As of Dec. 2, federal employees had contributed $30.6 million to the participating charities this year. For the CFC of the National Capital Area, which represents employees working in and around Washington, D.C., contributions stand at around $15 million, which tracks ahead of 2019 contributions by 15 percent.

According to CFCNA Local Federal Coordinating Committee Chair Vince Micone, that number represents about 50 percent of his region’s goal for this year.

Although the CFC solicitation period, which runs from Sept. 21 to Jan. 15 this year, is more than halfway over, reaching half of the fundraising goal at this point in the campaign is significant, as donations tend to see a notable uptick in the last four to six weeks of the campaign.

“Like any charitable giving campaign, the end of the fiscal year is a big time for contributions. People are in the holiday spirit, they’re looking to get a gift for their community organizations as they get gifts for family and friends,” Micone told Federal Times, adding that people also have tax deductible donations at the top of their minds during this time.

Giving Tuesday, which occurs on the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving and encourages all Americans to donate to charitable causes, also marked a strong day of donations for CFC this year, with the whole campaign raising over $3.7 million and CFCNA raising $1.8 million, up 38 percent from last year.

“This campaign has exceeded any of our wildest expectations on how well that it’s gone this year. We were a little bit nervous, because we were moving the campaign pretty much solely into a virtual space, which we’d never done before,” said Micone.

Those virtual activities included online kickoff and fundraising events, as well as a greater social media push.

“We’re talking about CFC in the same forums where people are keeping up with family and friends. People have just really responded to how we switched up how we’ve managed the campaign,” said Micone, noting that the CFC kickoff event received 10,000 impressions, when the in-person event is usually lucky to get 500 attendees.

“We think that the future of the campaign is going to include a lot of virtual activities.”

On social media, CFCNA promoted the “lemon face challenge,” which encouraged donors to take a video of themselves biting into a lemon and making a “face of change” while pledging to donate through the CFC giving mobile app.

On top of the financial measures, that virtual focus has also yielded success in encouraging a wider range of employees and retirees to contribute, as Micone said that 25 percent of donors so far have been new to the campaign.

And though much is different about the way CFC has been run this year, the honorary chair for the 2020 campaign has remained the same, as Peace Corps Director Jody Olsen has taken up her third consecutive year at the head of CFC.

“I personally think there’s great value in having an honorary chair around for several cycles, because it really helps them to build a greater understanding of what we’re doing and allows them to be greater advocates among government leadership ranks on why this is so important,” said Micone.

“Dr. Olsen is just an amazing leader and having the opportunity to work with her for several years has just been fantastic. She has been a great advocate going to several agencies, talking about CFC to various employee groups.”

Boosts to employee giving this year could help turn around what has been a steady decline in CFC contributions over the last several years. The 2009 campaign, for example, raised a record $283 million, while the 2019 campaign a decade later raised $86.4 million.

“Because of the nature of what we do as public servants, we understand that there’s great need out there right now. We see it every day: the pandemic has just turned people’s lives upside down. So federal employees are responding by giving through the CFC,” said Micone.

After a later-than-expected start last year, CFC organizers also added a later-than-usual deadline, extending the giving season through Jan. 12.

This year brought a new online portal that allows donors to pledge online. The system allows all federal employees to donate via payroll deduction, credit and debit cards, and eCheck payments.

In addition, the Office of Personnel Management was allowed for the first time to solicit federal annuitants and military retirees to continue to use the CFC for charitable giving, with recurring gifts from their annuity. Federal employees, service members and retirees also were able to pledge volunteer time, not just cash, to CFC charities.

While the solicitation campaign periods vary by location, all donors have until Jan. 12 to pledge, whether online or via a traditional pledge card, postmarked by that date.

This year’s campaign theme is “Show Some Love.”

The Military Family and Veterans Service Organizations of America has 69 participating charities, compared to 70 in 2016, while the Military Support Groups of America has 62 in 2017, compared to 64 in 2016, said Patrick Maguire, whose Maguire/Maguire firm provides support services for the federations as well as 20 other independent charitable federations.

New to the MFVSO is the FourBlock Foundation, which offers a career readiness program for veterans twice a year in major metropolitan cities around the country. The semester-long, university-accredited program provides professional development, career exploration and network and mentorship. The foundation was accepted by the CFC earlier this year.

New to the MSGA, the Fleet Reserve Association Education Foundation (CFC #80236) provides scholarships to eligible service members and veterans of the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard and their family members. Each year, the foundation presents scholarships totaling about $100,000.

The foundation offers a variety of scholarships up to $5,000 for those seeking undergraduate and graduate degrees, with some targeted toward specific groups and others offering broad eligibility criteria. Awards are given based on financial need, academic standing, character and leadership qualities.

“This is the first step in expanding the program and awarding more scholarships each year,” said Joe Barnes, president of the foundation‘s board of directors. “This is the first year we’ve been accepted into the Military Support Groups of America. We’re excited about that.”

Being part of the federation hopefully will expand the awareness about the foundation for both potential scholarship recipients and potential donors, and increase contributions, he said. The foundation has been part of the CFC since 2012 as an individual organization, not as part of a federation.

Donations to the military federations have fallen, even when compared to the declining CFC totals overall: Pledges to MVFSA groups dropped by 14 percent in 2016, down almost a million dollars to $5.9 million. MSGA pledges fell 16 percent over that span, from $2.5 million to $2.1 million.

Overall CFC giving dropped 6 percent in 2016, from $177.8 million the year before to $167.1 million.

There has been a decline in giving for all military charities in recent years, Maguire said. “partly due to the decline of the CFC and partly due to donor fatigue, I suspect, but I really don‘t know.” The federations don’t get enough information from CFC to offer informed speculation on the decline, he added.

“The CFC is hugely important to the military charities, for obvious reasons,” Maguire said. “Those charities have made a significant investment to continue in the campaign, and they are counting on CFC givers to respond favorably to the changes in the CFC that make it a much better giving alternative.

“Our biggest concern is that after so many years of the ‘business as usual CFC,’ potential givers might not appreciate what a huge change the campaign is embarking on, and why it is a valuable benefit to them and to the participating charities.”

A new CFC fee structure requires nonprofits to pay their share of CFC campaign costs upfront. In previous years, a portion of the donation was kept by CFC for campaign costs before the money was distributed to the charity.

The goal is for 100 percent of all donations to reach the charities. The CFC also has attempted to help donors make better informed decisions by requiring charities to provide information such as the administrative and fundraising rate, or AFR — the percentage of dollars spent on expenses other than services.

There’s a specific category for these organizations on the CFC portal’s front search page. A quick search of a few installations showed donors could direct their dollars to youth programs at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas; Army Child, Youth and School Services at Fort Belvoir, Virginia; the Airman and Family Readiness Center at South Korea’s Osan Air Base; and the Fisher House at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California.

Donors can search for these organizations at specific installations on a pulldown menu. These programs have a different application process than private civilian charities seeking to join the CFC; for example, the application must include a letter from the installation commander signing off on participation in the campaign.

For several years, federal employee donors have been able to pledge money to charities that provide services in specific areas, regardless of where they lived. For example, a donor in Virginia could give money to an organization in California. But this is the first time a prominent search feature specific to organizations on military bases has been available.

It’s not a complete listing of military installations; there’s a preponderance of Air Force bases compared with other services. Not every base listed has an organization associated with it that is accepting CFC donations. And there appear to be some glitches: It’s not clear, for example, why the Fisher House in San Diego pops up as an organization associated with U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz in Germany.

Donors can use multiple search variables to zero in on charities of interest. They can search by charity name, CFC number, keyword, category, geographic area, campaign zone and administrative and fundraising rate, or AFR. That rate represents the percentage spent by the charity on expenses other than services.

The website also allows donors to search for charities with volunteer opportunities available, as the CFC now allows donors to pledge to volunteer their time for specific groups.

The installation-related charities are a small percentage of the total charities participating in the CFC. Those seeking military-related charities in the private sector can choose from 131 combined groups in two federations, the Military Family and Veterans Service Organizations of America and Military Support Groups of America.

Thousands of other charities support causes in the local, national and international communities ranging from the arts and culture to animal issues to medical research.

“I have no idea how the new website giving platform will affect military charities, but I can say that in recent years online giving has resulted in higher participation rates and higher average gifts, according to [the Office of Personnel Management],” said Patrick Maguire, whose firm Maguire/Maguire provides support services for 22 independent charitable federations, including the two military-related federations. “However, at the federation level we have had no way of knowing which gifts were made online and which by paper.”

Different CFC zones have operated websites that allow donors to pledge online; this new portal is expected to consolidate information for donors, save operating costs and increase efficiency.

The donor pool starting this year will include retirees, who will be able to pledge to their favorite charities through CFC and donate through deductions from their government annuities.

The CFC has gone through major changes this year, and there have been delays. The annual pledge season started Oct. 2, a month later than usual, and its end date has been extended to Jan. 12. Local campaigns choose their time frame within that window for agencies to solicit pledges from their workforce.

OPM delayed the drive’s start to give local CFC zones more time to incorporate program changes, and also allowed a grace period for charities locate in areas affected by recent hurricanes.

Although some local CFC zones have started their pledge season, donors weren’t able to make pledges until the complete list of local, national and international charities was made available Monday.

Nearly half of the charities that participated in 2016 won’t return, said Patrick Maguire, whose Maguire/Maguire firm provides support services for 22 independent charitable federations.

Two of those federations — Military Family and Veterans Service Organizations of America, and Military Support Groups of America — combine to represent more than 130 charities that took part in last year’s campaign, from the Fisher House Foundation to the Semper Fi Fund to the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, better known as TAPS.

“Most of those that left the campaign were local charities,” Maguire said. “The military charities are hanging in to see how 2017 goes.”

Smaller charities may have bailed, he said, because a new fee structure requires nonprofits to pay their share of CFC costs upfront, rather than earmarking a portion of each donation for campaign management.

The goal is for 100 percent of all donations to reach the charities, but the result, Maguire said, is that some charities would have to pay more in upfront fees than they might collect from the campaign itself.

“I understand that about 25 percent of those listed had historically received no designations at all, yet the campaign had to absorb the costs of their participation nevertheless,” he said.

DELAYED START, UNFINISHED DETAILS

As of Wednesday, the Office of Personnel Management hadn’t approved the final list of charities in the federations that Maguire’s firm supports, he said, though he couldn’t speak for other outlets. OPM did not immediately respond to questions regarding the release of the full list.

They also didn’t have a start date for a proposed web portal that will allow online giving worldwide, to include an online search engine to find specific charities or types of charities. This system will be a more secure way of giving for the donor, Maguire said, and will reduce administrative costs for the campaign.

These delays continue despite the entire program being pushed back a month to an Oct. 2 start date (its end date, Jan. 12, is also later than normal). OPM delayed the start to give local CFC zones more time to incorporate program changes, and also announced a grace period Sept. 29 for charities located in areas affected by recent hurricanes.

Local campaigns choose their time frame within that window for agencies to solicit pledges from their workforce.

“It’s been a confusing transition,” said David Coker, president of the Fisher House Foundation. “But the thing I like about CFC is that it lets donors decide, and lets people participate through workplace giving, which is one of the most effective ways people can support the cause they believe in.”

He said the web portal’s delay was concerning, and that “donors may go there once, and not return if it’s not open yet.” He also expressed worry that small charities leaving the CFC “might be the ones most vulnerable to not being able to keep their doors open” without campaign donations.

Still, Coker said, “CFC has always been very kind to us, and we will participate this year if we are allowed.” His organization hasn‘t received the final list.

Other CFC changes include:

• Post-service solicitation: OPM may solicit military retirees and federal annuitants for charitable giving through CFC with recurring deductions from their retired pay. Information was not immediately available from Defense Department officials about how that solicitation will be handled for military retirees.
• Ban the bake sale: Cash won’t be accepted for CFC at events or fundraisers. Instead, events will focus on increase employee awareness of CFC charities.
• More ways to give: Federal employees will be able to pledge time to volunteer with CFC charities, as well as pledging money.

“The credit for the success of the CFC campaign goes to the people who contribute,” Coker said. “CFC is still a tremendous blessing for us. We remain hopeful it will continue to be so in the future. Every contribution really does make a difference for those causes people choose to support.

“Don’t give up on it.”

In 2015, overall CFC participation was 12 percent, the lowest ever recorded, May said. The decline in donations to these military charities mirrors the overall decline in CFC donations since 2011, he said. The hope is that the new CFC will bring renewed interest in donor participation.

Since 2011, when the donations reached $280 million from federal employees in the overall Combined Federal Campaign, giving has declined by more than $100 million, to about $180 million in the 2015 campaign. More than 20,000 local, national and international charities take part in the Combined Federal Campaign. By affiliating with various federations of charities serving similar populations, charities are sometimes easier for donors to locate.

This year there are seven new member charities in the Military Support Groups of America federation, bringing that total to 63. The Military Family and Veterans Service Organizations of America, which has been in existence longer, has 70 member charities, no change from last year.

Those charities new to that federation are:

• Dolphin Scholarship Foundation
• Tailhook Educational Foundation
• Comfort Crew for Military Kids
• Pat Tillman Foundation
• Armed Forces Aid Campaign
• Purple Heart Service Foundation
• Help Our Wounded

In the 2015 CFC campaign, the Military Family and Veterans Service Organizations of America received $6.7 million in donations, a decrease of 19 percent from the 2014 campaign. The Military Support Groups of America received $2.4 million, a 26 percent increase over the 2014 campaign. That’s attributed to an increase in the number of member charities that year, and a better position in the CFC giving brochure, May said.

At this year’s campaign kickoff on Sept. 14, Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work said Defense Department employees’ contributions are 67 percent higher than the national average in the annual Combined Federal Campaign, according to a DoD press release. The national average CFC contribution is $340, and the DoD average gift is $540, he said.

During the 2015 CFC campaign, members of the military and DoD civilians accounted for more than $80 million of the total $180 million in donations overall.

Last year a prolonged government shutdown and extensive furloughs cut donations to the lowest levels in more than 15 years — falling from $258.3 million in 2012 to less than $210 million in 2013. But while campaigns are optimistic they will beat last year’s goals, contributions might not reach earlier years.

Lou Nistler, the executive director of the National Capital Area CFC, said last year was a unique situation and giving fell because federal workers were concerned about the personal impact the shutdown and budget cuts might have.

“I’m convinced that the 2014 campaign will meet, and likely surpass, what we raised last year,” Nistler said. “We can count on them to again support their favorite causes through the CFC.”

Donations within the National Capital Area CFC fell from $61 million in 2012 to $51 million in 2013. This year’s campaign goal is set at $52 million, but Nistler thinks the campaign will exceed that.

James Fish, the chairman of the Central California CFC, said their goal this year was to beat last year’s $629,000 in donations. The campaign is aiming for $800,000 in donations.

“I am not worried that the donations will drop even further this year,” Fish said. “Our federal employees know the impact of the CFCon the local community and I feel in my heart, they will rise to the challenge this year.”

While the overall Combined Federal Campaign does not set any goals, local campaigns are off to a good start this year, said CFC Director Keith Willingham.

He said local campaigns set individual strategies and timelines for soliciting contributions, and it is still too early to tell if there are any increases or decreases in giving.

Lisa Makosewski, executive director of the Eastern Pennsylvania and South Jersey CFC, said last year’s campaign was a struggle to overcome the challenges of the shutdown and the widespread furloughs of employees.

“We have not had those difficulties this year, and we are optimistic that we will exceed last year’s totals,” she said.

Chris Conklin, the executive director of the Hawaii-Pacific Area CFC, said he was hopeful the campaign will meet or exceed its goals.

“The government shutdown and other financial/budgetary pressures on federal agencies and employees made the 2013 campaign especially challenging, and we are hopeful that the 2014 campaign will not be as disrupted,” Conklin said.

Roxanne Hosein, the vice chair of the New York City CFC, said while overall donations fell by 19 percent in 2013, donations in the local New York City CFC fell by only 2 percent. Last year the CFC raised $1.9 million and set a $2 million goal for 2014.

“Our agency leaders have given their support in our CFC efforts and our key workers are engaged. We are confident that we will meet our goal and hopeful in exceeding the plan,” she said.

Elizabeth Comeau, the director of the Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts CFC, said the campaign only saw a 10-percent drop in 2013 instead of the national average of 19 percent. She attributed the drop to the government shutdown, which forced the CFC to cancel all but one of its kickoff events.

But she said she was confident the campaign would exceed last year’s levels, and that the 2014 kickoff season has been a success so far.■