We made it through midterms! I am feeling downright giddy with relief this week. The prevailing outcome indicates that reproductive choice is a motivating issue and that Trump and his cohort of election-denier radicals were largely unsuccessful. I am especially excited about Wes Moore’s strong win in my home state of Maryland—and for the election’s historic firsts. Congratulations to Maura Healey, the first woman and first openly gay governor of Massachusetts, where I grew up—and to Maxwell Frost, the first Gen Z and first Afro-Cuban member of Congress.

Looking ahead, Avalon will be closed Wednesday, November 23 – Friday, November 25 for Thanksgiving. In addition, there will be no Avalon Dispatch on Tuesday, November 22. Our teams are prepared and will keep all campaigns moving on schedule. And, of course, we are all systems go for Giving Tuesday.

Speaking of which, Meta announced that it will match recurring donations through Facebook this holiday season. According to their announcement, “When you sign up to donate monthly to a nonprofit on Facebook, Meta will match 100% of your donation after you make your second monthly donation”—up to $100 per gift, $100,000 per nonprofit, and $7 million total. This is less than their 2021 match of $8 million, but their new focus on recurring donations is expected to make a larger impact.

Mailers should know the Postal Service filed a January 2023 postage increase. Pending approval by the Postal Regulatory Commission, changes will go into effect on January 22, 2023. In addition, our friends at Production Solutions remind us that last year the USPS announced a plan to raise rates twice per year, beginning in 2023. Avalon is prepared for this and will factor all changes into your budgets and strategies.

Around the industry, there are two remote learning opportunities on Thursday, November 17. At 1pm ET DMAW will host a Political Lessons Learned webinar, which will offer a “marketing sneak peek behind the scenes from this year’s midterm elections.” And, at 3pm ET AMMC will host a webinar on Member Engagement Strategies.

On a productivity note, I’ve been experimenting with focus plans in Microsoft Outlook. At first, I was annoyed because they popped up on my calendar when I hadn’t chosen to add them. However, I gave them a chance and have been enjoying this new tool. It takes some trial and error to figure out what works, but I like that it reduces distraction and supports what Cal Newport calls deep work:

Deep Work: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate…

The Deep Work Hypothesis: The ability to perform deep work is becoming increasingly rare at exactly the same time it is becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. As a consequence, the few who cultivate this skill, and then make it the core of their working life, will thrive.

In client news, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) is celebrating a new national monument designation in the Colorado Mountains: the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument. Congratulations to NPCA for urging President Biden to use the Antiquities Act of 1906 to designate this new monument. The history of Camp Hale is fascinating:

A little-known military training ground during World War II called Camp Hale prepared the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division in skiing, rock climbing and snowshoeing. These soldiers helped defeat Nazi Germany and its fascist allies in northern Italy in the 1940s, and upon returning home, some of them helped launch Colorado’s skiing and outdoor recreation economy.

And finally, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in the Avalon community! I feel thankful and incredibly proud to be a fundraiser every day, especially alongside each of you. I might be biased, but I believe Avalon has the best team, the best partners, and the best clients in the nonprofit sector. I can’t wait to see what we accomplish together during this year’s holiday giving season and beyond.

Allison Porter, President (she/her/hers) Avalon Consulting Group 202-429-6080 ext. 102 allisonp@avalonconsulting.net