TurnOut

Our mission: mobilize communities to power queer and trans movements

BACKGROUND:

LGBTQ+ individuals live in every city in the U.S., and nearly every city has a nonprofit infrastructure providing vital services to the local community. These groups have a wide range of services, including health care, legal support, advocacy, historical documentation, support for the arts, and tailored services to meet the needs of the many diverse people who make up our communities.

Although these nonprofits provide vital services to LGBTQ+ people, many of these organizations are severely under-funded and lack the financial and human resources to meet the true level of community need. This is especially true for nonprofits serving transgender people and LGBTQ+ people of color.

The good news is the LGBTQ+ community is full of talented individuals who are highly motivated to support these causes. This is where TurnOut comes in.

WHO WE ARE:

TurnOut engages people within our own communities, a largely untapped resource, to provide crucial support to our struggling nonprofit infrastructure. We help foster volunteerism and connect people to each other within the LGBTQ+ community, supercharging the missions of organizations who support them.

OUR MODEL:

While LGBTQ nonprofits could benefit greatly from volunteer support, most lack the capacity to conduct high-quality volunteer recruitment and management. TurnOut bridges this gap by a) Recruiting a large local pool of skilled volunteers interested in LGBTQ causes and b) Providing state-of-the-art volunteer management tools tailored to the needs of LGBTQ nonprofits. We accomplish this through three main programs:

1. Recruitment: We’re building a network of volunteers for LGBTQ+ causes. Each volunteer has stepped up and made themselves available to meet the needs of the nonprofits serving their communities
2. Matching:  We connect volunteers to opportunities that match their skills and interests. Through our biweekly newsletter highlighting new opportunities and our online platform, TurnOut.org, volunteers can join the projects that are right for them.
3. Events: We manage a series of community events to engage with members of the LGBTQ+ community interested in volunteer service. 

OUR GOALS:

For Individuals:

1.  Provide a clear and well-supported pathway to community engagement.
2.  Foster a community of support within the LGBTQ+ community and the organizations that support them.
3.  Expand access to employment opportunities, exposing new ideas of what is possible for ourselves and our communities

For Nonprofits:

1.  Connect with highly motivated prospective supporters (individuals and institutions)
2.  Expand base of long-term support from volunteers, donors, advocates, and board members. 
3. Provide more organizational stability and sustainability to supercharge mission outcomes and population service.

You can learn more about all of our program offerings by visiting turnout.org