Welcome to the Bay Area Capacity Building Collective
Strengthen your organization with the help of pro bono volunteers
Connect With Talented and Engaged Professionals
This program connects you with talented professionals looking to give back, allowing you to access expertise in areas such as marketing, web development, operations, strategy, and more.
Catchafire's menu of 150+ pre-scoped projects, each with specific deliverables and project steps, makes it easy to find what you need and match with a volunteer with the right skills for the job. And if you aren't sure where to begin, start by talking to a volunteer to get advice and explore ideas.
Mission Kids Co-Op received an application from Naman for a Flexible Tech Support project.
Audrey Loreen matched with SD from World Love Forum for a Copywriting project!
Michael matched with SD from World Love Forum for an Elevator Pitch Coaching project!
Desiree from Manilatown Heritage Foundation listed a Board Operations & Systems project.
Raven from Edgewood listed an Event Concept & Plan project.
Oona from Mission Kids Co-Op listed a Translation project.
SD from World Love Forum listed a Copywriting project.
Weekend-Adventures.org received an application from Abraham for an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Training project.
Jason matched with Lisa from United In Love Inc for a Website consultation call!
Oona from Mission Kids Co-Op listed a Flexible Tech Support project.
Kate matched with Lisa from United In Love Inc for a Public Relations consultation call!
New Community Leadership Foundation received an application from Jesse for an Operating Budget project.
Michael matched with Raven from Edgewood for an Event Management consultation call!
Deminika from Re'Optima FRC listed a Thank You Letter project.
Edgewood received an application from Luisa for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Weekend-Adventures.org received an application from Zheyan for an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Training project.
Sid matched with Coumba from AdunaKids, Inc. for an Organizational Strategy consultation call!
Edgewood received an application from Katrina for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Edgewood received an application from Nicole for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Raven from Edgewood listed an Elevator Pitch Coaching project.
Raven from Edgewood listed a Social Media Content Calendar project.
National Coalition of 100 Black Women. Inc., San Francisco Chapter received an application from Massimo for an Elevator Pitch Coaching project.
HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP received an application from Guna for a Website Major Update project.
Homeless Children's Network received an application from Bright for a Flexible Graphic Design Support project.
Adam matched with SD from World Love Forum for a Communications consultation call!
Kishan matched with Ronald from American Recovery Project for a Board Prospecting project!
HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP received an application from Pratik Sanatan for a Website Major Update project.
LearnUp Centers received an application from Bhakti Pandurang for a Facebook Ads Set Up project.
Isatou from Homeless Children's Network listed a Flexible Graphic Design Support project.
Isatou from Homeless Children's Network listed a Branded Digital Assets project.
HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP received an application from Anupriya for a Website Major Update project.
LearnUp Centers received an application from Ashley for a Facebook Ads Set Up project.
The Heart Is Home Foundation received an application from Gulroob for an Organizational Strategy consultation call.
Adama from Weekend-Adventures.org listed a Management Skills Coaching project.
American Recovery Project received an application from Mnatsakan for a Board Prospecting project.
HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP received an application from Onkar for a Website Major Update project.
LearnUp Centers received an application from Samuel Belay for a Facebook Ads Set Up project.
SD from World Love Forum listed an Infographic project.
Shireen matched with Mei from LearnUp Centers for an Illustration project!
Jason matched with John from The BOOM for a Website Major Update project!
Adama from Weekend-Adventures.org listed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Training project.
Axel from Sanctuarey listed a Brochure Writing project.
Barry matched with John from Universal Recovery Network for an Organizational Strategy consultation call!
Sanctuarey received an application from Henry for a Brochure Writing project.
Sanctuarey received an application from Chatterjee for a Brochure Writing project.
National Coalition of 100 Black Women. Inc., San Francisco Chapter received an application from Kenneth for a Print Materials Design project.
Mei from LearnUp Centers listed a Facebook Ads Set Up project.
PUSH Dance Company received an application from Jason for a Website Major Update project.
Jan matched with Julian from HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP for an Accounting Systems Set Up project!
Erin matched with Julian from HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP for an Operating Budget project!
When you join, you get unlimited access to a suite of services...
On-demand project support
Access expert pro bono consultants to fill every skill and staffing gap
On-site volunteers
Recruit in-person volunteers for your next community event
Technical training
Get technical advice and training on new software
Coaching
One-on-one coaching and professional development
Custom work, at no expense to you
Get specific deliverables done for every need including translation, website creation, donor letters, HR handbook, and more
Community groups
Meet leaders like you with access to peer to peer forums and networking opportunities
What Do You Need Help With?
Select from 150+ pre-scoped projects or post a consultation call to get started.
Great Connections Are Made Here
How Audrey Loreen G. helped World Love Forum
How Jason R. helped United In Love Inc
How Shireen I. helped LearnUp Centers
How Jan H. helped HOLY STITCH FACTORY FELLOWSHIP
How kovowanu m. helped Mission Kids Co-Op
How Elizabeth T. helped Enterprise for Youth
How Om D. helped New Community Leadership Foundation
How Neishja R. helped Re'Optima FRC
How Favour A. helped Golden Gate Concierge Service
ABOUT THE VOLUNTEERS
Work With Talented Professionals From Around the World
Finding the right match is important. Each of the 150+ pre-scoped projects contains prerequisite skills and experience, core deliverables, and time estimates, so volunteers know exactly what is required when they apply to work with you.
The rigorous application process, which includes work experience, portfolios, and statements of interest, limits applicants to those who are serious about working with you. It's not a one-click application, and it shouldn't be.
You can review up to three applications at a time, and interview candidates before deciding. The decision is yours.
What Other Organizations are Saying
Frequently asked questions
New around here? Start with the basics.
Catchafire is an online platform for virtual, skills-based volunteering. Through Catchafire, professionals are able to directly support causes they care about by helping nonprofits with projects that match their skill sets. And because projects can be completed from anywhere, Catchafire makes it possible for organizations and skilled volunteers to connect for good, from all around the world!
Skills-based volunteering is a high impact form of volunteering that allows an individual to donate his or her professional skills and expertise, which in turn allows a nonprofit to build its capacity and focus more efficiently on its mission.
Skilled volunteers help nonprofits fill critical knowledge and staffing gaps, they work as thought partners on strategic projects, and they complete specific projects that require specialized skills, training, or experience. Very often, the relationships between volunteers and nonprofits extend far beyond the scope of the initial project that brought them together.
A specific example of skills-based volunteering is a marketing professional who volunteers to help a nonprofit create a marketing strategy.
We are partnering with Catchafire to provide grantees with access to virtual, skilled volunteers. We believe that by providing this valuable resource for capacity building and strategic project work, we can help our grantees amplify and accelerate the impact they have on the communities and beneficiaries they serve.
No. Your access to Catchafire is sponsored through this program, so it’s completely free for your organization.
In order to participate, you must first register your organization and then post your first project or consultation call. Get started by visiting the Project Menu to browse through over 150+ detailed project types.
You can work on an unlimited number of projects and calls throughout your membership. Once you finish a project, just make sure to mark it “complete”.
Your posted projects are visible to Catchafire’s entire skills-based volunteer community of 40,000+ talented professionals on the platform, and millions more via Catchafire's partnership with LinkedIn. Those who are interested in your organization’s cause area and who have the skills required for your project will be able to apply.
Skills-based volunteers may apply to your projects from all across the country and around the world. We encourage you to engage with virtual skills-based volunteers. If you prefer to work with somebody local, please expect it to take longer than normal to receive applications from a professional in the area.
On average, projects are matched within two weeks. If you are not seeing the response you hoped for, please reach out to [email protected], and one of Catchafire's Nonprofit Advisors will get in touch with you.
After the interview, you can log into your account dashboard and ACCEPT or PASS on the match. Once both parties accept, you are officially matched and can begin the project! If you need to exchange any materials or have follow-up conversations to determine if it is a good fit after the interview, you are encouraged to do so.
Absolutely! Schedule a call, or email your questions to [email protected] and one of Catchafire’s Nonprofit Advisors will be in touch within 24 business hours.
About this program
Marin Community Foundation, San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, and the Hellman Foundation have joined together to launch the Catchafire Bay Area Collective. This program provides capacity building resources to local nonprofit organizations working to build stronger, more equitable communities.
The participating foundations have partnered with Catchafire to support nonprofit organizations by making connections to pro bono professionals here in the Bay Area and across the world. Through these connections, the Collective maximizes the impact organizations are able to make on the communities they serve.
Catchafire is the largest, online tool that connects social good organizations with talented professionals looking to donate their skills. This resource provides organizations with expert support in areas like marketing and communications, web development, operations, strategy and much, much more.
Learn more about Marin Community Foundation, San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, and the Hellman Foundation.
Have more questions? Drop us a line.
Email the Catchafire team at [email protected], or schedule a Catchafire introduction call to learn more about how your organization can build capacity with help from skilled pro bono professionals