a1.Campaign Leadership Kickoff Speech-508.docx

Campaign Leadership Kickoff Speech

Ladies & Gentlemen:

Its a pleasure for me to welcome you all to the 2017 [Agency or Region Name] Kickoff of the Combined Federal Campaign. This year's CFC theme is Show Some Love, which encourages us to build upon the wonderful tradition of bringing together Federal civilian, military, and U.S. Postal Service employees to accomplish more good than we ever could acting alone. Last year, Federal employees across the nation and stationed around the world chose to Show Some Love by contributing more than $167 million dollars to the causes they cared about, and right here in [CFC Zone name, and/or Federal agency/installation name], we raised [$X million or $ amount].

You can see why the Combined Federal Campaign bills itself as one of the worlds largest workplace giving campaigns for charity. And its true. The campaign has been around now for more than 56 years, and during that time, Federal employees have contributed more than $8.2 billion dollars to charities of their choice. Those are impressive, big numbers. But Id like to take a moment to explain why the CFC is also a small, personal campaign.

With the CFC, you decide which nonprofit organizations to Show Some Love. You decide how much you want to give. And you decide your method of givingwhether payroll deduction, credit card, eCheck, paper or online. You also get to choose whether to release your name and contact information to the nonprofits you support, or to give anonymously. And heres one more choice you make, which is brand new this year: For the first time, in addition to giving money, you can now choose to make a gift of your time by pledging volunteer hours to CFC charities.

So even though the CFC is big, its as small as you, because its tailored precisely to your causes, cares, and concerns. When you pick a charity to support, thats where your money goes. And together, like a rain shower falling on a vast, dry fieldour individual droplets of kindness wash over the world and bring new growth in the form of lives changed for the better. Together, we stop diseases in their tracks, we feed the hungry, we care for our veterans and wounded soldiers, we reunite loved ones, we give shelter to the homeless, we care for animals and the environment, we promote civil rights, literacy, the arts, scouting, recreationthe list goes on and on.

Now, Id like to get personal for a moment and tell you why the CFC is important to me. [Share personal story involving a CFC organization or a cause that is important to you personally. Could be aid given or received following a natural or personal disaster, a story from volunteering, something that happened to a close family member, neighbor, friend, or self. Or with permission, share the story of a person from your Federal agency who received assistance from a CFC charity.]

Some of you are aware that CFC rules and regulations have changed somewhat since last year. Ill let your Campaign Managers and Keyworkers spell out the details, but theres one new development Id like to touch on. For the first time ever, we can now invite Federal retirees to participate in the CFC, as many of them did while they were employed full-time by the government. Whats more, they can give in a way very similar to payroll deduction by creating a regular allotment from their retirement annuity pay. Now, I realize that doesnt directly affect those of us in the room, but you probably know someone whos a retired Fed or military service veteran. So, I encourage you to be an ambassador for this campaign. Spread the word about this opportunity to those who might be interested. Also, some of you may be retiring yourself before long (even though NONE of you look old enough to do so, I have say), so I invite you to continue the tradition of supporting your favorite charities through the CFC even as you transition out of Federal service.

Now, Ive spent a lot of time talking about the benefits of CFC giving for Federal employees, but Id like to take a minute to address an aspect of the CFC that you may not have consideredand that is the great benefit that the CFC is for the participating nonprofits. Without the CFC, charities would have to go to a lot of time and expense trying to reach millions of Federal employees around the globe. With CFC donations, they receive regular payments throughout the year, which helps with budgeting, and the CFC funds they receive are unrestrictedwhich means charities are free to put our contributions to use where they are needed most. Truly, the CFC is a win-win situation for everyone.

In closing, I want to thank all of you for your support of this great cause. Because of you, children are prevented from going to bed hungry. Thanks to you, researchers are that much closer to cures for diseases such as cancer, diabetes, Alzheimers, ALS (I had to say that one so nobody would dump a bucket of freezing water on my head), and many more. Thanks to your generous donations, veterans, minorities, the impoverished, and the mentally ill have a brighter future. I could go on and on. As long as people like you continue to give, to serve, and to Show Some Love, then there is hope for a better world for all of us. THANK YOU.