Los Alamos Historical Society

Providing Structure, Training, and Direction

Background: The Los Alamos Historical Society (LAHS) was a small-town museum struggling to grow beyond their limited staff and facilities. A new community opportunity on the horizon spurred an interest in growing their member base, expanding their programming, and improving their fundraising productivity. Past campaigns had underperformed, and they were eager to understand why and to address weaknesses directly with a new campaign and different strategy. LAHS had an Executive Director, but no fundraising staff and a board that had not done a campaign before. Additionally, there had never been a successful campaign in this community.

Solution: Together, The Compass Group and LAHS executed a Planning Study to identify the right campaign strategy and created a campaign plan specifically for their circumstances. Compass provided the necessary structure, training, and direction for this small but worthy organization to maximize this opportunity and raise more money than any other nonprofit in the community. Compass adapted Campaign Management service to the unique needs of LAHS.

Success: The campaign provided invaluable education for the board and staff to develop a culture of philanthropy as well as skills to further the goals of the organization. LAHS had their most successful year-end campaign to date. They have established a healthy and growing membership base and honed their story to inspire and engage new supporters.