Every November, I pull out a stack of thank-you cards, pour a cup of chai, and prepare our clients for giving season.
The Thanksgiving holiday makes it a natural time to thank your donors, volunteers, and team. It also sets you up for year-end success. Donors show up for your appeal when they feel appreciated.
But it’s easy to forget to send thank-yous when you’re swept up in the year-end rush. And it’s too much to try to plan everything on your own.
That’s why you need to engage your board. When given a clear job, they’re one of the best resources you have to help steward donors.
In this blog, I'll share:
Why gratitude belongs in every stewardship plan
Your board's role in year-end giving
My Give, Glow, Grow Framework for board fundraising
Why you may want to rethink GivingTuesday
Scripts and tools to set your board up for success
Here’s to your year-end success!
Why Gratitude Is Essential in Every Stewardship Plan
Americans gave $617.2 billion to charity in 2025, and individuals made up 64% of those donors. That individual share has been shrinking for decades, down from 80% in the late 1980s. That’s why every individual donor you keep matters more than ever.
Timing matters too. 30% of annual giving happens in December, with 10% in the last 3 days of the year. That's a lot riding on a few short weeks.
Here’s why gratitude is so important:
One-time donor retention is as low as 7.4%. Most new donors never give again. But consistent stewardship changes that. When new donors receive a thank-you call from your board within 24 hours, their next gift increases by 39% on average.
Your thank-you is the first touch point in your donor's next gift.
Pro tip: Include your volunteers and staff in your November gratitude plan, not just your donors. A handwritten note to a longtime volunteer or a team lunch before the year-end rush helps cultivate goodwill that you’ll carry into December and beyond.
Want to talk through your thank-you strategy?
Your Board's Role in Year-End Giving
If you've ever thought your board won't fundraise, you're in good company.
Most board members want to help. In my experience, they're uneasy about fundraising because no one has given them clear expectations. They don't want to say the wrong thing or damage a relationship, so they wait.
You've probably heard the old-school board rule: give, get, or get off. It creates anxiety, pressure, and plenty of burnout. So I teach my clients a gentler framework that gives every board member a clear place to start.
It’s called the Give, Glow, Grow Framework.
The Give, Glow, Grow Framework
Give: A Personally Meaningful Gift
Ask every board member to make a gift to your organization that's meaningful to them. The amount is theirs to decide, but you get to set expectations and timing.
Here’s what I recommend:
Make the ask at your November board meeting before the year-end rush.
Name a deadline, such as December 15, so you can share board participation in your final appeals.
Track board gifts as they come in.
Thank board members like any other donor. This not only helps you build a habit, it shows strong leadership.
Glow: Public Advocacy
To glow means that your board advocates for your organization in conversations with colleagues, friends, and family. Their endorsement carries real weight because it’s personal. Your formal newsletter might sit unopened for weeks, but a text from a friend on the board gets read right away.
This November, ask each board member to share a social media post that answers 2 questions:
Why did I join this board?
Why am I grateful to our donors?
This action not only promotes your mission, it gives you a deeper look into why people care about it.
Grow: A Relational Introduction
Ask each board member to introduce 1 new person to your organization this holiday season. That might mean initiating coffee with your Executive Director and a potential supporter or bringing a guest to your next event. Their job is simply to open the door. Your staff can handle the formal fundraising from there.
Rethinking GivingTuesday
Many organizations feel pressure to run a GivingTuesday campaign. After all, everyone else seems to be doing it. Thousands of nonprofits participate from more than 100 countries all over the world. But on a day when so many inboxes are flooded with asks, it's hard to break through the noise.
GivingTuesday also lands right after Thanksgiving. Your staff deserves a break to enjoy their family traditions, without spending the holiday weekend writing and scheduling campaign emails.
So here's what I recommend to my clients instead:
Use GivingTuesday to say thank you.
Invite your board in for pumpkin pie and phone calls. Then give everyone a list of donors to call who gave in 2025 but haven't given yet this year.
A warm thank-you with no ask attached reminds them why they gave in the first place, and it makes them far more likely to renew before December 31.
How to Set Your Board Up for Success
Assign each board member specific gratitude tasks over the course of November and the beginning of December.
These should include:
Thank-you calls with a list of 5 donor names and a 30-second script
Thank-you texts or emails with a short template they can personalize
Social media posts that explain why they joined the board and why they’re grateful for your donors
Here’s my favorite call script template:
“Hi [Donor Name], this is [Your Name]. I serve on the board at [Organization], and I'm calling on GivingTuesday to thank you for your support last year. Because of you, [one specific result happened]. We're so grateful you're part of our mission.”
Most of these calls will go to voicemail, and that's perfectly fine. Leave the same message in under 30 seconds. Your donor will appreciate hearing from a real person at your organization.
Here’s the text / email version:
“Hi [Donor Name], it's [Your Name] from the board at [Organization]. Today is GivingTuesday, and I wanted to thank you for your support last year. Because of you, [one specific result happened]. We're so grateful for you!”
Pro tips for making this go smoothly:
Pull each board member's donor list ahead of time, so nobody has to hunt for names.
Collect notes before everyone heads home, then log every call, text, and email in your database.
The logging might feel unnecessary, but I promise it’ll pay off the next time you touch base with those donors.
Get Support for a Strong Year End
Gratitude might be the easiest fundraising task your board will ever do. It requires zero asking, and it builds the relationships your year-end campaign depends on.
My team can support you with:
Preparing your board for year end
Building a doable stewardship system
Setting clear fundraising expectations
As an outsourced fundraising department for growing nonprofits, we always meet you where you are.
Thank you for the work you do. We see you, and we appreciate the impact you’re making.
