Support Life Foundation

An international 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization based in Oakland, CA which creates ESG centered programs to meet the needs of different communities by connecting individuals, businesses, and philanthropists.

Identifying the issue

As Creative Director of Support Life Foundation, I had the opportunity to oversee the entire story that Support Life needed to tell its donors and stakeholders from the face of the website to all the individual programs under its umbrella. When I first joined, the question I had to ask was, “What does Support Life Foundation actually do?” and I wasn’t the only one. Many volunteers had no idea either, because the answer was…Everything. Support Life Foundation was a mixed bag of great ideas, willpower, and ambition; but its messaging was ineffective, it had only survived as long as it had due to the charisma of their executive director.

My primary goal was to take their existing logo and expand it’s brand story, give it fresh elements that could be used across all of its peripherals. From there, I gave each of the programs under it a unique look that still heralded back to the SLF brand and would look cohesive when presented together. This included custom illustrations, multimedia and marketing templates, donor brochures, presentation decks, annual reports, and more. Unlike the traditional commercial client, the SLF had two target audiences - Individual volunteers and Institutional donors, whose support kept our doors open. All of my work went into retaining and growing this base - like many other companies in the Bay Area, our actual product was people. In one year of the You Are Not Alone program launch, it became valued at $6.5 Million - and this at the height of the pandemic.

Penetrating beyond the screen

It was pretty easy in the beginning of the lockdown to hit views, anything COVID-19 related marketed itself. But to a boots on the ground type of NPO like Support Life, we had to reach people who were stuck behind accessibility, language issues, and other digital barriers. We utilized our volunteer corp and distribution networks in tandem with social media to reach our target audiences. Oftentimes, the best marketing strategy for Support Life was a quirky flier and free food.

Managing Data, Information, and People

Beyond my creative role, I also had to develop systems of internal communication and data management, processes, and protocol to streamline our client intake so that it could quickly integrate with our front and back end. I trained other team members on this process and managed subcontractors towards production of digital and physical goods. Some programs like our YANA Community Food Share and the Vaccine clinic had strict deadlines which required coordination across multiple industries - from institutional partners to health and fire departments.

International Reach

The seeds of several international programs were already in the ground by the time I joined SLF, however, one program had rapid growth and needed more guidance to accommodate it. I brought my analyst experience with nonprofits to the forefront to get Teacher per Village organized. I helped develop and track program outcomes in order to gauge impact. Initially, nobody new where donations were going and how they were utilized, the only thing ever reported was that it was growing and needed more support, but now we could make projections and budget as well as fundraise.