After 15 years of curating great fundraising ideas, inspiration, and resources for fundraisers all over the world, SOFII’s co-founder and trustee Ken Burnett has retired from The SOFII Foundation board.

We know you’ll agree this is really big news indeed. Here’s what Ken had to say, in his own words:   

‘We all need to recognise when it’s time to go, so we can exit on a high just before that moment arrives. SOFII now has a splendidly experienced, dedicated staff, a richly talented, diverse and enthusiastic board led by a superbly experienced and smart new chair, matched by a wise, perceptive, uniquely knowledgeable honorary treasurer… so I couldn’t be leaving SOFII in better hands. And after 15 years the concept is proving ever more useful, the organisation is in good shape and the site is getting better all the time thanks to its legions of supporters, donors and enthusiastic users around the world.’ 

The team feel honoured that Ken is retiring from SOFII’s board with the confidence that we will look after SOFII and ensure it is the best it can possibly be for you – our valued readers, supporters, champions and enthusiasts of great fundraising. 

After all, Ken and his late wife Marie created something that is much greater than just the sum of its parts. SOFII is more than a website. It is our fundraising history, our encyclopaedia, our place to go on days when fundraising feels harder than it should. It is rich in inspiration, and thanks to the hard work of all involved over many years, it is now a community too.  

Naturally, looking after SOFII is a big job, and we are thrilled to share that Meredith Niles, a SOFII trustee since 2017, has been elected as the new chair of SOFII’s board. Meredith has agreed to work alongside the team so SOFII can prepare for another 15 years inspiring the fundraisers who need us most. Our global board of trustees are also all committed to this goal, and we are lucky to have a huge support system looking out for SOFII’s best interests so we can do what we are all passionate about – sharing great fundraising stories.

But actually, we need your help too. You know SOFII best and we want to hear what you think of our site, our events, our work. What do we do well? What can we do to support you better? What do you want to see on SOFII? We’d love for you to tell us! 

If you have ten minutes, please complete this short, important survey by Friday June 17th 2022. It is your opportunity to help us shape the future of SOFII. We hope you will want to take part, because we value your opinion.

Once you’ve finished your survey, please join our team in congratulating Ken on the start of his retirement. We will be in touch with more soon, including new additions to the Ken Burnett archive on SOFII. But now, we want to thank you for supporting SOFII and of course, thank Ken Burnett for giving us this gem – our fundraising community would be lost without it!