Proud to Power Extraordinary Causes

After David Rabotnick was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, he discovered that performing magic card tricks wasn’t just a hobby — it was a form of therapy. Inspired to turn his passion into purpose, David founded Slow Motion Magic to raise awareness and funds for Parkinson’s research.

Each year, the organization hosts its signature event, Conjuring for a Cure, blending wonder, entertainment, and community spirit to support life-changing research. What began as a personal mission has grown into a beloved annual tradition, drawing supporters who share the goal of finding a cure.

The Challenge

In 2023, the team was juggling online ticket sales, in-person ticket sales, merchandise, cash donations, and online donations.

Tracking all of this meant digging through several files, managing manual mailing lists, and spending hours on repetitive tasks like printing thank-you letters. The process left David exhausted, often working into the early morning hours before the event, and scrambling to finish materials just before guests arrived.

 

The Solution

In 2024, Slow Motion Magic moved everything into FrontStream to simplify their fundraising with:

• One platform for all revenue streams: Every ticket, donation, and merchandise sale was processed through FrontStream, with direct links from their website.
• Automated donor thank-yous: Donors instantly received acknowledgment letters, eliminating the need for manual printing and mailing.
• Centralized data for outreach: Mailing lists were generated directly in the platform, making it easy to reach supporters without piecing together information from multiple files.

The Results

With every revenue stream consolidated in FrontStream, David no longer had to juggle multiple systems or spend hours on manual tasks. Donors could easily purchase tickets, give online, or support the event in other ways — and David could send them directly to the website instead of collecting cash or paper forms on the fly.

The time saved meant David could:

• Spend more time guiding volunteers and strengthening the team
• Increase outreach to businesses for donations and raffle prizes
• Plan ahead without the late-night scramble
• Even attend his son’s Halloween party the night before the show

Most importantly, the streamlined process allowed Slow Motion Magic to focus more energy on its mission: raising funds for Parkinson’s research more effectively than ever before.

The FrontStream Advantage: More Time, Bigger Impact

• Consolidation reduces chaos: Managing all ticket sales, donations, and merchandise in one platform means no lost data, no duplicate work, and a clear picture of fundraising progress at all times.
• Automation saves hours: Instant donor thank-you letters freed up David’s schedule, replacing hours of manual printing, folding, stamping, and mailing.
• Better planning = better fundraising: Without last-minute scrambling, the team could focus on outreach, solicitation, and building strong volunteer support.
• Make giving easy for supporters: Instead of chasing down cash or paper ticket orders, David could simply direct anyone, even a chance encounter at the grocery store, to the event website.
• Technology supports mission impact: The streamlined process meant more time and energy went toward raising funds for Parkinson’s research, the heart of Slow Motion Magic’s mission.
• Work-life balance matters: By easing the workload, David gained the freedom to be present for personal moments.

Rise Above Violence serves the rural community of Archuleta County, Colorado, providing crisis intervention, advocacy, and education to individuals affected by domestic violence and sexual assault. With the help of grants, donations, fundraising efforts and volunteers, Rise Above Violence provides immediate crisis intervention, 24 hours a day, by an advocate trained to listen and provide support. The organization helps nearly 400 survivors each year. 

The Challenge

As a small nonprofit with a big mission, Rise Above Violence needed a fundraising solution that could do more—more flexibility, more customization, and more support for the variety of events and campaigns they run throughout the year. From Art Above Violence to Domestic Violence Awareness Month, they wanted a platform that could match their creativity and engage their rural community. 

Why It Worked

With limited staff and resources, having a platform that took care of the fundraising infrastructure made a meaningful difference. Rise Above Violence could create campaigns that reflected their mission, activate community support, and generate real financial impact—without stretching their team thin.

Ashley includes multiple giving options on her donation and campaign pages, including Donor Covers the Fee, which 50% of donors opt for.

In 2019, Rise Above Violence created a monthly giving campaign. For just $10/month, donors can cover the price of a crisis call. The campaign ensures a support crisis worker is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 25% of the monthly donors later increased their donation by 5–10x!

Ashley and her team continue to create unique fundraising events, including an annual push-up challenge and art show. FrontStream is proud to help Rise Above Violence simplify fundraising and engage donors.

To learn more about the organization and to donate to Rise Above Violence, click here.

Based out of Arvada, Colorado, Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies was founded in 1996 to help rescue, rehab and place unwanted, abandoned or surrendered Golden Retrievers into loving forever homes. They rehome approximately 300 Golden Retrievers annually . 

Not only does the nonprofit provide new homes for the Goldens, but they also work to educate the public on the importance of researching dog breeds and breeders before purchasing a pet. This outreach works to hopefully prevent dogs being abandoned at shelters.

Additionally, the nonprofit runs a special program called Golden Angel. Judi Servoss, the president of Golden Retriever Rescue, explains its impact: “The Golden Angel program helps Golden Retrievers in need of extraordinary medical care. Some Goldens require special medications, treatments or surgeries for acute or chronic conditions resulting from birth defects, accidents or disease, such as hip dysplasia, heart problems, allergies, heartworm, orthopedic problems, eye diseases, or infections. Others may need significant behavioral rehab or socialization due to abuse or neglect, before they can be adopted.

Because these Golden Angels need veterinary care, Golden Retriever Rescue relies on donations to help offset expenses. In 2017 alone, they spent $154,000 on vet care for these special dogs, and they use FrontStream's donor management tools to help organize and view their data.

“Thanks to better data analysis, we added a new Colorado Western Slope fundraising event to our calendar because we discovered a strong geographic pocket of interest that we had not previously addressed.”

Additionally, FrontStream helped Golden Retriever Rescue use targeting to more carefully focus their community-based appeals. “This has resulted in engaging more people, helping to create a localized community and raise more money based on a specific appeal. We believe the increased focus has really helped."