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Posts Tagged "fund raising"

Zimfest Off-Year Fundraising Campaign

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Association Friends and Members:
We hope that you are enjoying your summer and that you are finding ways to enjoy Zimbabwean music and culture despite the lack of a festival this year. The Zimfest Board is making great progress on our off-year activities including: identification of a more sustainable and easier to maintain registration software system; broadening our approach to Zimfest marketing to reach new participants while ensuring strong attendance at future festivals; reviewing potential changes to festival structure in the interest of Zimfest sustainability; and considering new sources of income for Zimfest. We hope that you have already marked your calendars for August 9-12th, 2018 for next summer’s Zimbabwean Music Festival which will once again be held at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, Oregon. Over the coming months, our Festival Coordinator, Claire Jones, will begin the process of recruiting an organizing committee. We hope that you will consider volunteering! Please reach out to by writing volunteers@zimfest.org, or directly to Claire at claire@zimfest.org if you are able to help.

As we’ve noted in the past, no organization can survive without financial support, and the Zimfest Association is no different. We need your help to survive! Towards this end, we would like to announce the start of our off-year fundraising campaign which will continue through the end of the calendar year. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to help us continue to put on the best Zimbabwean music festival in North America. A strong fundraising campaign will help ensure that we go into our next festival in a strong financial situation. The funds raised will be used to help bring Zimbabwean teachers and guests to the festival, to help grow our endowment, and to raise operating funds for specific needs such as supporting the transition to our new registration software. If your company supports matching donations, please don’t forget to complete the paperwork which would allow your company to match your contribution – often dollar for dollar.

We hope that each of you will consider a donation – no amount is too small (or too big)! We would like to appeal to bands in particular to consider raising funds for Zimfest during your summer performance season. In addition, if each of you can find a willing donor within your extended network it will greatly assist us in strengthening our financial position. Contributions are tax-deductible in the 2017 tax year. Please visit the Support Zimfest page on our website (https://zimfest.org/about/support-zimfest) for instructions on how to donate. You may also wish to initiate or renew a Zimfest Association membership on the Membership page (https://zimfest.org/about/membership).

Thanks for all that you do to make Zimfest a success.
Best wishes from the Zimfest Association Board

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Zimfest Association Fund Raising

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Association Friends and Members,

We hope you are doing well and have found a good way to cope with Zimfest’s absence from next year’s summer plans! The Holiday season is drawing to a close, but the Zimfest Association’s Annual Campaign and Membership Drive are just getting warmed up! This will be our fourth year running this campaign, and we are hoping that it will be our most successful ever. While the festival itself provides some income to the association, these funds are simply insufficient to help sustain and grow the Association and the Festival itself. Here are some ways that you can help.

Become a Member of the Zimfest Association

Our goal is to have all Zimfest participants be members of the organization. It is our hope that a healthy dialogue about the festival and Association can emerge from a membership that feels a sense of ownership in the Zimfest Association. Membership covers January 1st through December 31st. Membership dues are an essential part of keeping Zimfest alive and vibrant. From as little as $10.00 per year for our Youth/Student membership, there are membership categories to fit any budget and situation! Consider Regular, Family, Couple, Teacher, Lifetime, and Lifetime Family, memberships. Members may choose to have their names published on the website and in the Festival Guide as a public display of support for Zimfest. Membership fees are also 100% tax deductible. Please refer to the membership page to renew or initiate a membership — https://zimfest.org/about/membership/.

Provide Charitable Donations to the Zimfest Association

While Membership dues are a great start, in order to insure long-term stability Zimfest needs a wider base of support. For this reason, we are asking for everyone who is able to make a tax-deductible donation to the Zimfest Association. These donations have been essential for the festival in the past, and your support of Zimfest now will help secure the future of the festival and sustain our financial well being. If your company supports matching donations, find out from your supervisor or Human Resources department how your company can match your contribution– often dollar for dollar!

If you are a regular attendee of the festival, this is the perfect year to make a donation. Without a festival this year, we hope that you consider donating even a small fraction of what would normally go towards travel expenses, workshops, meal cards, etc. to help keep the momentum in this gap year. Your contributions really do make a difference and help the Association continue its efforts to put on the best Zimbabwean music festival in North America! To donate, go to https://zimfest.org/about/support-zimfest/.

Other Ways to Contribute

Finally, we’d like to remind you of two completely painless ways you can donate and help Zimfest on an ongoing basis.

AmazonSmile

First, when you shop on Amazon, you can support Zimfest by choosing the Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases. See https://zimfest.org/blog/2014/support-zimfest-when-you-shop-at-amazon-com/.

eBay

Also, for anyone who sells items on eBay, you can choose to donate a percentage of the final sales price to the Zimfest Association. See http://charity.ebay.com/charity-auctions/charity/zimfest-association/72685/ for more information.

If you’d like to learn more about this festival and what goes on during the other 360 days a year, please contact us at board@zimfest.org or review our recent activities on our blog which can be found at http://www.zimfest.org/blog/.

Thanks for all you do to help make Zimfest a success. Best wishes for the new year, and we’ll see you at Zimfest 2018!

–The Zimfest Association Board

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Project Kudzana — Fundraising for Zimfest 2016

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

Have you or your group decided on a fundraising event or idea to help support Zimbabwean teachers expenses? Share what you are planning on Facebook, or add a comment on this blog. We have had 20 Zimbabwean teachers/performers apply and we cannot support all of them unless we have your help. At this point we can probably only support about 8 Zimbabwean teachers.

The Zimfest Board has come up with a few exciting fundraising ideas to help raise some much needed funds for Zimfest 2016, with an emphasis on Zimbabwean teacher expenses. We ask you and your music community to pitch in and help support the heartbeat of our organization. Our Zimbabwean teachers bring the spirit of the music with them to share with us. Year-round this spirit holds our communities together throughout North America.

Organizing committees are hard at work in the winter months preparing for our festival, as are individuals who are applying for visas for our guest teachers. We can support them and encourage their work by helping raise funds. The approximate cost of room, board and (max) travel for each Zimbabwean guest is $760. Our goal is to provide 10 Zimbabwean’s, transportation, room, and board with the help of these fund raising efforts.

We encourage your participation to help make this successful, and let’s have some fun with the following ideas. Share your event on the Zimfest blog (post a comment) and on facebook so that we can see all the exciting events that are being planned to support Zimbabwean teachers at Zimfest. After your fundraiser event, please make checks out to Zimfest Association and mail them to Janis Weeks, 1960 University St., Eugene, OR 97403.

Project Kudzana

Kudzana dancerKudzana means to dance! Imagine all the dance, drumming, hosho, marimba, mbira, and singing communities coming together to celebrate Zimbabwean Independence Day for the benefit of Zimbabwean musicians at our festival, an interactive celebration of Shona music. During the month of April we encourage your community to host a benefit concert for Zimfest. You can choose any time in April to host your event, focusing on the April 18 Independence date.

One Million Pennies for Zimfest

One Million Pennies for ZimfestEach group could create a donation canister to have at practice and/or performances advertising the ‘One Million Penny’ goal for Zimfest. Drop in change from your wallet to go towards Zimbabwean musicians. Encourage other groups that don’t normally attend Zimfest to participate. Post pictures on the Zimfest Facebook page to show progress/competition between groups or regions.

Bite of Africa Dinner / Zimbabwe Auction

Bite of AfricaIn combination with a benefit dance, offer some auction items:

  • Dance, Drumming, Hosho, Marimba, Mbira, or Singing Lesson with a Zimbabwean Guest Musician
  • Sadza dinner with Zimbabwean Guest Artist
  • Local art, restaurant, and business donations

These are just a few of our ideas. Customize it to your community.

Amazon Smile

AmazonSmile logoThe Zimfest Association is registered to receive donations when people shop at AmazonSmile. You can support Zimfest by choosing Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible Amazon purchases. Amazon will make a donation to: Zimfest Association https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1951506

EBay

eBay charity ribbonAlso, for anyone who sells items on EBay, you can choose to donate a percentage of the final sales price to the Zimfest Association. See http://charity.ebay.com/charity-auctions/charity/zimfest-association/72685/

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Project Kudzana — Fundraising for Zimfest 2016

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

Let’s get a jump on what it takes to make a great Zimfest!

The Zimfest Board has come up with a few exciting fundraising ideas to help raise some much needed funds for Zimfest 2016, with an emphasis on Zimbabwean teacher expenses. We ask you and your music community to pitch in and help support the heartbeat of our organization. Our Zimbabwean teachers bring the spirit of the music with them to share with us. Year-round this spirit holds our communities together throughout North America.

Organizing committees are hard at work in the winter months preparing for our festival, as are individuals who are applying for visas for our guest teachers. We can support them and encourage their work by helping raise funds. Make checks out to Zimfest Association and mail them to Janis Weeks, 1960 University St., Eugene, OR 97403. The approximate cost of room, board and (max) travel for each Zimbabwean guest is $760. Our goal is to provide 10 Zimbabwean’s, transportation, room, and board with the help of these fund raising efforts.

We encourage your participation to help make this successful, and let’s have some fun with the following ideas. Share your event on the Zimfest blog (post a comment) and on facebook so that we can see all the exciting events that are being planned to support Zimbabwean teachers at Zimfest.

Project Kudzana

Kudzana dancerKudzana means to dance! Imagine all the dance, drumming, hosho, marimba, mbira, and singing communities coming together to celebrate Zimbabwean Independence Day for the benefit of Zimbabwean musicians at our festival, an interactive celebration of Shona music. During the month of April we encourage your community to host a benefit concert for Zimfest. You can choose any time in April to host your event, focusing on the April 18 Independence date.

One Million Pennies for Zimfest

One Million Pennies for ZimfestEach group could create a donation canister to have at practice and/or performances advertising the ‘One Million Penny’ goal for Zimfest. Drop in change from your wallet to go towards Zimbabwean musicians. Encourage other groups that don’t normally attend Zimfest to participate. Post pictures on the Zimfest Facebook page to show progress/competition between groups or regions.

Bite of Africa Dinner / Zimbabwe Auction

Bite of AfricaIn combination with a benefit dance, offer some auction items:

  • Dance, Drumming, Hosho, Marimba, Mbira, or Singing Lesson with a Zimbabwean Guest Musician
  • Sadza dinner with Zimbabwean Guest Artist
  • Local art, restaurant, and business donations

These are just a few of our ideas. Customize it to your community.

Amazon Smile

AmazonSmile logoThe Zimfest Association is registered to receive donations when people shop at AmazonSmile. You can support Zimfest by choosing Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible Amazon purchases. Amazon will make a donation to: Zimfest Association https://smile.amazon.com/ch/91-1951506

EBay

eBay charity ribbonAlso, for anyone who sells items on EBay, you can choose to donate a percentage of the final sales price to the Zimfest Association. See http://charity.ebay.com/charity-auctions/charity/zimfest-association/72685/

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Zimfest Association Annual Campaign Reminder

Posted on by Claire Jones Posted in Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Association Friends and Members:
We hope that you are all doing well in the new year and have marked your calendars for August 11-14th, 2016 for the next Zimbabwean Music Festival which will be held at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, Oregon.

We wish to remind you of Zimfest’s Annual Campaign and Membership Drive. Memberships can be purchased and donations made at any time, and only 12 people have taken out or renewed memberships since our call in December. The festival itself provides some income to the Association but the funds are insufficient to sustain and grow the Association.

Become a Member of the Zimfest Association

Two years ago, we changed the way membership to the Zimfest Association is handled. The term of membership now runs for a full calendar year from January 1st until December 31st. Our goal is to have all recurring Zimfest participants be members of the organization. The minimal fee of $25 will allow a Regular member to attend the festival without paying a registration fee of $12. In addition to Regular memberships, Family, Couple, Teacher and Lifetime memberships are also available. Members may choose to have their names published on the website and in the Festival Guide. Please refer to the membership page to renew or initiate a membership. It is our hope that a healthy dialogue about the festival and association can emerge from a membership that feels a sense of ownership in the Zimfest Association.

Provide Charitable Donations to the Zimfest Association

While fees from membership are a great start, our long term financial stability will take more money than membership fees alone can raise. For this reason, we are also soliciting tax-deductible donations to the Zimfest Association. These donations have proven invaluable to ensure our financial health. Please consider a donation to help the Association continue its efforts to put on the best Zimbabwean music festival in North America. Your contributions really do make a difference! If your company supports matching donations, please don’t forget to complete the paperwork which would allow your company to match your contribution–often dollar for dollar.

We hope that you will seriously consider becoming a member of the Zimfest Association for the 2016 calendar year, as well as making or enabling a charitable contribution. If each Zimfest member can find a willing donor within your extended network, we will be well on our way towards sustainability! Your contributions are tax-deductible either in the 2015 or 2016 tax year, depending on when you make your payment. Please visit our Membership and Donation page on our website at https://zimfest.org/membership for instructions on how to make a contribution.

Other Ways to Contribute

Finally, we’d like to remind you of two ways that you can donate to Zimfest on a ongoing basis. First, when shopping on Amazon you can support Zimfest by choosing Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases (see https://zimfest.org/blog/2014/support-zimfest-when-you-shop-at-amazon-com/). Also, for anyone who sells items on EBay, you can choose to donate a percentage of the final sales price to the Zimfest Association. See http://givingworks.ebay.com/charity-auctions/my-causes for more information.

Details will be coming soon about some exciting new fund-raising ideas – stay tuned!
Thanks for all that you do to make Zimfest a success.

Please contact us to learn more at board (at) zimfest {dot} org. We also encourage you to review recent board activities on the Zimfest blog which can be found at https://zimfest.org/blog/

Best wishes for 2016!

—The Zimfest Association Board

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Zimfest Association Annual Campaign

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Association Friends and Members:

We hope that you are all doing well and have already marked your calendars for August 11-14th, 2016 for the next Zimbabwean Music Festival which will be held at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, Oregon.

The holiday season is approaching, along with Zimfest’s Annual Campaign and Membership Drive. This will be the third year of our campaign. The festival itself provides some income to the Association but the funds are insufficient to sustain and grow the Association.

Become a Member of the Zimfest Association

Two years ago, we changed the way membership to the Zimfest Association is handled. The term of membership now runs for a full calendar year from January 1st until December 31st. Our goal is to have all recurring Zimfest participants be members of the organization. The minimal fee of $25 will allow a Regular member to attend the festival without paying a registration fee of $12. In addition to Regular memberships, Family, Couple, Teacher and Lifetime memberships are also available. Members may choose to have their names published on the website and in the Festival Guide. Please refer to the membership page to renew or initiate a membership. It is our hope that a healthy dialogue about the festival and association can emerge from a membership that feels a sense of ownership in the Zimfest Association.

Provide Charitable Donations to the Zimfest Association

While fees from membership are a great start, our long term financial stability will take more money than membership fees alone can raise. For this reason, we are also soliciting tax-deductible donations to the Zimfest Association. These donations have proven invaluable to ensure our financial health. Please consider a donation to help the Association continue its efforts to put on the best Zimbabwean music festival in North America. Your contributions really do make a difference! If your company supports matching donations, please don’t forget to complete the paperwork which would allow your company to match your contribution–often dollar for dollar.

We hope that you will seriously consider becoming a member of the Zimfest Association for the 2016 calendar year, as well as making or enabling a charitable contribution. If each Zimfest member can find a willing donor within your extended network, we will be well on our way towards sustainability! Your contributions are tax-deductible either in the 2015 or 2016 tax year, depending on when you make your payment. Please visit our Membership and Donation page on our website at https://zimfest.org/membership for instructions on how to make a contribution.

Other Ways to Contribute

Finally, we’d like to remind you of two ways that you can donate to Zimfest on a ongoing basis.  First, when shopping on Amazon you can support Zimfest by choosing Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases (see https://zimfest.org/blog/2014/support-zimfest-when-you-shop-at-amazon-com/). Also, for anyone who sells items on EBay, you can choose to donate a percentage of the final sales price to the Zimfest Association. See http://givingworks.ebay.com/charity-auctions/my-causes for more information.

Thanks for all that you do to make Zimfest a success.

Please contact us to learn more at board@zimfest.org. We also encourage you to review recent board activities on the Zimfest blog which can be found at https://zimfest.org/blog/

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season…

—The Zimfest Association Board

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Zimfest Annual Fundraising Campaign & Membership Drive

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Association Friends and Members:

We hope that you are all doing well and have already marked your calendars for August 13-16th, 2015 for the next Zimbabwean Music Festival which will be held at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, Oregon. Our festival coordinator, Claire Jones, is in the process of recruiting an organizing committee. Please reach out to her at claire.jns1@gmail.com if you are able to help.

In addition, the board is recruiting new members and officers–and particularly looking for one or more individuals with financial skills. Please contact us to learn more at board@zimfest.org. We also encourage you to review recent board activities on the Zimfest blog.

This is the second year of our Annual Campaign and Membership Drive. As noted last year, no organization can survive without financial support, and the Zimfest Association is no different. While the annual festivals provide some income to the Association, these funds are unpredictable and are insufficient to sustain and grow the Association. For example, in 2014 the festival did not turn a profit and lost roughly $2500. For this reason, the Association was not able to make charitable donations to other organizations which support Zimbabwe.

Become a Member of the Zimfest Association

Beginning last year, we changed the way membership to the Zimfest Association is handled. The term of membership now runs for a full calendar year from January 1st until December 31st. Our goal is to have all recurring Zimfest participants be members of the organization. The minimal fee of $25 will allow a Regular member to attend the festival without paying a registration fee of $12. In addition to Regular memberships, Family, Couple, Teacher and Lifetime memberships are also available. Members may choose to have their names published on the website and in the Festival Guide. Please refer to the Membership page to renew or initiate a membership. It is our hope that a healthy dialogue about the festival and association can emerge from a membership that feels a sense of ownership in the Zimfest Association.

Provide Charitable Donations to the Zimfest Association

While fees from membership are a great start, our long term financial stability will take more money than membership fees alone can raise. For this reason, we are also soliciting tax-deductible donations to the Zimfest Association. Over the past year, we raised nearly $10,000 in donations which have proven invaluable to ensure our financial health. Please consider a donation to help the Association continue its efforts to put on the best Zimbabwean music festival in North America. Your contributions really do make a difference! If your company supports matching donations, please don’t forget to complete the paperwork which would allow your company to match your contribution–often dollar for dollar.

We hope that you will seriously consider becoming a member of the Zimfest Association for the 2015 calendar year, as well as making or enabling a charitable contribution. If each Zimfest member can find a willing donor within your extended network we will be well on our way towards sustainability! Your contributions are tax-deductible either in the 2014 or 2015 tax year, depending on when you make your payment. Please visit our Membership and Donation page on our website for instructions on how to make a contribution.

Finally, we’d like to remind you of two ways that you can donate to Zimfest on a ongoing basis. First, when shopping on Amazon you can support Zimfest by choosing Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases (see blog post Support Zimfest When You Shop at Amazon.com). Also, for anyone who sells items on EBay, you can choose to donate a percentage of the final sales price to the Zimfest Association. See http://givingworks.ebay.com/charity-auctions/my-causes for more information.

Thanks for all that you do to make Zimfest a success.

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season…
—The Zimfest Association Board

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Support Zimfest When You Shop at Amazon.com

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

The Zimfest Association is now registered to receive donations when people shop at AmazonSmile. You can support Zimfest by choosing Zimfest Association as the organization you would like to receive 0.5% of the price of your eligible Amazon purchases.

About AmazonSmile: AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support your favorite charitable organization every time you shop, at no cost to you. When you shop at smile.amazon.com, you’ll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to your favorite charitable organization.

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Zimbabwean Guests and Vendor Information for Zimfest 2014

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Festival News

The performer and teacher application deadline was February 28, and this year we received a record number of applications from Zimbabweans. With the help of donations pledged by many of you in the Zimfest community, we will be able to host most, but regretfully not all, of the applicants at Zimfest 2014. You should know that the time period following the application deadline is an extremely busy one for the Organizing Committee, and we are hard at work finalizing invitations and acceptances and working out schedules.

We are thrilled to welcome to Zimfest for the first time (pending visa approvals): dancer Caroline Mangwiro from Bulawayo and marimba specialist Patience Musandirire, who is currently teaching in Botswana. Some of our returning Zimbabwean friends who will be attending this year (also pending visa approvals) are: Cosmas Magaya, Musekiwa Chingodza and Sheasby Matiure, all coming from Zimbabwe; Lucky Moyo, England; Nhapitapi Mbira, Toronto; Julia Chigamba and Chinyakare, Oakland; and Loveness Wesa from Portland. We hope to be able to announce more exciting news about this year’s lineup in the very near future. For further details, see the Zimfest 2014 web site.

Also, Zimfest 2014 marketplace vendor information and applications are now available. We anticipate a variety of vendors selling marimbas, mbiras, hosho, CDs, clothing, accessories and art. Crafts sold at the Marketplace should be of Zimbabwean or related African origin, and in keeping with the spirit and intent of Zimfest.

—Zimfest 2014 Organizing Committee

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Call for Help – Zimfest 2014 Zimbabwean Guest Sponsorship

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Festival News, Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Community,

We have received great news from the 2014 Zimbabwean Music Festival organizing committee! The festival has received applications to teach and perform from 26 Zimbabweans based in the US, Canada, United Kingdom, and Zimbabwe. Some of these visiting artists are first time participants at the festival, but have dozens of years of experience in Zimbabwean music and dance, both internationally and in Zimbabwe. This increased number of Zimbabwean guests presents significant cost challenges to the festival itself. We would like to host as many of these talented individuals at the festival as possible. Unfortunately, without additional assistance it is impossible for us to host all 26 applicants and have a balanced budget. Therefore, we are asking for your help in offsetting the cost of their attendance at Zimfest 2014.

Between now and March 21st, we will be accepting pledges to help support Zimbabwean teachers and performers at this year’s festival. Based on the pledge amounts that we receive between now and then, we will determine how many Zimbabweans that we can invite to the festival. If you’d like to help, please send an email to board@zimfest.org with the amount of your pledge. There will be an online mechanism for you to donate for this purpose shortly. If you’d like to donate immediately, you can do so at http://www.zimfest.org/membership/. However, please also send an email with your pledge amount so that we can ensure that the funds go to the right place.

This year’s festival will be July 24-27 at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. Below are the costs associated with Zimbabwean teacher / performer attendance at the festival:

  • Full festival room and board – $300
  • Full festival room and board + travel – $575

We are hoping to raise enough funds to cover all expenses for as many of the Zimbabweans as possible. Please kindly donate at whatever level you feel comfortable, and feel free to pass this letter to your friends, colleagues, and other community members. All donations to Zimfest Association are tax-deductible.

We look forward to seeing you, and all the Zimbabwean guests who have applied to come to the festival, at Zimfest in July.

Sincerely,
The Zimfest Board

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Zimfest Annual Campaign and Membership Drive

Posted on by Zimfest Association Board Posted in Zimfest Association News

Dear Zimfest Association Friends and Members:

We hope that you are all doing well and are planning to join us for another amazing Zimfest next year at the University of Puget Sound from July 24 through July 27th. The organizing committee is already hard at work with detailed planning for the festival. In parallel, the Zimfest Association Board has been busy creating a stronger and more sustainable organization. We encourage you to review what we’ve been up to on the Zimfest blog which can be found at https://zimfest.wordpress.com.

Call to Action!

We are writing at this time to solicit your help. No organization can survive without financial support, and the Zimfest Association is no different. While the annual festivals provide some income to the Association, these funds are unpredictable and are insufficient to sustain and grow the Association. For example, in 2013 the festival made less than $1500 in profits, which greatly limited the funds available to pay our Zimfest coordinator, pay our festival musicians and make charitable donations to other organizations which support Zimbabwe. For this reason, we have instituted an aggressive strategy aimed at raising money via other means. With this letter, we are inaugurating our first Annual Campaign and Membership Drive.

Become a Member of the Zimfest Association

This year, we have changed the way that membership to the Zimfest Association is handled. Beginning January 1st, the term of membership will run for a full calendar year until December 31st. Our goal is to have all recurring Zimfest participants be current members of the organization. The minimal fee of $25 will allow a Regular member to attend the festival without paying a registration fee of $12. Members may choose to have their names published on the website and in the Festival Guide. It is our hope that a healthy dialogue about the festival and association can emerge from a membership that feels a sense of ownership in the Zimfest Association.

Provide Charitable Donations to the Zimfest Association

While fees from membership are a great start, if we hope to be an organization that will continue to put on festivals for years to come, it will take more money than membership fees alone can raise. For this reason, we are also soliciting tax-deductible donations to the Zimfest Association. While we would ideally like to see each member who is able to renew their membership also make a donation, we realize that our fund-raising efforts often go no farther than the same group of generous donors. Therefore, we are asking each of you to refer a friend or acquaintance to our donations page. Is there someone in your circle of friends or extended family who is familiar with Zimfest, has enjoyed performances by our Zimbabwean guests, or has seen how enriching your involvement in the music has been? If so, ask that person to make a donation to help support Zimbabwean musicians and assist Zimfest on its path towards a sustainable infrastructure.

We hope that you will seriously consider becoming a member of the Zimfest Association for the 2014 calendar year, as well as making or enabling a charitable contribution. If each Zimfest member can find a willing donor we will be well on our way towards sustainability! Your contributions are tax-deductible either in the 2013 or 2014 tax year, depending on when you make your payment. Please visit our Membership and Donation page on our website at http://zimfest.org/membership for instructions on how to make a contribution.

Thanks for all that you do to make Zimfest a success. Happy Holidays…

—The Zimfest Association Board

P.S. Zimfest Association Donations to Charities

This year, Zimfest is pleased to announce our support for five non-profit organizations working in Zimbabwe. The Savannah Arts Center, based in the neighborhood of Mbare, on Harare’s southern edge, will receive a donation of $500. Savannah Arts Center has a past history of participating in Zimfest, and sent a small group of musicians to perform at our festival in 2000. The other four projects and organizations will receive grants of $250 each. These are MBIRA, Tariro, the Jangano Club for teaching mbira in schools, administered through Ancient Ways, and the Chinhoyi High School Project, administered through Kutsinhira’s Zimbabwe Community Development Project.

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