OTF Grant Helps Hospice Dufferin Re-Invent Fundraising and Communications Plan

In 2021, Hospice Dufferin received a $77,400 Resilient Communities Fund grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation to hire a Resource Development Communication Coordinator. This position allows Hospice Dufferin to update their donor relations plan and increase their visibility in the community by supporting digital marketing, fundraising and community outreach strategies.

“Hospice Dufferin provides our community with compassionate end of life and bereavement programs and support for their clients and families and loved ones. The Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Resilient Communities Fund recognizes the challenges non-profit organizations like Hospice Dufferin have had in providing these important services safely during COVID-19,” said Sylvia Jones, MPP Dufferin-Caledon. “This grant will help Hospice Dufferin continue to develop programs and resources to meet the needs of clients and families during and after the pandemic.”

Hospice Dufferin is responsible to raise 40% of its operating budget, and following the onset of COVID-19, the organization was unable to continue with traditional in-person fundraising events. The Resource Development Communication Coordinator is helping Hospice Dufferin adapt its fundraising strategy for a COVID-altered world, re-inventing and strengthening the fundraising plan while diversifying revenue sources.

In addition to creating new fundraising strategies, the Resource Development Communication Coordinator will communicate with donors and potential donors to keep people engaged with Hospice Dufferin and expand the organization’s audience. They will also develop a communication plan that includes social media campaigns, enhance volunteers’ fundraising skills through mentorship and training, and establish an evaluation tool to measure the effectiveness of new strategies.

The timing of this grant is essential to Hospice Dufferin. A pandemic is a time when palliative and bereavement support has never been more imperative in the community. The Resource Development Communications Coordinator will work alongside our volunteers to build capacity and community in the organization.

"The impact of this Ontario Trillium Foundation grant cannot be underestimated,” said Maureen Reidler, Executive Director at Hospice Dufferin. “This grant is very much needed for our organization. With the demands of palliative service during a pandemic, our organization needs someone in this position to focus on our fund development and help support the demands of our current employees’ workload.”

Funds raised go directly back to creating programs and services to help empower people living with life-limiting illness, their caregivers and the bereaved to live fully in the face of challenges. Visit hospicedufferin.com to learn more.

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations. Last year, nearly $112M was invested into 1,384 community projects and partnerships to build healthy and vibrant communities and strengthen the impact of Ontario’s non-profit sector. In 2020/21, OTF supported Ontario’s economic recovery by helping non-profit organizations rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19. Visit otf.ca to learn more.