Foundations of Fundraising
Lessons for fundraisers from yesterday’s cigarette advertising: instructive campaign images from the 1930s, 40s and 50s
by Ken Burnett
This article has been on SOFII for some time, but I have a feeling we didn’t actually tell anyone. We hang our heads in shame and urge you to check out some astonishing cigarette adverts – and what campaigners and fundraisers can learn from them.
Read morePhilanthropy in ancient times: some early examples from the Mediterranean
by Sarah Bond
In this new addition to the SOFII history project we look at the early beginnings of charity. We uncover the origin of the word ‘philanthropy’ and how the philosophy of philanthropy permeated the lives of ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans on every level of their daily lives.
Read moreHeart and soul: Charles Dickens on the passion and power of fundraising
by Aline Reed
‘Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts.’ Charles Dickens.
Read moreMoses Maimonides: the 90-degree shift, 800 years ago
by Reinier Spruit
Moses Maimonides, Jewish philosopher and scholar, and his famous Eight Levels of Giving.
Read moreLive Aid: the history of an all-time great event
by SOFII
Live Aid was one of the most successful fundraising events in history. So, in this exhibit, we look back at how the idea was conceived and what made it one of the most significant fundraising campaigns of our time.
Read moreDavid Ogilvy’s letter for the United Negro College Fund, from 1968
by Mark Phillips
Back in 1968, David Ogilvy was appointed as Chair of the United Negro College Fund. He soon realised that he might be able to use his copywriting skills to help the organisation raise funds and wrote a piece that used an unusual delivery mechanism: a train.
Read moreAnnouncing the SOFII history project
by Mark Phillips
An illustrated journey through time, with commentary by Mark Phillips, especially for SOFII users.
Read moreThe Wishing Well Appeal for Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital
by SOFII
It's difficult to do justice to a capital campaign as wide, and complex. This is a condensed summary of a major capital campaign which, at the time, was the largest appeal ever mounted in the UK.
Read moreBritish Red Cross: the £7.7 billion appeal that changed British fundraising forever
by SOFII
The Duke of Gloucester’s Red Cross and St John Appeal Fund is the largest charitable fund in the history of British fundraising, raising the equivalent of £7.7 billion. This monumental exhibit should be read by all.
Read morePliny the Younger and the first appeal for matching funds, c. 100 AD.
by SOFII
About 20 years after famously witnessing the eruption of Vesuvius that engulfed Pompeii, Pliny the Younger, perhaps the most generous benefactor of the Roman era, created a matching fund to help the parents in his home town to fund their school.
Read moreYouth for Causes: stimulating fundraising in Singapore
by SOFII
In this innovative exhibit, a partnership between Citigroup and YMCA Singapore demonstrates the power of youth.
Read moreThe elephant man: a fundraising success story from 1886.
by Ken Burnett
The extraordinary story of how a successful fundraising appeal transformed the final years of one of the most tragic and moving figures of the Victorian age.
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