Resilience Through Disaster: How a Small Fundraising Team Sustained Their Capital Campaign During Hurricane Helene

In this episode of All About Capital Campaigns, Amy Eisenstein hosts a conversation with Stephanie Wilensky, Development Director at CooperRiis Healing Community, and Capital Campaign Pro Senior Advisor Xan Blake.

Together, they share a compelling story of how a small fundraising team kept momentum alive in the face of extraordinary circumstances, including a devastating hurricane that left the organization temporarily disconnected and without water.

Located in Western North Carolina, CooperRiis Healing Community launched a capital campaign focused on long-term sustainability through a $6 million endowment and 10 documented planned gifts. When Hurricane Helene struck mid-campaign, the team’s response was immediate and community-centered. Despite personal and professional disruptions, including severe property damage and the urgent need to care for residents, staff, and families, the organization chose to continue its campaign with renewed clarity.

Listeners will hear how:

• A guided feasibility study helped identify strong community support for an endowment-based campaign with no bricks-and-mortar component

• Stephanie, a first-time fundraiser, grew in confidence and skill through direct donor interviews and relationship-building

• CooperRiis used the crisis as a moment to deepen connections, reevaluate priorities, and reaffirm the need for sustainable funding

• Donor conversations during and after the hurricane became a springboard for further campaign success and renewed engagement

• Planned giving became a natural and meaningful part of campaign conversations, even for an organization new to the concept

Xan Blake offers a consultant’s perspective on the critical decisions that helped preserve campaign momentum and the importance of honoring both immediate needs and long-term goals. Stephanie reflects on the personal and organizational growth sparked by working through a campaign in the midst of disaster recovery.

Whether you're working in a small shop, planning an endowment campaign, or simply wondering if you can continue your campaign after a major disruption, this episode offers valuable insights, encouragement, and concrete examples of how determination, flexibility, and mission alignment can help you move forward.

Highlights include:

• How CooperRiis adapted campaign strategy in the aftermath of a natural disaster
• The value of building donor relationships through feasibility study interviews
• A practical approach to introducing and securing planned gifts
• Lessons in team collaboration and leadership under pressure
• Real-life proof that endowment campaigns without a building component can succeed

Tune in to learn how one team turned challenge into opportunity, and why long-term vision can withstand even the toughest storms.

For more tips on how your organization can maintain your resiliency during whatever challenging times lie ahead, download our free eBook Fundraising in Uncertain Times.