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Case Study: Causes Made Visible
Turning Community Effort Into Real Results
Clients: Grindstone, Shoe Bank Canada, and the SAPP project
Role: Writing, coordination, and promotion
Scope: Press, content, events, and storytelling across three causes
Snapshot
Across three very different causes—a fundraising effort for young women in hockey, a national charity collecting footwear for people in need, and a community portrait project raising money for youth recovery—my role was the same at its core: help good work get seen, and turn that visibility into real outcomes.
The throughline across all three was making mission-driven efforts visible. Through press releases, interviews, written content, video, event support, and storytelling, I helped each organization reach more people—and the results followed: tens of thousands of dollars raised, tens of thousands of items collected, and meaningful media attention that brought new supporters on board.
Grindstone Award Foundation
Over the course of three years, I helped turn community goodwill into real opportunity for young women in hockey. Through carefully written press releases, personal interviews, blog content, and promotional video, the effort raised more than $50,000 to cover gear costs and fees for young female athletes, and built awareness of girls’ hockey across Canada.
The work was a blend of storytelling and reach: telling each story in a way that connected, then getting it in front of the right audiences through the right channels, so that support translated into funded athletes.
Shoe Bank Canada
For Shoe Bank Canada, the work spanned administration, coordination, and promotion. On the operational side, I created and organized files for day-to-day operations, built shared spreadsheets that board members and volunteers could update together, kept meeting minutes, and coordinated donation bin hosts and storage across the Okanagan, the Lower Mainland, the Kootenays, and beyond.
On the marketing side, the results were tangible. Press releases announcing shoe drives helped collect over 40,000 pairs of shoes across multiple provinces. One release—calling for businesses to host donation boxes—was picked up by several major outlets and brought ten new bin hosts on board.
I also wrote articles that ran in BC and Ontario news outlets, produced and edited promotional and fundraiser videos, and built automated systems for social media and newsletters. For one fundraiser, I coordinated fifteen artists who each painted a pair of shoes, filmed and edited the event video, and secured sponsors.
The SAPP Project
The SAPP (Socially Anxious People Person) project paired fine-art community portraits with written stories to raise money for a youth recovery house. Where the photographer focused on the images and community connection, I stepped in to conduct interviews and write the accompanying stories—the narratives that gave each portrait its meaning and gave supporters a reason to give.
When possible, I joined a photo session to capture the mood firsthand, interviewing the subject after the shoot so the writing carried authentic detail and emotion. Pairing each portrait with a clear, human story helped the project build awareness and donations toward its cause, contributing to over $17,000 dollars it ultimately raised.
The Result
Taken together, these three efforts tell one story: across causes, I was one of the people who helped turn community work into visible, fundable momentum. More than $50,000 raised for young athletes. Over 40,000 pairs of shoes collected across provinces. Thousands of dollars raised through portrait storytelling. Media pickup that brought new supporters and partners on board.
None of these outcomes came from a single press release or a single story. They came from a consistent pattern—telling each cause’s story clearly, coordinating the people and pieces behind it, and making sure the right audiences actually saw the work.
The Skill Underneath
Marketing a charity and coordinating its events might look different from building systems for a service business, but the underlying skill is the same: taking something that matters and making sure it’s seen, while keeping the moving pieces behind it organized and on track.
Writing a story that connects, coordinating contributors and volunteers, managing the files and spreadsheets that hold an effort together, getting the message in front of the right people—this is communication and operations working hand in hand. It’s the same care I bring to a client’s business: understand what they’re trying to achieve, organize the work behind it, and present it clearly enough that the right people respond.
The cause changes; the skill of making good work visible and keeping it organized does not.
Nothing breaks if you do nothing.
It just stays in your head. Thirty minutes, free, and no pitch.
If I am not the right person for what you need, I will tell you.
The Wild Amber
elina@thewildamber.com
Based in Kamloops, BC
Working remotely
Hours:
Mon - Thu, 9am - 2pm PT
Messages are checked
Mon - Thu, twice a day,
around 9am and 1:30pm PT
The Wild Amber
elina@thewildamber.com
Based in Kamloops, BC
Working remotely across Canada
Hours:
Mon - Thu, 9am - 2pm PT
Messages are checked
Mon - Thu, twice a day, around 9am and 1:30pm PT
Wild Amber Creative Solutions calls Kamloops, British Columbia, home and acknowledges that it is located on Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc territory, situated within the unceded ancestral lands of the Secwépemc Nation. We honour and respect the people, the territory, and the land that houses our community.