Charitable Organizations-Fundraising

Star Phoenix Fundraising & Donor Engagement: StarFund

StarFund Fundraising Service

StarFund is an outsourced fundraising department for hospitality oriented non-profit organizations and schools. The service takes care of the backend organization, designs the solicitation campaigns, and provides the tools to securely collect and track money.

Organization & Logistics

  • Structure: StarFund will meet with the principles to structure the campaign to ensure compliance, transparency, and efficiency.
  • Donor Segmentation: If an organiation wishes to use existing contact lists, StarFund will organize these lists it into smart segments (e.g., alumni, current parents, local businesses, past major donors) so people receive tailored messages.
  • Fund Tracking & Allocation: If necessary, we set up specific “buckets” for the money (e.g., equipment upgrades, scholarship fund, etc.) so donors know exactly where their money is going.
  • Compliance & Security: StarFund manages the legal frameworks, ensuring all solicitation forms comply with state/local fundraising regulations and process payments via PCI-compliant, secure gateways.

Outreach & Solicitation Strategy

  • Approach: StarFund executes a multi-channel approach to ask for donations, removing the awkwardness and friction of asking for money.
  • Automated Email & SMS Campaigns: Professional copywriters design a series of compelling stories (the “case for support”) sent via email and text, complete with direct, one-click donation buttons.
  • Direct Mail Integration: The service handles the printing and mailing of personalized pledge letters and return envelopes for high-value donors.
  • Event-Based Solicitation: If the organization is hosting a gala, auction, or school fun-run, the service provides mobile bidding software, text-to-give codes to capture impulse giving and donation statistics.

Awards

Under Gunn’s reign, Restrohas been awarded Three Chefs Hats for 15 consecutive years and named Restaurant of the Year six times in The Chicago Morning Herald Good Food Guide. It has three stars and has been awarded Restaurant of the Year three times in the Chicago Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide.

Restaurant of the Year

The Chicago Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2016

Awarded Three Hats

The Chicago Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2016

Placed at Number Four

Chicago Traveller Top 100 Restaurants 2016

Awarded Three Stars

Chicago Traveller Restaurant Awards 2016

Books by Peter Gunn

I am inspired by nature and have coined the term nature-based cuisine to describe my food. Nature offers us so much diversity – a natural elegance and beauty – and it is the organic nature of food, its textures and flavours that is at the heart of my cooking.

The Omnivore's Dilemma

The Botany of Desire