Friends

Friends of any nonprofit organization are a group of people who belong to a kind of "club" which activities serve to benefit the nonprofit they're associated with.

Friends groups can do a multitude of things to help their nonprofit. They can:

Organize fundraising activities
Set up membership drives, which money benefits the organization
Manage a thrift store or other profitable enterprise

Friends are often confused with volunteers, and rightly so. Many times, a person serves both groups. The main difference is that Friends are geared toward such things as fundraising and promotions, while volunteers are there to make the organization work more smoothly, performing duties for free that wouldn't get done otherwise. Friends may do that as well, and so it's easy to see how they can be confused.

Let's put it this way: Volunteers come under a managed heading, scheduled for definite times and duties for the organization. Friends pretty much govern themselves, often apart from the jurisdiction of the organization.

The business aspect of a Friends group is that they have a board of directors, complete with president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and so on. They must account for the money they raise, and at their discretion they give that money to the organization they sponsor to help achieve certain goals or provide certain necessities. They generally have dues to pay, and sometimes members are given certain privileges for belonging.

Ideally, a Friends group has a database of members that needs to be overseen and keep current. It records memberships, renewal dates, types of memberships, appeals, and much more. Thank you letters should be sent out as receipts for dues, notices need to be sent for special events and activities, and possibly a newsletter ought to be created and mailed as well. It can be a simple or complicated proposition.

A Friends group, despite all the work it seems to entail, is a highly valuable resource for any nonprofit organization. In times of dire straits, these people can mean the saving grace for a nonprofit, rallying together to round up necessary funding at the last minute. They can hold regular fundraising events and donate the bulk of the proceeds to your group. They can be some of the best ambassadors you'll know.