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The power of grantmaker collaboratives in Michigan

A robust nonprofit sector is crucial for fostering resilient and thriving local communities. As these organizations strive to tackle complex social issues—from education deficits to healthcare access—investing in capacity building emerges as a vital strategy. The Great Lakes Bay Region collaborative is a coming together of eight funders across the Great Lakes Bay region of Michigan to support their nonprofit partners with access to talented professional volunteers.

About the partnership

The Great Lakes Bay Region collaborative partnered with Catchafire to provide a scalable way to build the capacity of nonprofits in their local communities. The program kicked off in 2020 with a critical need to support nonprofits and communities during COVID-19. Now in year five of the program, local nonprofits have benefited tremendously from the expertise of volunteers on Catchafire.

The program brings together four counties and eight funders in pursuit of contributing and strengthening the local nonprofit ecosystem. They are:

  • Midland County (Midland Area Community Foundation and United Way of Midland County)
  • Bay County (Bay Area Community Foundation and United Way of Bay County)
  • Saginaw County (Saginaw Community Foundation and United Way of Saginaw County)
  • Isabella County (Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation and United Way of Gratiot & Isabella Counties)

With a 3.2 return on investment (ROI), funders have seen the impact capacity building can have on nonprofits, their operations, and their ability to deliver quality programming to their local neighborhoods.

Impact in Michigan

Catchafire is a valuable resource that enables us to utilize experts in fields that we need help with. To be able to use this network for free, using volunteers who truly want to see us succeed, helps strengthen our own organization with the end result ultimately helping our community- it is a win-win for everyone!

 
Elizabeth H.
Director of Development
United Way
 
 

 

Through this partnership, Catchafire has supported organizations that are often rural and have limited access to capacity building resources. With help from volunteers on Catchafire and over 10,000 hours of expertise given, over 100 nonprofits in the Great Lakes Bay region have received support. Volunteers have created over $1.9 million in value, providing expertise in areas such as data and analytics, website improvements, and marketing materials. This helps nonprofit staff focus on delivering their mission and programming, rather than get tied up in administrative tasks or back burner projects. 

I have been a huge booster of Catchafire since we first were offered a membership!...Our membership sure has kept me focused and interested; it is like having another board member. I have had numerous phone calls which in a short amount of time answered questions I would otherwise spend hours on.

 
Joseph R.
Board President
Bay Community Tennis Association
 
 

 

Catchafire has been amazing. When I sit down to plan my activities for the day/week, I often think about how a Catchafire volunteer can be involved to meet my goals. Catchafire has been instrumental in helping me create development/marketing/donor pieces that I have needed to move my program and our agency forward. I have so much more I want to accomplish with Catchafire!

 
Lindsey R.
Director of Development
Bay Area Women’s Center
 
 

 

We look forward to expanding Catchafire access to more organizations in the region, as these funders continue to build their community impact and capacity support for local nonprofits.

Request a demo 

Interested in expanding your grantmaking and capacity support to nonprofits in your community? Request a demo and speak to a member of our team today to learn more about how Catchafire can support your grantmaking strategy.