographer is $160.00-$200.00 per hour.

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EVENT BUDGET
EXPENSES
VENUE & DECOR (cont.)
To allow guests to mingle freely and feel comfortable, we will need to have 15 high top
cocktail tables at $12.00 to rent each, 5 large rectangular tables at $7.00 to rent each,
and 80 folding chairs, at $2.00 to rent each.

We have added an extra $50.00 in case other decorations or tables are needed. The
total for venue and decorations will be between $850.00-$890.00.

FOOD & BEVERAGE

For the food and beverage for our event, we decided to go with premium hors
d'oeuvres and desserts as well as non-alcoholic beverages.

Based on the average cost of catering companies in Ottawa, we determined that for
premium hors d'oeuvres, it will cost between $15-$20 per person. Desserts coffee and
tea will cost $5-$10 per person, and soft drinks and juice will cost $2 per person.

Assuming that there are 75 guests, the cost of food and drinks will be between
$1650.00-$2400.00.

OTHER
Other costs for the event will include audio visual equipment for the video portion of
the event, such as microphones speakers, projector and projection screen. After our
conversation with Suzanne, we were told that most of the A/V equipment could be
donated in-kind. If not, here are some rental price options. Microphones for $20.00, a
projector for $120.00, a projection screen for $100.00 and speakers for $40.00. The cost
of these items will total $280.

TOTAL
Depending on the final number of guests and food plan, the budget will be
approximately between $2,940.00 - $ 3,730.00. We as a group kept in mind that the
YSB does not want to exceed a $5000.00 budget, so we made sure we kept well
under that amount. We wanted to ensure that we are only spending money where
absolutely necessary, and not taking it away from the youth in need.

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EVENT BUDGET
SOURCES
Catering:
1. https://www.ajscatering.com/menus/appetizers
2. https://thymeandagain.ca/catering-by-thyme/
3. https://epicuria.ca/catering/events/

Tables and Chairs:

1. https://chezlilipartyrentals.ca/catering/table/
2. http://www.ottawaspecialevents.com/
3. http://mmecanada.com/

Photographers:
1. https://amgphoto.com/corporate-rates/ (Gives 20% discount to Nonprofits)
2. https://shawnpeters.ca/pricing

A/V Rentals:
1. https://www.advantageav.com/
2. https://freemanav-ca.com/contact/locations/ottawa/
3. http://www.ottawaspecialevents.com/

PROMOTIONAL PLAN

For the promotion of the “Grow With Us - Open House” event, we have laid out a
three month communication process. Beginning two and a half months before the
event and ending two weeks after, we have specified three points of contacts for
both donors and employees prior to the event and one point of contact after. We
have assembled the promotional plan in this way, to be enticing yet respectful of
the all those who are invited to attend the open house.

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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

After conducting research and realizing that multiple facets of communication

with invitees in beneficial from a communication standpoint. Pauline van den
Berg states “We hypothesize that contact frequencies with all modes are higher if
social network members have a very close relationship”(van den Berg, 2010) which
is why we don’t want to bombard clients with communication, but with our smart
objective in mind, we want to create stronger relationships. We have added
optional points of contact that we feel would give great additional support to the
promotion should RSVP numbers be lower than anticipated.

WITHIN THE CALENDARS, DONORS WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A BLUE FLOWER

AND EMPLOYEES WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A YELLOW FLOWER.

2 MONTHS PRIOR TO EVENT

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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

WITHIN THE CALENDARS, DONORS WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A BLUE FLOWER

AND EMPLOYEES WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A YELLOW FLOWER.

2 MONTHS PRIOR TO EVENT

DONORS
Communication with attendees will begin two months before the event. The email
list should be acquired from pre-existing collections of donor contact information.
These will consists of a simple message informing recipients of their invitation to the
event and according details. The e-vite should contain limited information as it is a
placeholder for the physical invitation they will be receiving. Throughout the entirety
of the promotional plan, the theme of “Grow With Us” will be exemplified as per the
theme of the event. There is various websites, including www.e-vite.com
(http://www.e-vite.com), to customize an evite for free or low charges. Additionally, an
RSVP should be attached in order to receive preliminary numbers of attendance for
those who feel confident about their attendance this far out. Websites like
www.rsvpify.com (http://www.rsvpify.com) can be used to collect this data free of
charge.

EMPLOYEES
Should send an email notification out approximately two and a half months in
advance of the event. We would encourage an email notification be sent out to all
employees that would benefit from attending the open house, specifically those who
work within Youth Housing initiatives. Details of the event should be shared with
them and meeting notifications can account for attendance. The main message
should be to encourage them to see for themselves the impact they have had and
how important their work is to the YSB.

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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

WITHIN THE CALENDARS, DONORS WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A BLUE FLOWER

AND EMPLOYEES WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A YELLOW FLOWER.

1 MONTH PRIOR TO EVENT

DONORS
Physical Invitations should be sent out approximately 4 weeks prior to the event. The
main message should consist of “Come and see how much we’ve grown” “Thank you for
helping create such a beautiful space for us to grow” basically sticking with the theme of
grow with us but combining it with feel good messages that entice the donors to want
to attend the event. These physical invitations are hoped to communicate the time and
effort that went into inviting these donors to attend and what they truly mean to the
YSB. This physical invitation should offer all the details of the event including the date,
time, location, some highlights of activities (to spark preliminary interest) as well as the
RSVP link in order to record attendance numbers. Many mediums are accessible for
creating and purchasing these invitations however, the example highlighted in the
mock ups is from Vista Print who offers great floral templates for invitations.

OPTIONAL: Should attendance numbers remain low after the initial two points of
contact, we would encourage an invitational phone call to be conducted two weeks after
invitations are sent out. This phone call communicated personability, connections, and
the time and effort taken to ensure their importance is known. We would encourage this
phone call to communicate passion for the event and the YSB and transfer excitement
over to the donors. This also gives donors the opportunity to confirm attendance in real
time and ask any questions they have prior to attending the event.

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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

WITHIN THE CALENDARS, DONORS WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A BLUE FLOWER

AND EMPLOYEES WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A YELLOW FLOWER.

1 MONTH PRIOR TO EVENT

EMPLOYEES
Send out another email notification to employees. Remind them of the event and why it
is important for them to attend and share in the success of the current build and
reignite excitement for future builds. This notification should again relay all the details of
the event as well as a way of confirming attendance. Should employee numbers be low
within the youth housing section, consider expanding out to other departments in order
to share in the success of the YSB as a whole.

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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

WITHIN THE CALENDARS, DONORS WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A BLUE FLOWER

AND EMPLOYEES WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A YELLOW FLOWER.

MONTH OF THE EVENT

DONORS & EMPLOYEES

Two weeks prior to the event we would encourage you to send out one final
communication with donors as a reminder that the event is taking place in 2 weeks. This
communication should encourage RSVP as soon as possible within one week. This one
week deadline of RSVP stands in place so that event organizers can confirm attendance
numbers. The message should also consist of an encouraging last message that would
show the attendees the importance of the attendance at the event. This message could
be “We cannot wait for you to witness this growth for yourselves” which stays with the
theme, implies that we believe they are coming, and all that will be there to witness at
the event.

COMMUNITY
We would encourage social media posts to be shared either a week prior or the week of
the event. We understand that the YSB’s donor community does not necessarily want
attention put on them, and with respect to that these posts will be highlighting the
event for the work put in my donors (all encompassing) and employees in order to
establish a great new establishment within the community in support of youth
homelessness. It brings awareness to the cause, is a reminder to attendees if they see it,
and is something that can be shared within the community in order to combat any
negative stigma that could be associated with an establishment or event such as this
one.
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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

WITHIN THE CALENDARS, DONORS WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A BLUE FLOWER

AND EMPLOYEES WILL BE REPRESENTED BY A YELLOW FLOWER.

DAY OF THE EVENT

DONORS & EMPLOYEES

During the event, continued promotion is encouraged. We want to encourage the
reason we are all in attendance, we could be facilitated through conversations between
donors and employees, but also through social media. Having a live stream of pictures,
tweets, and video depending on platform preference, would be a great way of
interacting with those who could not be in attendance that day or for those who wish to
promote and share their experience after leaving the event. It communicates how
important this event truly is to the YSB and the efforts that will be taken to connect with
the intended audience in any medium they necessary. Additionally, even if the event has
been completed, the interaction with this audience does not have to. A thank you post,
not necessarily highlighting names for those who wish to remain confidential, would be
able to highlight the reason for the event, the impact attendees had prior to, and
publicly thank all for their contributions in (sticking with the overarching theme) helping
us grow. This post could contain a few highlight pictures and even inside the building,
which also gives the community and better understanding of what has been established
within their neighbourhood and why it is beneficial.

ONE WEEK AFTER EVENT

DONORS & EMPLOYEES

A thank you email is a great way of ending communication in regards to the event. It
should once more communicate what this promotional plan intended to all along, that
these attendees, whether they be donors or employees, are worth the time and effort to
appreciate. This email should show appreciation for the time and effort taken by
everyone that was in attendance both before and at the event. This message should
contain pictures if applicable, highlightable moments, and most importantly relist how
they have impacted the YSB and the youth housing initiatives and how their support,
from both employees and donors alike, means so much.
The love and support for these efforts has let youth grow in a way that they may
have never thought possible before. “Love is the flower you’ve got to let grow” - John
Lennon.

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PROMOTIONAL PLAN

EXAMPLES

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FACILITATION PLAN
In order to ensure that our ‘Grow With Us’ Open House event runs smoothly, there
are some considerations we must address regarding the organization, promotion,
planning and facilitation of the event. Proper facilitation of this event will include
the following key elements, outlined in the playbook on a month to month basis:
JUNE TO DO’S
Must confirm that construction is on
time with the new build, to ensure
the event space will be ready in time
○ If it is not ready in time, we may
have to push the event date back
● Create a list of potential attendees
based on our target audience and
gather their contact information from
existing contact lists
○ Organizing this list early will allow
for an idea of how many guests will
be in attendance so that the planning
process goes smoothly
● Begin thinking of and contacting
potential keynote speakers, keeping
back up speakers in mind
○ Keep following up with speakers
to confirm attendance
○ Important to do so early so that
you can properly schedule your event
PLEASE REFER TO ATTACHED
APPENDICES FOR A DETAILED
PLAYBOOK OUTLINING EACH ITEM.
JULY TO DO’S
● Pick up invitations and begin to
address them with donor’s
information
● Begin drafting and sending out the
first round of emails that will be sent
out to donors and employees
○ Doing this early will ensure
attendance and allow guests to free
up their schedules
○ Will peak the interested of guests
● Begin contacting companies for
catering, photography, and tables
and seating
○ Contacting companies early
allows for getting quotes at many
places and getting the best option
AUGUST TO DO’S
● Pick up seeds and attach them
to physical invitations
● Finalize catering companies and
prepare order
● Determine a chair and table
company that will be used for
rentals
● Hire a photographer based on
best price discovered in July
● E-mail employees a reminder of
the event
● Send the physical invitations to
donors
● Begin searching for volunteers
via e-mail.
26
FACILITATION PLAN

In order to ensure that our ‘Grow With Us’ Open House event runs smoothly, there
are some considerations we must address regarding the organization, promotion,
planning and facilitation of the event. Proper facilitation of this event will include
the following key elements, outlined in the playbook on a month to month basis:

SEPTEMBER TO DO’S EVENT TO DO’S

● Confirmation of ● Collect all supplies and equipment
○ Email script to set up for event
○ Keynote speech topics ● YSB Representatives and four
○ Final numbers for catering and employees set up supplies and
arrival time day of equipment
○ Voluteenter attendance and ○ (includes tables, chairs, AV
arrival time day of equipment, flowers and silent auction
○ Tech arrival time and anticipated items)
set up ● Ensure AV system and microphone
○ Table and chair arrival time and are working properly by conducting a
anticipated set up Sound Check
○ Photographer and arrival time ● Walk through the event space in
○ Social media outline the new building to ensure that all
● Communication via decorations, supplies and equipment
○ Email with final reminder for are in proper place before guests
attendees to RSVP arrive
○ Social media post about the ● Greet guests as they arrive
event to the community ● Follow event schedule as it
● Print progresses
○ Speeches ● Thank the guests for their
○ Name tags attendance as the event comes to a
close
● Pack up all supplies and equipment
to be set aside for pick up that was
arranged prior with suppliers

PLEASE REFER TO ATTACHED

APPENDICES FOR A DETAILED
PLAYBOOK OUTLINING EACH ITEM.

27
28 CONCLUSION
The Grow With Us
event aims to
showcase the new
Youth Services Bureau
building by presenting
it to current donors
and employees.

INTRODUCTION

Thank you for providing us with the opportunity to present you with the
proposed Grow with Us event.

Remaining under budget, we expect that the Grow

With Us: Open House Donor Event will aid your
organization in achieving both its short term
objectives and long term goals.

By placing emphasis on donor and employee

relations, the event will maintain long term
support for the YSB housing program.

Most importantly, the event will aid in keeping

youth homelessness off the streets. As tertiary
benefits, we expect that the event will also aid in
breaking stigma surrounding youth housing.

Thank you for your time and supporting us through the event
planning process. It has been a pleasure working with Suzanne
Fraser and the YSB organization.

We look forward to assisting in future event facilitation and

management partnerships with your organization.