Housing Families First - Erin Rebmann

Housing Families First Fundraising Initiative

In partnership with Housing Families First, a Richmond-based non-profit committed to helping families achieve housing stability, our team at Madison+Main developed a comprehensive fundraising initiative. This project was a crucial step in their recent rebrand, helping to broaden their outreach and secure vital funds to support their mission.

My primary responsibility was to lead the creative and technical development of the campaign’s digital and print assets. I designed, developed, built, and maintained the user-friendly landing page that served as the primary donation portal. Additionally, I assisted in the creation of compelling direct mail collateral and digital assets for social media, ensuring a cohesive and effective strategy that resonated with potential donors and encouraged community involvement.

The Challenge

Doing good work doesn’t always guarantee recognition or the funding needed to continue helping people. This is a common challenge for many nonprofits: creating brand awareness and converting those efforts into solid fundraising. With the number of at-risk families in the Richmond community growing, we stepped in to help this worthwhile organization build its profile and, more importantly, secure funds to help more families and sustain its mission for years to come.

The Approach

In addition to helping with branding, marketing, and public relations, we assisted Housing Families First with their “Opening Doors For Families” capital campaign, which was designed to raise $4.4 million for facility upgrades. We also helped the Housing Families First staff take their grant proposal process to the next level by creating custom templates and producing a special video appeal specifically for the Robins Foundation

The Result

The “Opening Doors for Families” campaign was a huge success, and the organization reached its goal in August 2022, thanks in part to a generous $2.5 million grant from the Bezos Day 1 Family Fund. Our assistance with Housing Families First’s proposals and the video we produced also helped them land a generous $500,000 Community Innovation Grant from the Robins Foundation. The organization has also received numerous positive media mentions in the Richmond region, and their executive director is now a go-to on-camera media resource for local stories involving homelessness or the housing crisis.