$300k shortfall for mental health charity after fundraising events cancelled

If she’d had it her way Andrea Ruzicova would have been in Slovakia instead of running around Auckland.

It’s been three years since she last saw her parents and brother back in her country of birth but this year a lack of MIQ spots again scuttled her plans to visit them.

She says the disappointment was just another blow inflicted by a pandemic that has caused so many struggles for so many people, and decided she could do something to help.

So she strapped on her sneakers and ran a marathon, raising more than $2500.

READ MORE:
* Southland charities facing Covid-19 demand and fundraising uncertainty
* Covid-19: South Auckland mental health and addiction services see surge in demand
* Charities encouraged to speak out during lockdown

The Covid pandemic has struck a double blow to New Zealand charities as it increases demand for their services, yet stops much-needed fundraising events from taking place.

When Ruzicova ran the Auckland Marathon in January – the morning of the red traffic light announcement – the event had already been postponed from October 2021. She’d trained during lockdowns and through her summer holidays, and completed the run in four hours and 20-something minutes.

It was a tough slog and she’d do it again, especially as it benefits the Mental Health Foundation, a charity that offers mental health education.

“I admit I do struggle sometimes – to an extent I handle it my own ways – and running has helped me a lot to get through those times.”

The marathon is the largest fundraiser of the year for the foundation and normally raises about $200,000. This year it took in about $80,000.

Its chief executive Shaun Robinson says the rolling cancellations and postponements of the country’s running-for-charity events will see the foundation miss out on about $300,000 worth of fundraising this year. It typically receives about $500,000 annually.

While many events have pivoted to online versions – where sponsored participants run their courses – participation has dropped dramatically and the trickle-down effect is hurting the organisations that rely on the money.

Robinson says 50 per cent of the charity’s income stems from donations and the cancellation of events was affecting the organisation’s bottom line.

“Demand for mental health support is growing about 20 per cent a year and government funding sources aren’t keeping pace.”

This year’s money was to be used for work including suicide prevention, training and resources to help people support others they’re worried about, and school programmes.

“The demand is increasing at the same time resources are decreasing both because of Covid-19.”

While the recently announced Events Transition Support Payment scheme helps organisers of major events recoup some costs should Covid force cancellations, Robinson says it does nothing to help the charities that would have benefited from fundraisers – an issue that has been overlooked.

Ideally the government would top up the missing funds or offer a similar scheme for charities, but in the meantime he’s urging people to donate regardless.

“Cut out the event and just give us the money. We’d be very grateful and use it for the purposes we would have done through the event.”

Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector Priyanca Radhakrishnan​ acknowledged the pandemic has made things particularly challenging for charities.

The government has provided the $36 million Community Capability and Resilience Fund to help community organisations recover from the impacts of Covid-19, and charities are also eligible for schemes like the Covid Support Payment, since fundraising counts as revenue.

“In addition, the Lottery Covid-19 Community Wellbeing Fund ($40 million) was similarly responsive to the challenges communities across Aotearoa we’re facing as a result of Covid 19. Through this funding there was support for youth mental health initiatives at a community level.”

Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment spokeswoman Liz Vallieres said the events transition support payment scheme acts like an insurance scheme whereby most of the unrecoverable costs incurred by the event organiser are covered.

“But if the event does not go ahead then some suppliers and benefactors will ultimately miss out. This is the same outcome as normal insurance arrangements when events are cancelled.”

The scheme has been extended until the end of January 2023 to encourage event organisers to continue organising large scale events, she said.

Fundraising Institute of New Zealand’s executive director Michelle Berriman​ said the impact of the coronavirus pandemic was immediate for the charity sector.

Like Robinson, she says the support payment scheme is a good start in supporting event organisers but it doesn’t help charities that rely on the money from cancelled events.

The participation events like those the Mental Health Foundation benefit from are different from annual appeal days or other fundraising events as they tend to draw in people who don’t otherwise support a charity.

“People who take part in these events do this for close personal reasons, often through personal experience, or in memory of a loved one.

“We’re reminding these amazing, kind people that the way they support charities has changed but the reason why hasn’t. “