1. Doug Meet and Greet:  Get on Doug Ammar's calendar for an event at your firm.  Doug is GJP's most effective spokesperson.  Email Shannon@GJP.org to set up a time.  Look over the list of GJP donors from your firm (you can get from Shannon), and invite them and other colleagues to the event to meet Doug.
2. Your Own Pledge/Gift:  Make your own pledge and/or contribution to GJP. It's always good to have that out of the way before you ask others to give!  You can give online, write a check, or designate part of your United Way contribution. 
3. Ask Memo - Prepare:  Prepare an "Ask Memo" for lawyers (and if you wish, others) at your firm - and a sample Ask Memo is available here.  Customize however you would like - and if you distribute "hard copies" (which seems to be more effective than e-mails), experience suggests that color copies make the Ask Memo stand out.
4. Ask Memo Attachments:  The following are links to one page descriptions that you may find helpful when sending out your ask memos.
   1. Organizational Overview 
   2. Coming Home Expungment Program
   3. Holistic Legal Defense Program
   4. Policy and Advocacy
   5. Social Services and Direct Assistance
   6. Internship Program
   7. Volunteer Engagement
   8. Macon Coming Home Program 
5. Ask Memo - Distribute:  Distribute the Ask Memo immediately after either (1) Doug's event or (2) the selected kick-off at your firm.
6. Follow Up - Generally:  Follow up with an email...follow up by stopping by the office...follow up by getting other contributors to talk to their friends.  Just like GJP itself, a successful campaign depends on execution and follow-through.
7. Follow Up - Support from GJP:  GJP's Development Office will be circulating periodically through the Campaign email updates with brief "Client Stories" and "Fact Sheets" (such as short descriptions of:  GJP's 25th Anniversary and GJP's newly adopted Strategic Plan - its Coming Home Expungment Program- its Policy and Advocacy work - and you can chose which you'd like to use as part of your follow-up.
8. Follow Up - Last Two Weeks of December:  A very large percentage of contributions to the L2L Campaigns are made during the last two weeks of December.  While some lawyers may take off during that time, many lawyers apparently make giving decisions at that time - and experience is that it's very beneficial to GJP to make further requests during the last two weeks.  GJP's Development Office will remind you of this, and send you a Client Story or a Fact Sheet for you to use in this final solicitation - and a list of who at your firm has given so you won't hit up those donors again.

Creative Ideas

Consider an incentive - Starbucks cards for the first five new donors.

Get a matching gift - from the firm or from your captains.  People like to give when their donation is matched. 

Thank you for your support

 Melissa Devereaux  Development Director  404-827-0027 x. 217  Melissa@GJP.org

 Shannon DeMyers  Development Associate  404-827-0027 x. 215  Shannon@GJP.org