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StepSafe: An “American” Fundraising Paradigm?

Not too long ago, the headlines of American newspapers were dominated by stories about the devastating earthquake in Haiti, as well as the unprecedented outpouring of support from people across the globe. A significant portion of these contributions came from ordinary Americans – on January 17 ABC World News reported that in the five days following the earthquake, Americans donated $150 million to relief efforts.

It is clear that the American public cares about helping those who lack the resources required to help themselves, even when those requiring help are people who we never have, and never will, meet in a country that most of us would be hard-pressed to locate on a map. The question is what can we at StepSafe learn from the response to Haiti and apply to our fundraising efforts in the United States.

Meet Step Safe's New Member - Sophie Chung, MD

Dr. Chung was born and raised in Austria into a multi-cultural family, as her parents are Chinese and Cambodian. Growing up in a German-speaking country with Chinese and Cambodian parents fostered her natural linguistic talents — today Sophie speaks German, Cambodian, Chinese, English, French and Spanish. After numerous conversations with Step Safe Director Craig McMahon, Sophie has officially joined the Step Safe team.

According to Sophie, "I have been excited and touched to see and experience people dedicated to building something so sophisticated and meaningful. As a child of Cambodian refugees who made their way through the Pol Pot regime to Austria, it was a blessing for me to have the opportunity to visit the country where my roots lie and meet partner groups of Step Safe. Step Safe’s work has shown me that there are a lot of good people helping others help themselves, and that people are not left alone. What impressed me most was that Step Safe seeks to build personal and close relationships, Step Safe ensures that help and funding reaches the direct beneficiaries – the people in the field – and that Step Safe's philanthropy model is flexible, innovative, encouraging and 'out of the box.' I'm grateful to be a little part of this great community, and I'm looking forward to assisting as a consultant and medical doctor in the years to come."