VAFRE upcoming events

2026-2027 Season Pass (Tuesday, September 15, 2026)

Tue, 15 Sep 2026 04:00:00 GMT

VAFRE members can once again purchase a Season Pass to prepay for all of their meetings, either in-person or virtually!

A Season Pass covers either in-person or virtual registration for all regular meetings from September 2026 through June 2027, including the monthly luncheons and the Awards reception.*

The Season Pass allows members the convenience of one annual payment for VAFRE events at a discounted rate:

Just $230.00 for in-person - that's $35 less than paying as you register for each event!
Just $75.00 for the virtual option - a discount of $15 off of the pay-as-you-go rates. Those with a virtual season pass will have the option to upgrade to an in-person registration when they wish to do so for a small fee to cover the costs associated with the in-person event.

Members may also send another staff person in their place if they are unable to attend a meeting (simply contact our offices to register your substitute).

ADDED BONUS: Season Pass holders may register one guest to attend any one regular monthly meeting (excludes Awards luncheon) at no additional charge. That's an additional savings of $30 for the in-person pass and $13 for the virtual pass!

*VAFRE reserves the right to charge Season Pass holders for any additional events that may be scheduled.

Please note: the Season Pass is available to members only. You must be logged in to register for this option.

Professional Partnership Program Kickoff Meeting (Wednesday, October 14, 2026)

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 21:00:00 GMT

Join your P3 colleagues as we kick off the fourteenth year of the program with a reception!

There will be a welcome from the VAFRE Board and a chance to meet some of our P3 alumni.
This year's teams will be introduced and each team will begin their discussions and schedule their first meetings.*
Light hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be available, including adult beverages.

This event will be held in-person at St. Joseph's Villa from 5 to 6:30 p.m.

Thanks to our P3 Sponsor

*Team members, if you are unable to attend please e-mail admin@vafre.org to let us know so we can put you in touch with your team leaders ahead of time.

VAFRE Charlottesville Mix and Mingle (Thursday, October 15, 2026)

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Interested in networking with your peers?

Join VAFRE for an informal Mix & Mingle on Thursday, October 15th from 8-9 a.m. at The Bradbury in Charlottesville. Grab a drink and come mingle with other fundraising professionals in our community. Plus, we love meeting new people so feel free to bring a friend!

Come sip on a cup of coffee (or tea) and enjoy a morning of networking and building connections. This is a free event, but please RSVP so we know how many to expect. Can't wait to see you there!

What's Going On in Grants? - In-Person Event (Tuesday, October 20, 2026)

Tue, 20 Oct 2026 16:00:00 GMT

Something is changing in grants.

AI has dramatically reduced the time required to produce an application. Nonprofits can identify and pursue more opportunities than ever before. At the same time, government funding is shifting, competition is increasing, funders are overwhelmed with applications, and many of the old assumptions about how organizations find and win grants no longer fit the world development professionals are working in.

So, what is actually going on?

Drawing on more than 15 years of grant strategy experience, Matt Leighty will examine the forces reshaping the grant landscape—and what they mean for fundraising professionals. Rather than focusing on how to write a better proposal, this session looks upstream at the decisions that determine whether an organization should be pursuing an opportunity in the first place.

Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of how the grant environment is changing and a practical framework for making better decisions about where to invest their organization's limited time and capacity.

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

Identify major forces reshaping the grant landscape, including AI, increased application volume, changing government funding, and growing competition.
Distinguish between grant-writing efficiency and grant strategy—and understand why producing more applications does not necessarily produce more funding.
Evaluate grant opportunities based on organizational fit, funder behavior, likelihood of success, and the true cost of pursuing an award.
Recognize where AI can improve grant work and where human judgment, relationships, and institutional knowledge remain essential.
Apply a more strategic approach to deciding which grants to pursue, which to decline, and where development staff can create the greatest value.

Pending approval for CFRE credit.

Our Presenter

Matt Leighty is the Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of GrantFlow, a Richmond-based grant strategy firm that helps nonprofits build more effective and sustainable grant programs. Over more than 15 years in the field, Matt has worked across health and human services, education, workforce development, arts and culture, and other sectors, helping organizations navigate an increasingly complex funding landscape.

His work focuses not simply on writing better grants, but on understanding how grants actually work: how funders make decisions, why strong organizations sometimes struggle to secure funding, and how nonprofits can spend less time chasing opportunities and more time building community and advancing their missions.

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch
12:10 Program begins
1:30 p.m. Adjourn

Registration Fees

In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.
Virtual registration is $10 for members ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do not work in the office of a member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

What's Going On in Grants? - Virtual Event (Tuesday, October 20, 2026)

Tue, 20 Oct 2026 16:00:00 GMT

Something is changing in grants.

So, what is actually going on?

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

Identify major forces reshaping the grant landscape, including AI, increased application volume, changing government funding, and growing competition.
Distinguish between grant-writing efficiency and grant strategy—and understand why producing more applications does not necessarily produce more funding.
Evaluate grant opportunities based on organizational fit, funder behavior, likelihood of success, and the true cost of pursuing an award.
Recognize where AI can improve grant work and where human judgment, relationships, and institutional knowledge remain essential.
Apply a more strategic approach to deciding which grants to pursue, which to decline, and where development staff can create the greatest value.

Pending approval for CFRE credit.

Our Presenter

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch begins
12:10 p.m. Program begins
1:30 p.m. Session concludes, Adjourn

Registration Fees

Virtual registration is $10 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.
In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do nor work in the office of a VAFRE member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

Stewardship - In-Person Event (Tuesday, November 10, 2026)

Tue, 10 Nov 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Program Details TBA

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch
12:10 Program begins
1:30 p.m. Adjourn

Registration Fees

In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.
Virtual registration is $10 for members ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do not work in the office of a member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

Stewardship - Virtual Event (Tuesday, November 10, 2026)

Tue, 10 Nov 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Program Details TBA

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch begins
12:10 p.m. Program begins
1:30 p.m. Session concludes, Adjourn

Registration Fees

Virtual registration is $10 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.
In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do nor work in the office of a VAFRE member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

It's Personal: Direct Marketing Principles that Guide Successful Fundraising - In-Person Event (Tuesday, December 08, 2026)

Tue, 08 Dec 2026 17:00:00 GMT

What can fundraisers learn from decades of direct marketing research and practice? Quite a lot. Drawing on her experience as a former Professor of Marketing, her work at EAB engaging students, alumni, and other audiences, and her personal perspective as a volunteer and philanthropist, Pam Royall will explore five principles that translate directly to fundraising: know your audience, prioritize relevance over volume, distinguish personalization from a truly personal relationship, recognize that the ask is only one moment in a much longer relationship, and measure what really matters. The session will consider how insights from marketing and consumer behavior—along with data, segmentation, communications, and emerging technologies such as AI—can help organizations build stronger donor relationships while keeping authentic human connection at the center.

Pending approval for CFRE credit.

Our Presenter

Pamela Kiecker Royall, PhD, Head of Research, Marketing and Enrollment Solutions, EAB. Pam had 20 years of experience in higher education as a professor, department chair, and researcher prior to joining Royall & Company (now EAB Marketing and Enrollment Solutions). As a consumer behaviorist and statistician, Pam’s considerable experience has allowed her to refine and leverage her ability to ask the right questions to uncover what matters to different market segments.

Pam leads EAB’s survey research programs. In this role, she has designed and directed more than 500 studies for hundreds of college and university partners. The research programs she leads at EAB provide timely and valuable information to guide both strategic marketing plans and communications campaigns.

Pam holds a BA degree from Carleton College, an MBA from Minnesota State University, and a PhD in business administration from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She is a Trustee for Carleton College and Virginia Union University, and an active volunteer and board member for a variety of arts and culture organization.

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch
12:10 Program begins
1:30 p.m. Adjourn

Registration Fees

In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.
Virtual registration is $10 for members ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do not work in the office of a member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

It's Personal: Direct Marketing Principles that Guide Successful Fundraising - Virtual Event (Tuesday, December 08, 2026)

Tue, 08 Dec 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Pending approval for CFRE credit.

Our Presenter

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch begins
12:10 p.m. Program begins
1:30 p.m. Session concludes, Adjourn

Registration Fees

Virtual registration is $10 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.
In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do nor work in the office of a VAFRE member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

Topic TBA - In-Person Event (Tuesday, January 12, 2027)

Tue, 12 Jan 2027 17:00:00 GMT

Program TBA

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch
12:10 Program begins
1:30 p.m. Adjourn

Registration Fees

In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.
Virtual registration is $10 for members ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for members of the Central Virginia Chapter AFP, and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do not work in the office of a member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.

Topic TBA - Virtual Event (Tuesday, January 12, 2027)

Tue, 12 Jan 2027 17:00:00 GMT

Topic TBA

Our Schedule

11:30 a.m. In-person Registration & Networking begins
12 p.m. Lunch begins
12:10 p.m. Program begins
1:30 p.m. Session concludes, Adjourn

Registration Fees

Virtual registration is $10 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $13 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $20 for nonmembers. The virtual registration fees help support the technology costs associated with offering a hybrid event.
In-person registration is $25 for members of VAFRE ($0 for those with a Season Pass or $15 for those with a Virtual Season Pass), $30 for nonmembers who work at a member organization and for Central Virginia Chapter AFP members , and $40 for guests. All in-person registrants should select their meal during the registration process.

If you are not a VAFRE member and do nor work in the office of a VAFRE member, consider becoming a member of VAFRE in order to access reduced registration fees.