Filling the Void

By Abny Santicola

Advice for Dealing With Economic Ups and Downs

The Food Bank For New York City has seen its share of financial ups and downs. One of the most recent “downs” came in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“Every time there is a natural or man-made disaster anywhere in the country or around the world, we as charities already know that we have to brace ourselves for a decrease in funds coming in for the organization,” Food Bank For New York City President and CEO Lucy Cabrera says, recommending that organizations take the following steps to ride out economic downturns.

1. Plan for a rainy day.
“The organization has to be running as cost effectively and as efficiently as possible during the very good times to get ready for the down times. As long as you have that good infrastructure and system in place, you’ll be able to support the organization and the mission of the organization during those down times.”

2. Follow mission, not money.
“We plan first on where we want to see programmatic growth, and we stick to it. If there is a funder that comes to us and wants to fund a special project and [is] asking if we would be the recipient of that and plan the program, we just don’t do it unless it’s already been part of our plan in the first place. And if that’s the case, then we have a strategy for the fundraising of that particular program.

“Because usually funding for special programs will last perhaps for the one year, and then you’re not able to sustain them for future years and much less during a time of dire economic situation like we’re experiencing today. So really stick to the mission.”

3. Plan, plan, plan — but be flexible.
“Flexibility is extremely important. And having the security in the leadership, and funding and money in the bank for that rainy day, will allow you to be flexible.”

4. Hire the best and brightest.
“The success of an organization — especially a not-for-profit organization — lies in the people who work in the organization and the leadership. Always hire the very best that you can get for your resources. The food bank would not be what it is today if it were not for all of the leaders and workers of the food bank and their dedication to the mission. They’re motivated by the mission and by the people that they serve, but they also motivate each other.”

The bottom line for how to approach the current crisis: Don’t pull back on building visibility and fundraising. To do so would be a disservice to your mission and the people you serve, Cabrera says.

In fall of 2008, the 25-year-old Food Bank For New York City was facing a crisis. A quickly souring economy was a double-edged sword — making for an increased need among people requiring food assistance, and decreased donations of both food and money from businesses and individuals feeling the pinch.

Plus, the economic crisis hit during the organization’s most critical fundraising season, from October to December. In December, food donations were down 25 percent from the previous year and direct-mail donations were off by 14 percent.

Food Bank For New York City provides more than 50 million pounds of food annually to more than 1,000 food-assistance programs throughout Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island. The organization experienced a 40 percent decrease in total food donations in the third quarter of 2008, while a Marist Poll commissioned by the organization and released in December showed that 48 percent of all New York City residents reported having difficulty affording food and 2 million people in New York City who had never before accessed emergency food services worried about needing food assistance in 2009.

For most of 2008, Food Bank For New York City had been in talks with the Robin Hood Foundation about how to get additional food into its system. Robin Hood, which supports innovative, poverty-fighting organizations in New York City, is a longtime partner and funder of Food Bank For New York City. The result of those talks: The foundation approved a $1 million matching-challenge grant to the food bank, which an anonymous donor through Robin Hood then matched again. The grant was restricted to the purchase of food to be distributed to soup kitchens and food pantries throughout New York City, translating into an additional 15 million meals.

Robin Hood gave Food Bank For New York City one year from Dec. 1, 2008, to raise the $1 million for the challenge. It took the organization just one month to hit that mark.

Food Bank For New York City

39 Broadway
New York, NY 10006

Phone: 212.566.7855
Web: foodbanknyc.org

Annual operating budget (2007): $31.2 million

Amount raised in calendar year 2007: $7.92 million

Amount raised in calendar year 2008: $8.163 million plus an additional $3 million in restricted funds received from a Robin Hood Foundation challenge grant for the purchase of food.

About: Founded in 1983 (originally as Food for Survival) to address the growing needs of people seeking emergency food assistance in New York City.

Honors: Received four consecutive four-star ratings from Charity Navigator (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008). Is the first organization to receive two Hero Awards from Robin Hood Foundation (1992 and 2008).

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