Archive for » June 2nd, 2012«

02 Jun 2012

Microloans for mental-health patients rolling out across Ontario

There were times when Ed Middaugh had no home, no job and no money. He floated from couch to couch, in and out of hospitals during what he reluctantly calls “episodes,” unable to buy food because payments for medications consumed his whole monthly budget.

These days, Mr. Middaugh, 34, diagnosed with bipolar disorder at age 19, runs his own general contracting business, where he does home renos, stonework and landscaping. He’s bright, articulate, motivated – and steady, thanks to a better mix of meds.

He’s also the recipient of an $8,500 small-business loan that enabled him to buy a used pickup and power tools – something he never could have imagined landing from a traditional bank due to a sporadic work history.

Mr. Middaugh is part of a quiet pilot micro-credit project run by the Rotman School of Management and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health over the past two years. The partnership gives small loans to people with a history of mental-health challenges to start their own businesses. Often, these clients have no access to credit through traditional channels because they lack a sound credit history, or the required collateral, or they are on government support.

“That somebody is saying, ‘We trust you, here’s your money, you did it, you followed through with what you need to do,’ “ says Mr. Middaugh. “Just the level of trust and empowerment I got from that was invaluable.”

Preliminary signs in the Toronto program are encouraging enough that it is now expanding through Ontario – from 17 clients to date to a target of 60 in the next year in the GTA, Ottawa, Kingston and Niagara/St. Catharines – with new backing from the Alterna Savings and Credit Union and partnerships with local agencies. It’s thought to be the only program of its kind in Canada.

One client’s e-commerce business is doing so well he is off monthly income supports, and now qualifies for conventional small business loans at a major bank. Most participants report an increased sense of confidence and inclusion, more financial independence and less indebtedness.

That, in turn, is improving the quality of many clients’ lives – and making it easier to buy basic purchases, such as food, clothing or a Metropass, says the program’s executive director, Narinder Dhami.

The program provides loans of typically $3,000 to $5,000, up to a maximum of $25,000, along with mentoring and development training to people who either have a viable business plan vetted by Rotman and, now, Alterna, or small-business experience. So far, the repayment rate is 100 per cent.

Microfinance – providing access to financial services to lower-income people – is a concept that’s taken off around the developing world, but it also exists in North America (Vancouver City Savings Credit Union and Immigrant Access Fund Society of Alberta, for example, have been offering small loans to new immigrants without a credit history for years).

The program is run, deliberately, out of the Rotman offices at College and University, not CAMH. “There’s a dignity when they walk through these doors – they’re coming to a business school, not a hospital. And they’re treated as entrepreneurs,” Ms. Dhami says.

The partnership’s very name – Rise Asset Development – speaks to the business-like approach, despite that it is, in fact, a registered charity, started with a $1-million donation from philanthropist Sandra Rotman.

“I don’t feel like I’m being babysat. I’m treated with respect, as a professional, a grownup. It wasn’t easy – they don’t just give [a loan]away. It takes level of commitment and you have to be prepared. But it means I’m light years ahead of where I was even a few months ago,” Mr. Middaugh says.

About one in five Canadians will experience a mental illness or a substance-abuse issue in their lifetime. The annual economic toll – through missed work, health-care pressures and lost productivity – is more than $50-billion a year.

Joblessness among Canadians with severe disorders is sky high – 70 to 90 per cent, according to CAMH. Past studies have linked employment with improved health outcomes – one found people with longer-term employment had a third the inpatient days of those with less work.

A national mental-health strategy released this month said the system requires a complete overhaul and recommended, among other things, creating more innovative approaches to employment.

It’s a far cry from the 1950s and 1960s, when people with mental illnesses were often locked up in asylums, isolated from society. In more recent years, “the emphasis is on recovery – living effectively with an illness,” says John Trainor, who directs CAMH’s community support and research unit.

“Things that weren’t thought possible for people, say, with a severe case of schizophrenia, such as living in one’s own apartment, having a job, or starting a small enterprise, these things are now seen as possible. And every time we push that boundary a bit, towards recognizing capacity, it keeps working.”

Alterna Savings joined the partnership last month and will provide advice and the financial infrastructure. It has a more than a decade’s experience running microfinance programs, and has granted more than 400 loans totaling almost $2-million.

It’s learned, over the years, what works best: it only grants loans with proper support such as access to mentoring, ongoing advice and rigorous requirements for a sound business plan.

“People who are starting up these businesses will have to compete in the normal marketplace at some point. So they need support getting off the ground, but it’s not a charitable undertaking. It’s a business undertaking that is focused on helping get people on their feet,” says John Lahey, president and chief executive officer.

The full expectation of these higher-risk clients is they repay in full. If they can’t, however, their circumstances are reviewed. Some flexibility is given if clients are facing particular challenges.

Self-employment is a natural fit for many clients who can’t often fit rigid schedules of a regular job because of treatment schedules, anxiety or mood swings.

For Grace Cherian, 57, who has coped with bipolar and seasonal affective disorders for decades, working for herself has given her new confidence and pride.

“With self-employment, I can work around my schedule. And I don’t have those anxieties about what to wear, how to get myself to work, and the cold [in wintertime]I would with a nine-to-five job,” says Ms. Cherian, who now runs a business from her home as a writer, public speaker and mental health advocate.

Others are just embarking on the road to self employment. Dwight Perreira, 46, is a kitchen coordinator at a Toronto restaurant, but his dream is to return to music. He too has coped with mental-health challenges for decades, hospitalizations, living at times in shelters and ultimately, diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

In times when he was sick and off meds, he would go into fancy restaurants and order extravagant meals. Sometimes he would run up $700 bills in a day. Thousands of dollars in debt wrecked his credit history.

Now, he’s one step closer to his career change. He’s stabilized his treatment regime, established a business plan to become a self-employed guitarist and singer – and, this year, received a $3,800 loan to purchase a new guitar and amp. He aims to start trying out for regular gigs in bars or coffee shops – and also carve out a niche for himself in playing at non-profit events, such as for Mental Health Week.

“I’m hoping by 50, I’ll be completely independent, musically,” he says.


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02 Jun 2012

Donations sought for Nebraska veterinary center

The university says the Legislature approved $50 million for the center, provided the university can raise its $5 million share.

Officials say the current center on the East Campus in Lincoln falls far short of current and future needs, lacking space and adequate ventilation and is limited by a design that increases risks for cross-contamination of disease.

The fundraising is being done by the University of Nebraska Foundation.


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02 Jun 2012

Nicole Eaton: The philanthropist who rattles charities

Nicole Eaton’s wealth, connections and passion for charitable causes have made her a force on the boards of the National Ballet of Canada, the St. Michael’s Hospital foundation in Toronto and other non-profit organizations.

But the Conservative senator is also known for her strongly held opinions and willingness to take on anyone who disagrees with her, which helps explain why someone who is a generous patron and an A-list guest at fundraisers has also played a leading role in a political drama that has rattled charities across the country.

A fundraiser for the Conservative Party, she is married to Thor Eaton, a member of the famous Eaton family, and was named to the Senate by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2008. She has used her seat in the red chamber to wage a campaign against environmental groups that get funding from American foundations and that oppose a pipeline that would connect British Columbia to Alberta’s oil sands. But her sharp attacks – and those of cabinet ministers Joe Oliver and Peter Kent – have been characterized by critics as a smear campaign and left many charities in Canada reassessing if they should play a political role.

The chill is being felt well beyond the environmental movement. This week, Marcel Lauzière, president of Imagine Canada, a national umbrella group for charities and non-profits, told the House of Commons finance committee that organizations involved in poverty alleviation, social services, social housing, the arts and many other causes are worried about whether they can push for changes in public policy or even appear before parliamentary committees.

But Mrs. Eaton is not sympathetic. “I don’t understand their fear of a chill.… I wouldn’t say there is hysteria, but there are a lot of misconceptions,” she said in an interview.

Long-standing rules that allow charities to spend no more than 10 per cent of their funds on advocacy haven’t changed, although the recent budget gave the Canada Revenue Agency several million extra for enforcement. Non-profits will also be required to provide more information on their political activities, including the extent to which these are funded by foreign sources.

“When the average Canadian gives to – and I will put this word in quotes – ‘charity,’ there is still 10 per cent of monies that can be used for advocacy or political purposes, if you wish,” she said. “I don’t think anybody worries about people lobbying the government about eating less salt or anti-smoking campaigns.”

But she said Canadians have a right to know where charities are getting their money and how they are spending it.

Canadian charities have a strong record on transparency, Mr. Lauzière told MPs this week. He said he hopes the new disclosure rules won’t lead to higher administration costs, and added that the inflammatory language being used by some ministers and senators has charities rethinking their involvement in public policy.

Mrs. Eaton launched an inquiry in the Senate with these words: “There is political manipulation. There is influence peddling. There are millions of dollars crossing borders masquerading as charitable foundations into bank accounts of sometimes phantom charities that do nothing more than act as a fiscal clearinghouse.”

She is an eager soldier in a campaign that has dismayed many people in the non-profit sector, which she has been involved with for much of her life. Her father, Jacques Courtois, was a wealthy Montreal lawyer and prominent Conservative who encouraged her to make a difference through charitable work.

“Daddy always said to us, ‘When you do public good don’t look for the reward and ‘noblesse oblige.’”

As a young woman, she succumbed to Trudeaumania and was a go-go dancer at one Liberal rally, prompting Pierre Trudeau to ask, “Does your father know you are here?”

She began her shift to the right in the late 1970s and married into a Conservative family.

People who have worked with her, including National Ballet of Canada artistic director Karen Kain, describe Mrs. Eaton as a committed and dedicated volunteer. Robert Howard, the chief executive officer of St. Michael’s Hospital, said she is “a force.”

“If she has a belief in something you better be well versed if you have a different view,” he said.

Mrs. Eaton said she doesn’t see any conflict between her philanthropic role and the one she has taken on in the Senate. “This is about transparency,” she said. “As a fundraiser, I believe in transparency.”


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02 Jun 2012

Centennial Mental Health public forum fun, informative

Visitors to the Centennial Mental Health Center public forum Wednesday afternoon had fun — and learned something at the same time.

They had a chance to listen to local musician Jimmy Kernodle play guitar and sing original Christian contemporary and classic rock songs while they enjoyed hot dogs, chips and drinks at the Fort Morgan office.

Kids had their faces painted and could play toss a duck.

Those who enjoy plants could pick one up free.

That last fits the theme for the mental health center.

“We believe in hope and growth,” said Karl Cline of Centennial.

The Fort Morgan office is always coming up with amazing things, said Centennial Executive Director Liz Hickman.

Choosing this time of year for the

public forum and open house coincides with Mental Health Month, which is in May, she said.

Part of the reason for the public forum is to let people know what mental health treatment is all about.

Hickman noted that society has a long way to go in reducing the stigma of mental illness, but events like this one help.

An open house like this allows the staff to show what it does, Cline said.

It has been a busy year for mental health virtually everywhere, he said. In a recent report to the Board of Morgan County Commissioners, he told them that the numbers of clients are at a five-year high.

More and more people are saying they need help, Cline noted.

Also, there are still those who could use treatment, but may not seek it because they do not understand what it is all about, he said.

Treatment might not be what each person needs, but if Centennial is not the right place for a person, staff members will find the right place — whether that be a pastor or a peer group, Cline said.

People have a need to talk about their difficulties, but that can be hard when they are in difficult situations or have difficulty dealing with what they are feeling or thinking, he said.

In response to the increasing

need, Centennial is hiring additional staff. That means the waiting list to get help will not be as long as it used to be, Cline said.

Centennial is starting some “feeling good” groups to help those suffering from anxiety and depression, he explained.

“We’re here, and we care,” Cline emphasized.

One way of helping clients is to help them help each other.

Centennial offers the Pioneer Wellness Line, which is a telephone service people can call to hear some support, said John Mercer, who is a part of that project. This call line is manned by volunteer clients and family members of clients. They can understand what people are going through and talk to people before they go into crisis.

Those who call may feel comfortable talking with their peers who have similar difficulties, and are compassionate about mental health issues, he said. That line is 970-768-7479.

The Fort Morgan Centennial office also offers a community support program for those who are chronically mentally ill, play therapy, parenting classes, clinical programs, substance abuse treatment, vocational rehabilitation services, group, individual and family therapy and animal assisted therapy.

Children can tap into a mentoring program, where they can do things with adults to help them learn about socialization.

The Rainbow Social Club offers clients a place to be with others who have similar issues and an environment in which they are accepted. They have chances to do things like bowling, barbecues, watch ball games, go to movies and even go to the Mile High Flea Market.

One of the aims of the programs is to preserve the dignity of people with mental disorders.

Staff at Centennial invite anyone to come learn about what the center has to offer.

Awards

The forum was also an opportunity to honor those who have made significant contributions to mental health in the region.

Steve Romero, director of the Morgan County Department of Human Services was honored with the Friend of Mental Health award and Dr. Arlene Weimer with the Clarion Award.

Animal therapy counselor Cassie Potts was also honored as an advocate for children. She works to get them involved with services and with the community, Cline said.

She speaks for mental health, and can be seen hauling her two dogs around to community functions and schools, he said.

The Friend of Mental Health award is given to those who have worked actively to forward the cause of mental wellness in the region.

This was the very first Clarion Award, Cline said. The name of the award stands for speaking out clearly and loudly for mental health issues across the region for clients’ rights, issues, community education, outreach and individual intervention.

The Clarion Award recipient may be a person who has uniquely impacted communities by breaking down barriers and establishing a standard of excellence, he said.

– Contact Dan Barker at business@fmtimes.com.


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02 Jun 2012

Premature babies have higher psychiatric risk

Kate Kelland

Reuters

1:29 p.m. CDT, June 1, 2012


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02 Jun 2012

Montana official finds Miller donations illegal

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — The commissioner of political practices says that Republican candidate for governor Ken Miller, a former state senator from Laurel, has been funding his campaign with illegal donations that included anonymous, corporate and excess contributions.

Miller derided the findings as a politically-motivated attack just four days before the primary.

The case stems from a complaint that originated from within the campaign itself in April. Miller’s former fundraiser accused the campaign of not fully reporting campaign donations.

Miller is a favorite of social conservatives in a crowded GOP primary that also featured former congressman Rick Hill and former state Sen. Corey Stapleton of Billings. Miller derided the findings as a politically-motivated attack. Commissioner of Political Practices Jim Murry issued a decision Friday that finds sufficient evidence that Miller broke several campaign finance laws. More than a half-dozen campaign finance laws were broken in the process, the commissioner’s office found.

The complaint was first filed by former Miller treasurer Kelly Bishop. At that time, Miller had called them the “frivolous, untruthful” allegations of a disgruntled employee who wanted to be his running mate for lieutenant governor. Bishop, who owns real estate agencies in Polson and Livingston and has helped previous GOP statewide and legislative campaigns, said she quit the Miller campaign after raising the issues. Her complaint in April said that about $14,000 donated to the campaign wasn’t reported on the campaign finance reports.

Miller said Friday that the commissioner’s office was being used as a “political tool.”

“None of the allegations made are substantiated,” Miller said in a statement, without going into specificis. “The not-so-veiled purpose of the very carefully worded findings, which are in dispute, and the extraordinary timing of their release, just four days before primary election day, is a brazen yet anticipated effort to derail the momentum of the Miller/Gallagher primary campaign.”

Murry, in a 17-page statement of findings, found the allegations to have merit. Among the findings:

— About 20 donations exceeded the maximum contribution allowed by law, such as a $1,200 donation from a political campaign committee that was twice the allowable amount.

— Campaign donations in some cases were never reported on finance reports.

— The campaign received several small anonymous donations, which are illegal.

— The campaign received free hotel rooms from a Super 8 in Missoula that the commission determined was a contribution from a corporation, which is not allowed by law.

— Campaign expenses were illegally paid by Ken Miller and his wife, Peggy, even though neither was registered as the campaign treasurer as required by law. Some expenses were never reported as required.

The commissioner noted that Miller, who has previously run for statewide office and was once chairman of the Montana Republican Party, is not new to the requirements of campaign finance laws. The findings come just days before Tuesday’s primary election and as Miller wrapped up a week of campaign events with tea party favorite Sharon Angle of Nevada.

Recently, Miller was also chastised by his opponents for placing automated “robocalls” that are also against state law — but still commonly used by candidates every election cycle because sanctions have not been enforced on them. One of Miller’s calls went to the commissioner of political practices office while it was investigating the campaign finance complaint, Murry said.


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02 Jun 2012

Charity chief focus of football all-stars – Las Vegas Review

All-star events in high school sports are about fun and allowing former rivals to play together for a change.

But today’s West Charleston Lions Club Charity All-Star Football Game is about much more.

Officials hope to raise $41,000 for charities to commemorate the 41st year of the event, said John Klumbach, co-chairman of the game. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Bishop Gorman High School.

“At the blind center with captains and coaches, we discussed how it’s so much bigger than a football game or everyone in the room,” Klumbach said.

Proceeds from the game will go to charities including Blind Center of Nevada, Lions Burn Care Center at University Medical Center, Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation and Lions Camp Dat-So-La-Lee, a weeklong recreational summer camp for children of families in need.

Klumbach said last year’s event raised about $34,000 for charities.

■ RECENT DECISIONS – Spring Valley wrestler Ray Waters capped his 54-0 senior year by signing with Arizona State. The 160-pound Class 4A state champion posted 44 pins as a senior.

Seniors who signed with Division II schools include Silverado boys basketball shooting guard Ruben Jackson (Colorado School of Mines) and Centennial girls volleyball outside hitter Lacy Miyahira (Brigham Young-Hawaii).

Juniors who committed include Centennial softball pitcher/infielder Taylor Huntly (Providence) and Arbor View girls soccer midfielder Amberly Halstead (Texas AM-Corpus Christi).

Maiscei Grier, a 2011 Sierra Vista graduate and former Rutgers basketball commit, signed with Division II Saint Joseph’s College (Ind.).

Gorman senior point guard Gio Guzman, a former Florida International commit, signed with NAIA Northwest Christian University (Ore.).

■ 2A HONORS – Class 2A Southern League baseball coaches voted Needles pitcher Matt McAndrews the league’s Most Valuable Player, and The Meadows’ Frank DeSantis took Coach of the Year.

In 2A Southern League softball, pitchers Abby Chandler of Needles and K.C. McCrosky of Lincoln County shared MVP. The Meadows head coach Craig Campbell and Lincoln County assistant Tommy Sears shared Coach of the Year.

Contact reporter Tristan Aird at taird@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow him on Twitter: @tristanaird.


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02 Jun 2012

United Way creates mental health account

McHENRY –The United Way of Greater McHenry County has created a special emergency account to help fund services that will be affected by the closing of Family Service and Community Mental Health Center.

The collapse of one of the county’s largest and oldest behavioral health agencies came after a service agreement with the North Central Behavioral Health System fell through for financial reasons.

The United Way account of community donations is intended to help agencies that plan to step forward and fill the service gap left when Family Service closes June 30.

“What we need to do and will do is bring these [mental health] services back,” United Way Executive Director David Barber said.

“We already allocated money to Family Service. This will be above and beyond what we have already done,” Barber said.

Contributions could go to agencies such as Pioneer Center for Human Services and Pioneer’s Youth Service Bureau division, Family Alliance, National Alliance on Mental Illness, Thresholds or others. United Way will monitor the agencies to make sure the money is going directly toward replacing the services provided by Family Service.

“We can raise money and guarantee that it will go toward providing the services that were lost,” Barber said.

United Way allocated about $211,800 to Family Service and North Central for fiscal 2012, which ends this month. That included $150,000 for family and individual counseling, and $61,800 for drug and alcohol counseling.

The nonprofit plans to go through the same allocation process for fiscal 2013, and, Barber said, it will set aside money to help fund mental health services by new agencies coming on board.

“The need is going to be greater to start up new agencies,” Barber said. “There may also be some state funding that Family Service was getting that new agencies can’t get. This will help defray some of those costs.”

United Way had funded a portion of Family Service programming costs since 1978. The Mental Health Board, which is taxpayer-funded, also has funded Family Service.

The Mental Health Board currently is examining how to fill the coming service gap.

Family Service served 6,000 clients at its peak. There were 2,000 clients seen in the past 90 days.


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02 Jun 2012

Lincoln mental health head retiring amid changes

How many times were police called to check on a person with mental health issues: 493.

How many suicide attempts: 89.

How many mental health-related incidents in public libraries: 65 — all in Bennett Martin at 14th and N streets.

Lincoln’s homeless count: 964.

The number of people being served by community mental health programs: medication management, 4,125; day rehab, 1,607; residential rehab, 598; community support, 2,100; day treatment, 592.

During his last few days as Community Mental Health Center director last week, Settle organized this information, leaving his successor a way to measure the success of whatever system takes the place of the local mental health center.

Settle is retiring just as the program he has headed for 14 years is about to take a new direction.

The Lancaster County Board of Commissioners has decided to get out of the business of running a mental health center and is exploring the best options for turning it over to a nonprofit.

The $9.3 million system — one-third each of federal, state and local tax money — serves people who have serious mental health issues, trying to keep them stable and functioning.

Settle has some ideas about what the future holds.

Primary health care and mental health services will be integrated so a “person could walk in, take care of the mental health needs and take care of their diabetes.”

More people with credentials in both substance abuse and mental health licensing will be hired.

About 55 percent of the center’s outpatient population have major mental illnesses and are self-medicating, using alcohol or marijuana or abusing medication.

More people who have had mental health problems — called peers — will be hired to work with clients.

“If I were suffering, hearing voices and feeling depressed, would I rather meet with a peer or a guy in a suit?” Settle asked.

His biggest fear is that funding will drop, jeopardizing the effectiveness of a new system.

And if the new system fails, he said, everyone will see the results.

Without an adequate safety net for people with serious mental illness, their lives become very chaotic.

So more people would use hospital emergency rooms, and more people will have contact with law enforcement, Settle said.

And without adequate services, he said, “the new jail isn’t large enough.”

There are only 89 beds left in the state for the acutely mentally ill — all at the Lincoln Regional Center.

Fifty years ago, he said, there probably were 2,000 beds at each of the state’s three psychiatric institutions: Hastings, Norfolk and Lincoln.

Now, those people live outside an institution, with the help of new psychotropic drugs and community programs.

In his 51 years of serving people with special needs, Settle has lived through three recessions, during which county government almost always takes a second look at nonmandated programs.

But the most recent recession is the toughest and has lasted the longest, he said.

As a result, the county decided to get out of the business of running the group homes and programs for adults with developmental disabilities.

Settle used to run the Lancaster Office of Mental Retardation, which was sold in 1994 to a national for-profit that does business in Nebraska as Community Alternatives. Settle handed over equipment, vehicles, records and more than 400 staff members.

Today, that system looks much the same from the outside, but staff members no longer are county employees and have fewer benefits, lower salaries and fewer career paths, Settle said.

He fears that also will occur with this new system for people with serious mental illness.

Settle has a retirement plan that combines his passion for collecting art and keeps him connected to an outsider art program he started 14 years ago.

More than 400 people are involved in the program, which is jointly sponsored by the Community Mental Health Center, Center Pointe, Parks and Recreation and private grants, and Settle hopes to open an art gallery on N Street, half a block west of the downtown public library.

The idea for the outsider art program came from a survey he did at Center Pointe when he left for his job at the mental health center. He asked clients what was missing from their treatment programs.

One-third of the responders said: No one talked to me about my passion, which was either writing, music, art, dance.

“They wanted to create,” Settle said. “All we needed to do was provide a venue where it is safe for them to create.

“It substitutes sitting alone in an apartment listening to your mind noise with some meaningful activity.”

Almost $200,000 worth of art from the program has been sold, “which is a big boost for people who have no money,” he said.

So before he retired, Settle took down the 85 pieces he owned that hung at the center.

That art, plus more he has at home, will go with him and be the basis for the new gallery.

“Noon to 5. Better than banker hours. One block from my home.

“That will be my next venture.”

___

Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com


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02 Jun 2012

Send money now! Candidates compete for online cash

By DAVID ESPO

WASHINGTON

Republican strategist “Karl Rove and his allies have taken the gloves off” in Ohio. Send money to stop them.

No, wait. “Hollywood-liberal-elites are trying to hijack a Senate seat in Missouri.” Funds needed now to prevent it.

These aren’t letters home from distraught relatives or friends. They are part of a ceaseless competition for campaign cash in the email era, from the race for the White House to Congress and local office.

The stakes are high, measured in the hundreds of millions of dollars every election cycle. Precisely how much is not known, since the Federal Election Commission does not require federal candidates to tally donations raised via email or websites separately from those made in response to traditional mail, phone banks or candidate calls.

In an age of multi-tasking, getting attention fast is critical.

President Barack Obama entered small-dollar donors into a lottery with a chance to have lunch with him last fall. In a follow-up, the prize is dinner with him and former President Bill Clinton.

The idea seems to be catching on. Mitt Romney’s campaign is raising funds by giving contributors a chance to be one of four picked to “sit down for a bite to eat” with the Republican presidential contender and his wife, Ann.

Some online appeals include video, like one that Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., included of her rival, Pete Hoekstra, saying he favored drilling for oil in the Great Lakes laterally from onshore platforms.

Others seek a signature on an online petition, an act meant to create a sense of empowerment in the signer, and one that leads quickly to a request for funds.

Opponents of the recall of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker often send out email requests for money that include a list of names of “Great Patriots” and the amounts they have donated. The hope is that others will join.

“It’s like a two-minute elevator pitch,” said Taryn Rosenkranz, whose company, New Blue Interactive, works for Democratic candidates and causes. “You don’t have very much time before you’ve lost the reader.”

Messages delivered digitally are “faster and more agile than TV, direct mail or phones. You can initiate a fundraising campaign the day a news story hits or something of note occurs in the political environment,” said Ben Olson, director of online services for the Republican-aligned firm Arena Communications.

Even preview lines — those short phrases that summarize items in an email inbox — are viewed as critically important. “Nasty, vindictive and liberal to boot!” read one recently, practically begging to be opened. “Exclusive: We want you to be the first to see this,” confided another mass email.

Technology lets campaigns know instantly how much money is coming in the door in response to the latest pitch. “A lot of times what you can do is put out two or three different versions and put them out to different demographics and sometimes through different websites,” said Steve McMahon, a Democratic political consultant.

Increasingly, campaigns use Facebook and other social media websites to raise money. Erik Nilsson, vice president at the CDMI, a Republican-aligned firm, claims credit on the company’s website for showing that online fundraising yields “can be increased by 52 percent by engaging donors through social networks.”

In an interview, Nilsson said, “Friends asking friends are more likely to get a donation and when those donations come in … they come in much higher.”

The next frontier may be donation by text message, which is currently banned.

Among the obstacles is a long lag between the time a donation is made and when it is transferred to the campaign by the mobile company. Also, a text donation to a charity, for example, provides a donor’s cell phone number, but not name, address and occupation, information the Federal Election Commission requires to ensure a contribution is legal.

Lawyers representing a pair of consulting firms, one allied with each of the two major political parties, have recommended steps to overcome the difficulties and last month asked the FEC to permit donations by texting.

None of the technical considerations is readily apparent to the potential donor, left to sift through competing appeals.

No event or issue, it seems, is too minor to trigger an urgent and/or outraged request for contributions.

The campaign of Sen. Sherrod Brown wants money because Rove and his allies “have taken the gloves off” and are attacking the Ohio Democrat. “If we can’t hit the million-dollar goal for our No Fear Fund, we’ll get buried before the summer even starts,” said a recent email.

Sarah Steelman, a Republican running for the Senate in Missouri, warned recently that Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill “has a series of liberal celebrities who are funding her campaign … defeat Hollywood’s Third Senator,” it says. Photos of Danny DeVito, Susan Sarandon, Kate Capshaw and Steven Spielberg are included, superimposed on the iconic Hollywood sign in the hills of Los Angeles.

In recent days, Florida Democrats claimed they had registered 10 percent more voters than Republicans and pleaded, “Contribute today and help us keep the momentum.”

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s political organization emailed supporters about her new book, “Can’t Is Not an Option.”

“If you donate $50 or more to help me continue our fight, you will receive a limited edition personalized copy,” she wrote.

Tommy Thompson, a Republican contender for the Senate in Wisconsin, told his email recipients somewhat breathlessly, “We just received our first shipment of yard signs.” Anyone interested in having one could stop by the office. If not, they could join the campaign as a volunteer.

Either way, a $20 donation means “we can keep buying more signs.”


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