The Situation

Youth Dynamics, Montana’s largest provider of mental and behavioral health care, supports children and families in need with wrap-around social services and support. A severe reduction in state funding for their critical work left a massive gap between the organization's revenues and expenses in providing dedicated case managers and therapeutic group home services to those in need. As the population grows and mental health challenges rise, additional sources of funding make all the difference in ensuring Montana’s kids and families can access life-changing support.

The Unique Challenge

Internally-managed fundraising efforts for Youth Dynamics had not met goals successfully in the past, leaving some of the organization’s leadership with a lack of confidence in another major fundraising endeavor. Before the organization could undertake a new fundraising goal or a campaign, it needed the partnership of a firm they could trust to guide the process to a favorable outcome.

The Bannack Difference.

With our understanding of the tactics as well as the philosophy of philanthropy, combined with our leadership development support, Youth Dynamics gained the assurance that not only was their mission needed by the Montana community, but it was also valued and would be financially supported. Through the thorough fact-finding of a feasibility study, our Bannack team determined that Youth Dynamics had significant funding potential and gave the board information it needed to assess measurable data and a strong, clear pathway to success before committing to a major fundraising campaign. Now, like the people they serve, Youth Dynamics is no longer walking the path alone because the Bannack team nurtured connections with the organization’s loyal donors and with the new philanthropic leaders who believe in Youth Dynamics and are committed to its success. $1.5 million later, Youth Dynamics is now leaning into its mission knowing it has the resources needed to continue delivering and developing its services to kids and families in need.

From Youth Dynamics:

“The feasibility study was very comprehensive, exploring who we are, what we do best, as well as what projects specifically would be most appreciated by stakeholders, the public, and potential donors. The Bannack team knew exactly what questions to ask and qualitative and quantitative data to gather in order to clarify our fundraising capacity. Then they illustrated their findings to our board in a way that was straightforward to understand and provided an essential confidence boost in our next steps. That step removed a lot of previous doubt, and changed hearts and minds. So we knew the possibilities and potentials before we ever made one fundraising ask. We were able to work from the clear strategy Bannack created for us, and $1.5 million dollars and a wealth of valuable, highly supportive new relationships later, we can say it was very successful.”