Beagles of New England States 2011 Annual Report It s Good to be a Beagle in New England B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 1
Message from the Board The past year has been one of continued growth as B.O.N.E.S. works to aid beagles in New England and eastern New York State. Owner surrenders and strained shelter resources have continued to place increasing demands on our services, especially for placement of older dogs. We continue to accept as many beagles as possible into the program, to guarantee lifelong support through the SSB (Sensational Senior Beagles) program to senior dogs who might otherwise not find loving homes, and to provide extensive veterinary care to many dogs who come to us in need. We work hard to place each beagle in a loving "forever" home and to provide support and guidance to make each dog's transition a successful one. As a private, non-profit organization, we receive no public funding. Though the coming year will see new efforts by the Board to identify potential sources of grant support, our ability to fulfill our mission depends on the generosity of volunteers and friends who believe in what we do. Throughout the year, individual donations, large and small, and local outreach efforts spearheaded by enthusiastic volunteers are critically important to us, as are the major fund-raising projects -- the Calendar, the Bash, and the Annual Appeal -- which allow us to continue our work. Routine medical care for dogs entering our program, and the extraordinary needs of several wonderful dogs we have served in the past year have all combined once again to increase significantly our expenses for veterinary care. The contributions of several veterinarians who support our work by offering discounted or pro bono services make it possible for B.O.N.E.S. to provide the care many of our special beagles require. We are deeply grateful to these veterinarians, and the B.O.N.E.S. web page will soon recognize the crucial role these dedicated clinicians play in our program. Two years ago, the Board conducted a Volunteer survey, and we continue to build on the insights and recommendations the survey provided. We continue to expand our support to foster homes and adopters. In the coming months, our use of a web based application designed to support the work of shelters and rescue groups will help to integrate the information from intake regarding the beagle, fostering, and adoptions and will make it easier to track dogs in the program. And most critically for the future of B.O.N.E.S., we are working to expand opportunities for more active volunteer involvement in areas ranging from fostering to local outreach and education to transports of beagles to foster or adoptive homes to fund-raising. Through website and Facebook postings and the newly revived Newsletter, we hope to encourage the active involvement of an increasing number of our volunteers. The extraordinary efforts of B.O.N.E.S.'s several Operations Directors are allowing the Board gradually to move from preoccupation with day-to-day issues to the longer-range strategic planning that will ensure B.O.N.E.S's future. While all individual Board members remain actively involved in front-line B.O.N.E.S. activities, as a group the Board has begun to focus on long-range and strategic planning. We meet at least monthly in two-hour conference calls and post a summary of each monthly meeting on the Volunteer site. We hope that when you have suggestions or comments, you will contact us. We learn from your experiences and your suggestions, and we appreciate the time you invest to communicate with us. We are deeply grateful to all who actively support B.O.N.E.S.'s work. From us - and from the wonderful beagles whose needs we all serve - our thanks. Joy Bunkowske Jeanne Lemner Sharon Vartanian Elizabeth Nathans Marsha Cook B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 2
**************************************************************************************** Volunteers Our volunteers continue to be the backbone of our organization. A non-profit organization cannot continue to grow and prosper without a strong volunteer base. 2011 was a great year for our volunteers. We welcomed 23 new volunteers who have jumped right in and have been fostering, transporting, performing home visits, helping with clerical work, Public Relations, our newsletter (The Bay) and coordinating BARKS and other Outreach events. We welcome and appreciate any time our volunteers give to the cause. Do it for the beagles and feel good knowing you made a difference. If you are looking for something special, please check the Volunteer website for a list of open positions. ****************************************************************************************** Intake In 2011, we took 77 dogs into our program, a 54% increase over last year s number of 50. More and more shelters call us asking for help with harder to place dogs that have behavior or medical issues. We are happy to work with them and do all we can to help. We will take in as many dogs as we have foster homes so if you are looking to help B.O.N.E.S. in 2012, please consider joining this wonderful group of people. This past year we have had a lot of success working with the Beagle Rescue League, taking in local area laboratory beagles and finding them permanent homes. We look forward to continuing this in 2012. Managing Intake could not be done without volunteers who manage the phone lines. They take in all the initial information on a dog and pass it along to the appropriate person who will make the decision on which dogs come into our programs. These decisions are based on criteria put together over the years we have been an active rescue. In 2012, we will continue rescuing as many dogs as possible, working with our foster team to find the best beagle matches for our foster homes and then placing them in their forever homes. B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 3
****************************************************************************************************************** Adoptions 2011 was a banner year for adopting beagles! 83 dogs found forever homes, a 22.1% increase over last year s number of 68. Our 11 active Adoption Counselors are committed to finding the right home for each beagle in our program and do an outstanding job. This group of volunteers works hard to screen prospective adopters, making sure they are a good candidate to adopt a B.O.N.E.S. beagle. It involves many hours of phone interviews and a lot of education on the actual breed itself. The volunteers who conduct home visits for our adoption counselors have done an outstanding job. They act as the eyes and ears of B.O.N.E.S. making sure the home environment is a safe place for our beagles to live out the rest of their lives. Our adoptions could not be complete without the help of our Transport Coordinators. They and their trusty transport teams help us move dogs all over New England and New York State. ***************************************************************************************** Foster Homes In 2011, our dedicated foster homes worked very hard with all the dogs that were accepted into our program. This is a part of the organization that never seems to get the attention it truly deserves. We hope that people realize without our foster families, we would not have a B.O.N.E.S. rescue program. We, and the beagles that come into our program, are eternally grateful for the second chance these homes allow. While it is one of the most challenging volunteer opportunities, it also brings great personal growth and rewards. There is special satisfaction in nurturing a beagle in need and providing love and guidance until a permanent home is found. Foster families make a difference and save lives, one beagle at a time. During 2011, we had many new volunteers step forward to foster as well as many inactive homes reactivate to help out the dogs. This allowed us to bring in and help more dogs. We saw a marked increase in the number of older beagles wanting to come into our program this year. As a result, we added a volunteer to focus on the foster homes participating in our Sensational Senior program and the adopters of these special beagles. We are in constant need of good, structured, foster homes and welcome inquiries to help in this area. B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 4
****************************************************************************************** Fundraising Fundraising continues to be one of the strongest sources of income for our organization. Ongoing website programs, such as the B.O.N.E.S. Boutique and Affiliate Shopping programs remain profitable. Several large-scale fundraisers continued to be profitable for B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Beagle Bash The 2011 Beagle Bash, held in September, was extremely successful. There were over 125 dogs at the event. The Bash committee starts working on this project in early April and doesn t stop until the location where the Bash is held is cleaned up! Volunteers work hard behind the scenes securing items for the silent auction, planning Doggy games, requesting donations for raffle prizes and give-aways, creating and printing brochures and posters, etc. The day of the Bash, both humans and their beagles enjoy playing dog games, bidding on raffle baskets and silent auction items, visiting vendors, buying 2011 calendars, getting their faces painted and watching our special guests perform. It s definitely one of the must do things with your beagle buddy. 2012 B.O.N.E.S. Calendar The annual B.O.N.E.S. Calendar project is one of the largest fundraisers for our organization. 2011 was no exception. The committee did a superb job in preparing and selling the 2012 B.O.N.E.S. calendar. It was not only making this a major fundraising project but also a very fun event. The project consists of collecting fees for photo submissions, calendar sponsorships, voting for pictures, and calendar sales. The annual voting was competitive and the calendars sold out in early 2012. The professional quality of the calendars continues to be exceptional. Beagles fans across the country continue to purchase our calendars and like last year, they were available and being sold at the annual Beagle Bash! 2011-2012 Annual Appeal The 2011-2012 Annual Appeal was also a huge success. Utilizing both Constant Contact messaging and a very large-scale mailing, the Annual Appeal again raised record donations for the beagles. Everyone at B.O.N.E.S. is appreciative of the committee s time and willingness to help with this very important public relations and financial endeavor. Successful fundraisers were held on a regional level as well. Various Outreach Events all helped to spread the word about B.O.N.E.S. and raise money for our organization. B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 5
****************************************************************************************** Technology In 2011 B.O.N.E.S. continued to use technology to help the organization. Our technology team worked together to really make our website more user friendly and informative. The Calendar contest benefited greatly from the integration of the forms site as well as the application written for the actual photo voting. Since inception of these new functions, B.O.N.E.S. has seen a steady increase in participation from all over the country and beyond. B.O.N.E.S. also too advantage of cloud computing and implemented a better flow of information on adopters and dogs through the use of the webbased application IShelters. This will be a huge help to consolidate information as well as maintain accurate medical records for the dogs brought into our program. In 2011, B.O.N.E.S entered the realm of social media by launching both an official Facebook page and Twitter account (which are also linked together). This is another exciting way to further enhance the Internet presence of B.O.N.E.S. and keep the fans abreast of news, including memorable adoptions and pleas for help toward medical expenses. The B.O.N.E.S. overall website redesign is continuing and will be launched in the summer of 2012 featuring our new Ambassador Beagles. Make sure to look for it! B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 6
****************************************************************************************** 2011 Financial Review please see analysis on following page % of Total Income CY 2011 % of Total Income Year over Year Change CY 2010 Income Adoptions $18,690.00 23.03% $18,825.00 19.06% 0.7% Donations (includes Owner Surrenders and Annual Appeal) $31,336.64 38.61% $40,110.99 40.61% 28.0% Fundraising Calendar $23,719.77 29.22% $34,629.64 35.06% 46.0% Bash $4,081.23 5.03% $4,193.76 4.25% 2.8% All Other Fundraising $3,307.70 4.07% $939.79 0.95% -71.6% Total Fundraising $31,108.70 38.32% $39,763.19 40.26% 27.8% Interest $37.03 0.04% $71.88 0.07% 94.1% Total Income $81,172.37 100.00% $98,771.06 100.00% 21.7% % of Total Expenses 2011 % of Total Expenses Year over Year Change Expenses 2010 Dog Related Expenses (Vet, Supplies, etc.) $27,831.34 59.15% $69,605.31 75.98% 150.1% Administration $9,596.88 20.39% $9,166.07 10.01% -4.5% Amortization $271.00 0.58% $0.00 0.00% -100.0% IT $768.00 1.63% $507.00 0.55% -34.0% Fundraising Calendar $6,156.12 13.08% $9,667.85 10.55% 57.0% Bash $1,625.89 3.46% $2,289.26 2.50% 40.8% Other Fundraising $804.78 1.71% $371.00 0.41% -53.9% Total Fundraising $8,586.79 18.25% $12,328.11 13.46% 43.6% Total Expenses $47,054.01 100.00% $91,606.49 100.00% 94.7% Net Income $34,118.36 $7,164.57 Retained Earnings $65,963.92 $100,082.28 Net Income $34,118.36 $7,164.57 Total Equity $100,082.28 $107,246.85 B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 7
Financial Analysis Income Ø Total income is 21.3% greater than 2010. Some reasons are the following: - Donations, which include the Annual Appeal, are up 28% - Calendar income is up 46% over 2010 - The Bash income is up 2% over 2010 - Adoptions, while flat, came in better than expected. With the poor economic conditions continuing into another year, we are happy that people continue to adopt dogs from our program Ø Total Expenses are up 94.7% compared to last year. Reasons for this increase are as follows: - Dog-related expenses are up 150%. This is primarily due to two major factors. We had an increase of 22% in the number of dogs coming into the program, which would increase the overall expenses of managing these dogs. We also had several dogs with major physical and behavioral issues. We took financial responsibility for them while in our care. - While total Fundraising expenses up are 43% compared to 2010, the actual 2011 expenses are only 13.5% of total expenses compared to 18.25% last year. The year over year increase is due to the general increased cost of doing business and an additional printing of calendars resulting from an increased number of sales. - Administration and IT are 4.5% and 34% less than they were last year. We continue to manage our non-dog related expenses very carefully making sure our focus is to use the majority of our funds on the beagles coming into our program. B.O.N.E.S. 2011 Annual Report 8