As each of us celebrates the holiday season with family and friends one can't help but reflect on the tumultuous year the world has experienced. Earthquakes and tsunamis, hurricanes and floods – 2005 has been a terrible year for so many people in so many places. As we respond to the misery of those around the world, however, we cannot forget those who live among us struggling on a daily basis with their own personal health crises.
I'm proud to say, Under One Roof has been able to respond to these events while remaining focused on its mission of generating unrestricted funding for the local fight against AIDS. This past year has been an important one for Under One Roof as we position the organization to significantly increase the amount of revenue it will generate in the years to come. Here are just a few of the highlights of our success in 2005:
• We generated and distributed more than $135,000 to local AIDS service organizations. This distribution amounts to, on average, a 52 percent annual return-on-investment for the 35 AIDS service organizations we support.
• We responded immediately to the devastation felt by HIV organizations impacted by Hurricane Katrina by establishing the Above and Beyond Fund. To date we have raised and distributed $18,000 to six agencies in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
• We launched the "San Francisco Champagne and Sparkling Wine Tasting," a new fundraising vehicle that netted more than $30,000. The evening was an unprecedented success, and we intend it to grow into an annual event along the lines of the Napa and Sonoma wine auctions, which raise millions of dollars for charity each year.
• We hired a new management team; consolidated our customer, volunteer, and donor databases; increased our marketing; rebuilt our online store; tripled our product price-point range; and gave the 'ole store a bit of a facelift.
Despite this success, there is still so much more for us to do. Our AIDS service organization partners are doing critical work with fewer and fewer resources while the number of people in the Bay Area living with HIV/AIDS is growing on a daily basis.Â
The job of each and every AIDS service organization in the Bay Area is to provide direct services to good people in need. Our job at Under One Roof is to increase the amount of funds available to them to do so. We view ourselves as an extension of each and every fundraising department within the organizations we serve and have ambitious plans to do an even better job in the years to come.
Over the next year we hope to:
• Promote our Web store nationally and increase revenue from online sales by 20 percent.
• Explore opening two new store locations in the San Francisco Bay Area.
• Identify cross marketing opportunities with the private sector.Â
• Plan two new annual fundraising events that target individuals not currently contributing to the fight against AIDS.
With your help we can achieve these goals. Throughout the next year, please remember to do all of your gift shopping at Under One Roof – Mother's Day, Father's Day, birthdays, housewarmings – you name it, we've got the perfect gift! Let your friends around the country know that they can shop and fight AIDS at the same time by visiting us online at www.underoneroof.org. Remind them that 100 percent of the profit from each sale goes to the fight against AIDS. Lastly, we'd love to have you volunteer with us! Visit our Web site and sign up for an orientation today.
As the year draws to an end, Under One Roof would like to salute the staff, volunteers, and donors of every AIDS service organization in the Bay Area for their tireless commitment to alleviating the suffering caused by the epidemic. We also want to give heartfelt thanks to each of the 242 Under One Roof volunteers who made 2005 such a successful year for us. Finally, to our donors and customers, thank you for your continued support and patronage. Together, we are all making a difference.
Mike Marshall is the executive director of Under One Roof.