My town is one of the latest to get an influx of ICE agents. Local groups, churches, and schools are releasing messages of safety and support to residents who are now carrying fear in their daily lives.
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2025 has been a tough year for nonprofits. I’m sure many of you have had to put out communications about heavy topics you didn’t expect to address. It’s not easy.
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​When you have to address a difficult situation, the key is to focus on the information you need your audience to hear, not the information your organization wants to share.
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Let’s walk through an example I got in a religious services organization’s newsletter at the start of the year.
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Here's what was in the newsletter:

[Organization] has a long-standing mission of serving vulnerable neighbors through disaster relief, food pantries, financial assistance, and immigration legal services. Our Department of Justice-accredited immigration staff guide families through complex legal processes, ensuring compliance with current laws.

“We are proud of our [Name of Program] Program and the dedicated staff and volunteers who assist hardworking families every day. We remain committed to this work,” said [Name], CEO.

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It was a beautiful, proactive gesture. But they were addressing people who were scared and uncertain. They need clear, simple language to cut through those emotions.
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Here's how I’d refine their message:

Our mission is to serve our neighbors, especially when they're vulnerable. One way we do that is through immigration legal services. We guide families through complex legal processes, helping them stay together and lead a better life. Our staff are knowledgeable and accredited, so you'll know that our advice is compliant with current law.

“We remain committed to this work,” said [Name], CEO. “We pray that our migrant and refugee families who help make our communities stronger will be treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.” Our dedicated staff and volunteers will continue to do all they can to make that happen.

I focused the message only on the key issue—immigration legal services—rather than everything the organization does. I kept the language simple and focused on the target reader (immigrants in the parish) rather than the nonprofit. And while the sentiment of the final quote was lovely, it was still focused internally (on staff and volunteers) instead of on the reader. So I grabbed another part of the CEO’s quote (in the full article) about the people they help, rather than the people doing the helping, and reiterated their commitment to their beneficiaries.

When you have a crucial message to get out, step away from your position as a nonprofit professional and into the shoes of the person you’re trying to talk to. What do they need to hear from you right now? That’s how to frame your message.
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​P.S. I’m working on a free resource: The Capacity-Strapped Nonprofit's Guide to Running a High-ROI Campaign. You’ll automatically get a copy since you’re a subscriber. But if you know someone who might like it, encourage them to join the waitlist here.
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Interesting Nonprofit Link

Focusing on the reader will make any of your communications more successful. Check out this advice about fundraising storytelling by fundraising pro Jeff Brooks. Every one of his four points comes back to writing with the reader in mind.​
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Nonprofit Good News

I love working in a sector full of caring, motivated humans who see a need and find a way to address it. Check out this story about a woman who started a nonprofit when she was a 20-year-old student that now feeds over 600,000 school kids each year. Hopefully, it’ll give you the inspiration you need to keep changing the world in the new year.

See you next month!

Lee O'Connell, nonprofit content and copywriter
<--- still the most recent picture of me in my phone

​leeoconnell.com​
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