PROJECT: WABASH VALLEY TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION
The Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation is a non-profit organization that focuses on protecting the architectural heritage of the Greater Lafayette community.
Every year, the Trust invites members to an Annual Meeting to celebrate the progress made over the previous year. The cost of this event was crippling to the Trust due to the limited attendance at the event. I recommended opening the event to the entire community to raise awareness about the work the Trust was doing and to increase the proceeds from the event, resulting in a 300% increase in attendance. I also suggested hosting the event at the Lafayette Theater, a local landmark which the Trust had recently restored. This allowed them to showcase their work in a tangible manner and eliminated venue costs.
The Trust had been outsourcing the design work for their print materials, including everything from invitations and meeting programs to a book they were producing. To reduce costs for the struggling non-profit, I created these materials using the software available in-house, which was Microsoft Publisher. Ultimately, I discovered a program that offered software and technology to non-profit organizations at significantly reduced rates, enabling the Trust to purchase the Adobe software necessary to finish editing and updating the Trust’s first official publication, “The Resource Guide”, in-house as well.
Every year, the Trust invites members to an Annual Meeting to celebrate the progress made over the previous year. The cost of this event was crippling to the Trust due to the limited attendance at the event. I recommended opening the event to the entire community to raise awareness about the work the Trust was doing and to increase the proceeds from the event, resulting in a 300% increase in attendance. I also suggested hosting the event at the Lafayette Theater, a local landmark which the Trust had recently restored. This allowed them to showcase their work in a tangible manner and eliminated venue costs.
The Trust had been outsourcing the design work for their print materials, including everything from invitations and meeting programs to a book they were producing. To reduce costs for the struggling non-profit, I created these materials using the software available in-house, which was Microsoft Publisher. Ultimately, I discovered a program that offered software and technology to non-profit organizations at significantly reduced rates, enabling the Trust to purchase the Adobe software necessary to finish editing and updating the Trust’s first official publication, “The Resource Guide”, in-house as well.
The Annual Meeting Invitation
Plaque Ceremony Invitation
During Preservation month each year, the Trust hosts a number of activities and events to raise awareness about historic preservation in the area. To increase donations for the Trust, I recommended adding a silent auction to their annual “Toast to Preservation” event, which honors local preservation efforts. Rather than offering items that could be purchased elsewhere, I contacted businesses and government offices in the area to create one-of-a-kind packages for the auction. The best seller for the event was lunch with the Mayor of Lafayette at a local sushi bar.