Public Service

An AAF chapter is only as strong as the community it supports, and we want to give back to the place where we live, work and play. With that in mind, Ad Club Lexington elects a Board member annually who is dedicated solely to public service and outreach campaigns in and around Lexington. Over the past several years, we’ve had the privilege of partnering with a variety of local nonprofits and community organizations to assist with things like brand development, consulting, fundraising and full-scale marketing campaigns. 

Page One Creative Library (2021). Books teach, entertain and inspire. As our first initiative for Page One — a partnership with local high schools to connect students with professional resources and mentors — Ad Club led a fundraising effort to curate, purchase and donate a collection of high-quality design, advertising, and media arts-related books. Thanks to our generous donors, we were able to provide an outstanding collection of over 30 books to each of our three partner academies.

A Coat to Keep the Cold Away (2020). Believing in Forever is a local nonprofit led by Lexington musician and activist Devine Carama. His annual youth coat drive provides coats to thousands of Kentucky kids in need each year. Ad Club organized a fundraising event at the West Sixth Green Room and was able to raise almost $2000 to go towards the drive.

The Plantory (2019). The Plantory is a local organization that aims to create a more just and sustainable nonprofit sector. They provide a vibrant co-working and event space for a number of local nonprofits, as well as community services like job training and placement, nonprofit incubation and support, and a network of AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers. At the 2019 ADDY Awards, Ad Club Lexington kicked off a crowd fundraising campaign, with our club pledging to match total donations up to $1000.

LexGiveBack (2018). LexGiveBack is an annual weeklong community service event that encourages altruism and acts of compassion by facilitating daily volunteer opportunities for individuals and organizations. It was originally developed as a project of Leadership Lexington and is affiliated with the International Charter for Compassion. In 2018, AAF Lexington worked with LexGiveBack organizers to promote the event through a variety of means, including print, web, television, and radio advertising, t-shirts, wristbands, as well as a limited edition minting of 100 LexGiveBack “challenge coins.”

Voices of Hope (2017). Voices of Hope is a local nonprofit that supports long-term recovery from drug and alcohol addiction through recovery coaching, telephone recovery support, overdose response training, educational scholarships and employment readiness. In 2017, AAF Lexington worked with an amazing network of local vendors and media outlets to coordinate a public awareness campaign promoting VoH’s mission and services, including billboards, television, web, radio and print advertising… in all, over $65,000 of donated media space, design and production services. 

Are you a local nonprofit or community organization that could benefit from the expertise and assistance of our club? Contact our Director of Public Service today to see how we can help.