Fundraising includes the solicitation of donations from various sources, such as individual and corporate donors, special events, endowments, planned giving, and bank loans. If patient care revenue will not be adequate for current or future operations, fundraising can help cover clinic costs. Some fundraising tips appear below.

• Outline the oral health care needs for your target population, and show how your clinic is responding to these needs.
• Make a wish list. Do you need money, equipment, supplies, or human resources? What could particular amounts of money buy?
• Brainstorm about how you could leverage additional resources if you had some initial funding.
• Make a list of potential donors, including local businesses, other organizations, and individuals. Ultimately, you will want to establish a dependable donor database of clinic supporters who can be counted on to produce a regular stream of contributions over the years. These individual donations represent the broad base of the fundraising pyramid, in which many small donations account for a large proportion of gifts. In this pyramid analogy, progressively larger individual gifts represent the higher levels of the pyramid, but they represent a smaller number of gifts and a smaller proportion of total donations.
• Take time to create a thoughtful and personalized solicitation letter.
• Offer different choices and levels of involvement.
• Make a list of potential sources of matching funds.
• Make sure that you show your appreciation for your volunteers and donors.

Case Study
	In response to an overwhelming need for access to dental care in Richland County, the Dental Department at Third Street Family Health Services (a Federally Qualified Health Center) opened in March 2002 with five dental operatories, one dentist, one hygienist, two dental assistants, and one secretary. In May 2006, after a local Community Capital Campaign raised $3.5 million, the clinic expanded to include 13 completely furnished dental operatories. The clinic’s success can be attributed to relationships forged with The Ohio State University College of Dentistry, the AIDS Resource Center of Ohio, the Richland County Foundation, Ohio Heartland Head Start, and the Ohio Department of Health dental division. Clinic staff now comprises three full-time dentists, two part-time dentists, two dental student interns, two hygienists, six dental assistants, one expanded function dental auxiliary, and two secretaries. The clinic has implemented an electronic dental record and digital radiography. As of September 2006, the clinic is completely paperless.

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