Business Courier Article: Local nonprofit to benefit from national ad campaign

By Barrett J. Brunsman – Staff reporter, Cincinnati Business Courier
Nov 13, 2018, 12:07pm EST Updated Nov 13, 2018, 1:39pm

The Dragonfly Foundation, which provides emotional and practical support for the families of children with cancer, is featured in a national advertising campaign of the Lincoln Motor Co. designed to help fund operations of the Greater Cincinnati nonprofit.

A 4-minute commercial that focuses on the good works of the Symmes Township-based Dragonfly Foundation is being shown in Lincoln car dealerships nationwide and will be promoted through 2019 on Lincoln’s social media accounts, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

The mini-film can also be seen on the website of the automaker’s Driven to Give program, which holds dealership-based fundraising events throughout the country. Lincoln, which is headquartered in Dearborn, Mich., and is a division of Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), donates $20 for each test drive taken toward a charitable organization of the dealership’s choice. Up to $6,000 is raised per event, and the program already has raised more than $10 million for more than 1,500 organizations.

The commercial has also been posted to Dragonfly’s website as well as the foundation’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube accounts.

The spot shares the stories of a boy named Bodi and other children coping with cancer as well as the impact on their families. It notes that some parents go bankrupt, lose their jobs or relationships because of a child’s cancer.

Dragonfly seeks to offer families hope during dark times and to get the minds of kids off of what can be a fatal or disfiguring disease. Some scenes were shot at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, which works closely with the Dragonfly Foundation. Other local landmarks in the commercial include the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden.

The commercial opens and closes with the downtown Cincinnati skyline, the Roebling Suspension Bridge and the Ohio River as viewed from Covington.

Lincoln hired director Michael Clarke and cinematographer Logan Triplett to tell the story of the Dragonfly Foundation and its impact on families affected by pediatric cancer.

“The emotional, practical, relational and financial toll of cancer tears at a family immediately after a cancer diagnosis and continues long after treatment ends,” said Christine Neitzke, co-founder and president of the Dragonfly Foundation. “Families of young patients enduring cancer need strength, resources, and yes, joy, to make it hour to hour and day to day.”

Dragonfly, which had a 2017 operating budget of $2.2 million, was founded in 2010 after Neitzke’s youngest son, Matt, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The foundation has registered more than 4,900 patients and their families for its services while helping thousands of others at partner hospitals in Cincinnati, Dayton and Chicago.

“Working with the team at the Lincoln Motor Co. has been incredible,” said Neitzke. “The Driven to Give program offers us the chance to share our mission more broadly. It is our hope that our Dragonflies will capture the hearts of those who see the film and inspire them to follow and support our work. We can’t do it alone.”

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Click here to read additional information about how this opportunity came about and to watch an interview with a representative from Lincoln after their deep dive into Dragonfly.