GPF Silent Auction Team Hits a Home Run – Grant Professionals Foundation

By Becky Jascoviak, GPF Silent Auction Team Coach

Aristotle said, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

The individual “parts” that make up the Grants Professional Foundation are pretty incredible on their own, but put a group of passionate, service-oriented, step-up-to-the-challenge grant pros together on a team and you get a whole lot more “whole” to the individual “parts”.

That is what I witnessed as the GPF Silent Auction Team Coach, as I dubbed myself. I dislike the term committee because “nothing ever gets out of committee”, and task force just seems overused. So I opted to call our group a team, and just as the coach leads and guides and trains, but doesn’t get to play – I was challenged to do the same. After taking the reigns as team lead, I found out I wouldn’t be able to attend the GPA National Conference. What to do? “Should I stay or should I go now?”

I believed in our team and I let go of a bit of control (hard for some of us control-freaks to do :-)). We met via conference call monthly because our team members were based in Alaska, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Indiana, Ohio, and Georgia – that’s a whole lot of time zones to work across.

But this coach couldn’t be more proud of the team!

And just like the grant isn’t wholly dependent on the grant writer, but relies on the programs, directors, and beneficiaries, so did our team. They relied on each of you. You donated items and experiences. You made connections to partners and other organizations. You bid and bought and donated at the Silent Auction directly. You, each of you, made the 2016 Silent Auction the most successful fundraising event the Grant Professionals Foundation has ever had!

The Silent Auction raised more than $8,100 to support scholarships for GPA membership, GPC exam fees, and attendance at the conference as well as regional conference scholarships. The money raised from the event provides:

Memberships in GPA for 40 grant professionals to learn, network, and hone their craft.
Exam fees for 15 grant professionals to sit for the Grant Professionals Certification exam.
Registrations for 9 grant professionals to attend the annual GPA conference.
Sponsorships for 8 regional GPA conferences for grant professionals to connect locally.

A grant writer’s work is not done when the grant is submitted, there comes planning and program evaluations and so much more. And our team’s work must continue as well. We are already gathering our team for the 2017 GPF Silent Auction at the conference in San Diego next November. How would you like to be part of this highly successful silent auction team? Contact Heather Stombaugh, GPF President, to join today.

If you weren’t able to attend the conference but would still like to support your fellow grant professionals you can give directly to the work of the Grant Professionals Foundation at www.grantprofessionalsfoundation.org/give-now.

Thank you team! Thank you volunteers! Thank you donors! Thank you bidders!

Thank you all for all you do as part of the worldwide grants team – Together, we’re making the world a better place, one grant at a time.