True North to Freedom: GiveSmart Success Story

"Somebody obviously designed the platform, who had actually done it before. It's just put together end to end with a little bit more care and appreciation for the user and data."

Scott G.

Volunteer

Key Features

Auctions

Donations

Instant Buys

Peer-to-Peer

Raffles

Ticketing

3x

operating revenue growth in two years

2 days

to payout, versus weeks with their previous platform

100s

of hours saved on manual tax reporting and admin

True North to Freedom is a Christian-based nonprofit serving survivors of human trafficking, primarily women and mothers, by providing the skills, services, and support needed to rebuild stable, independent lives. With fewer than 1,000 beds available nationwide for survivors of human trafficking, the organization fills a desperate gap in care. Their work addresses the total spectrum of recovery, including trauma, addiction, and legal and financial barriers.

With no dedicated development staff and a board focused on delivering services, the organization needed a fundraising technology partner to expand its capacity. This gap set the stage for their search for the right solution.

Challenge & Solution

Previously, True North to Freedom had relied on limited tools and bandwidth to fundraise. Their first year using fundraising technology revealed shortcomings in the platform: cumbersome reporting, manual tax receipt processing, and month-long payout delays that undermined cash flow stability. These constraints highlighted the need for a better fundraising solution.

At that point, volunteer fundraiser Scott Goemmel stepped in to evaluate new platforms, combining technological savvy with a clear vision for both present and future needs. After assessing several options, GiveSmart emerged as the frontrunner with its user-friendly interface, enterprise-grade CRM, and structured onboarding. This choice directly addressed the organization’s prior challenges.

GiveSmart’s training gave the team the confidence to hit the ground running. Streamlined event management, automated receipts, and dramatically faster payouts replaced hundreds of hours of manual reconciliation work. And when questions came up, even late at night, responsive support was there.

Results

In two years, True North to Freedom grew its operating revenue from $40–50K to roughly $150K, a transformation driven by a broader fundraising strategy, better tools, and a growing donor base.

Their first GiveSmart-powered gala ran smoothly, with table management, ticketing, and real-time visibility giving the small volunteer team a level of control and clarity they hadn’t had before. Payouts arrived within days rather than weeks. Tax reporting, previously an exhausting, manual process, became manageable through automated receipts and improved back-end reporting.

After the success of their initial efforts, True North to Freedom launched its first peer-to-peer fundraising campaign through GiveSmart, generating revenue without expanding event capacity or stretching an already lean team.

GiveSmart provides a foundation for what comes next for True North to Freedom. With unlimited events, easy event cloning, and a CRM built to scale with the organization, True North to Freedom is hoping to grow and add on with GiveSmart’s infrastructure to better support survivors.