SPORTS · ANNUAL CAMPAIGN
Rose City Rollers
Portland's hardest-hitting community organization and the fundraising program built to sustain it.
$900K
RAISED IN 36 MONTHS
23x
ROC®
20K
IMPACTED
5
STAGES ADVANCED
01
The opportunity
A league unlike any other — with a mission that deserved a fundraising program to match.
Founded in 2004 by Kim Stegeman and two friends in Portland, Oregon, Rose City Rollers grew from 40 skaters practicing in the basement of Grand Central Bowling Alley into the largest flat track roller derby league in the world — three-time WFTDA International Champions and an institution woven into the fabric of Portland's community identity. With over 500 adult members, 300 junior skaters, and a volunteer program that extended the league's reach across the city, RCR had built something genuinely extraordinary.
The league's mission was equally extraordinary. RCR existed to serve women, girls, and gender-expansive athletes who wanted to play roller derby, connect with an inclusive community, and realize their power both on and off their skates. RCR provides a community where athletes of every background, body type, and identity could find mentors, teammates, and belonging.
What RCR had not yet built was the professional fundraising infrastructure to sustain and grow that mission. When COGEO engaged in October 2018, the league had a strong corporate sponsorship base and a committed community but had never run a formal annual giving program, never made a structured major gift ask, and had never accessed the philanthropic capital that its mission and community clearly warranted. That was about to change.
02
What COGEO did
Built a professional fundraising program from the ground up — then a pandemic tested everything it was made of.
COGEO entered Rose City Rollers in October 2018 with a clear mandate: build a first-ever professional annual development program for an organization that had never approached philanthropy strategically. Over a three-year engagement, COGEO built every dimension of RCR's fundraising infrastructure — and when COVID arrived in 2020, the program COGEO built became the organization's lifeline.
Built the case statement and launched a formal annual giving program
COGEO developed RCR's first formal case statement — a document that articulated the league's mission, its community impact, and its philanthropic opportunity in a way that moved supporters from informal contributors to committed donors. For the first time RCR had a structured, professional case for philanthropic investment that could be placed in front of individuals, foundations, and corporate partners with confidence.
Secured funding for the Skatemobile — and built a COVID-resilient revenue stream
One of the most significant outcomes of the engagement was the successful funding of RCR's Skatemobile — a mobile skating program designed to bring roller derby to Title 1 schools and underserved communities across the Portland metro area. COGEO helped RCR identify, cultivate, and secure the full $22,000 needed to launch the program. The Skatemobile proved transformational in ways no one anticipated. When COVID closed schools and venues in 2020, the Skatemobile became one of the only tools RCR had to continue serving its community — taking mobile programming directly into neighborhoods when nothing else was possible. What began as a community access initiative became a COVID lifeline, a new earned revenue stream through birthday parties and private events, and one of the league's most powerful marketing and recruitment tools.
Elevated corporate sponsorship from transactional to philanthropic
RCR had a strong foundation of corporate sponsors before COGEO engaged, but the relationships were transactional rather than philanthropic. COGEO restructured RCR's entire corporate sponsorship program, creating a more sophisticated, customized package that gave corporate partners meaningful options and elevated the ask from a marketing expense to a genuine philanthropic investment. COGEO also educated RCR leadership on the critical distinction between a marketing expense and a donation. A distinction that changed how the organization positioned its ask to every corporate partner and unlocked a deeper, more sustainable level of corporate support.
Trained the ED and RCR leadership in the art and discipline of major gift fundraising
Perhaps the most lasting outcome of the engagement was the transformation in the Executive Director Kim Stegeman's confidence and capability as a fundraising leader. COGEO trained Kim and RCR's leadership team in every dimension of professional fund development: how to identify major gift prospects, how to cultivate relationships over time, how to make a face-to-face major gift ask with confidence, and how to steward donors so that first gifts became lasting commitments. The skills Kim developed during the COGEO engagement are now part of how RCR operates permanently.
03
The outcome
Over three years RCR raised $900K — and built the infrastructure to sustain a mission that changed lives.
$900K
RAISED IN 36 MONTHS
23x
RETURN ON CONTRIBUTION®
20,000
PEOPLE IMPACTED
5
ORG STAGES ADVANCED
Over three years Rose City Rollers raised $900k in philanthropic contributions — a 23x return on their investment in COGEO and a fundamental transformation in how the league funded its mission. The annual giving program COGEO built diversified RCR's revenue beyond dues and ticket sales for the first time, creating a philanthropic foundation that could sustain the league through the unpredictable moments that every community organization eventually faces.
The Skatemobile proved to be one of those moments. When COVID arrived and every traditional revenue stream contracted simultaneously, the truck gave RCR a way to keep serving its community when nothing else could. Schools that had lost physical education programming, families looking for safe outdoor activities, neighborhoods that had never had access to roller derby — all reached through a program that COGEO helped fund and launch. It also created an entirely new revenue stream that continues generating income through private events and community programming.
Beyond the dollars, the engagement transformed RCR's brand, its volunteer base, and its leadership. As the fundraising program grew and the organization's philanthropic identity strengthened, more people wanted to be part of what RCR was building. Volunteer hours increased as the brand's community presence deepened. And Kim Stegeman — already one of Portland's most effective tax-exempt leaders — emerged from the engagement with the fundraising skills and confidence to lead the league's development program independently for years to come.
“I'm continually impressed by COGEO's ongoing commitment to Rose City Rollers, even long after our time working together, which I remain so grateful for. COGEO pushed me to new heights as an Executive Director, challenging me to try uncomfortable things and explore new ways to position the league for success. COGEO's guidance and support are all part of RCR's legacy of hard-hitting impact, and I couldn't be more thankful."
Kim Stegeman
Executive Director, Rose City Rollers
CAMPAIGN MATERIALS
See how RCR made corporate sponsorship a philanthropic investment
Download the Rose City Rollers Corporate Partnership Guide — the document that restructured their entire sponsorship program and elevated corporate relationships from transactional to transformational.
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