The November Action Calendar for Small Nonprofits

Whom to write, what to say and when to send it, from Election Day to Giving Tuesday

November may be the busiest month of the year in a small nonprofit office. The year-end appeal is going out, Giving Tuesday is around the corner and the board wants an update before the holidays. Writing notes can feel like one more thing on a list that is already too long.

Here’s what I learned over more than three decades of board service: the relationships you tend in November shape how people respond in December. A donor who heard from you this month without being asked for anything will open your year-end letter with a warmer heart. A volunteer who received a word of encouragement this month is more likely to show up again in the spring.

That’s why this month’s calendar is an action calendar. Thank-you notes are part of it, and so are congratulations, encouragement, reconnection and introductions. Each date comes with one specific person to write to and one thing to say. All you have to do is pick up your pen.

How to Use This Calendar

1. Post it where you work. Print the calendar and keep it next to your desk or inside your planner, where you’ll see it every day.
2. Choose one action a week. You don’t need to do everything on the calendar. Choose the occasion that fits your organization best, and let the others go.
3. Set a weekly writing appointment. Twenty minutes on Monday morning is enough for three to five short notes. Keep cards, stamps and your donor list in one place so you can start writing the moment you sit down.
4. Track what you send. A simple log tells you who has heard from you and who hasn’t. By year-end, it becomes one of the most useful records your organization has.

Get the Printable Calendar and Note Tracker

I’ve put this month’s calendar and a fillable Note Tracker together in one free PDF. The tracker has room for each name, the occasion, the type of note, the date you sent it and any follow-up. It isn’t tied to November, so you can use it every month.

Your Week-by-Week November Plan

November is National Gratitude Month, National Family Caregivers Month, Military Family Appreciation Month and Native American Heritage Month. It’s also the start of year-end giving season. Keep these in mind as you read the weekly suggestions below, because each one points to people who may be waiting to hear from you.

Week of November 1: Plan and Introduce

• Daylight Saving Time ends Sunday, November 1. Use the extra hour to build your year-end note list. Start with five groups: board members, major donors, monthly donors, volunteers and community partners. Then add the names of people who gave for the first time this year. A first-time donor who receives a personal note is far more likely to give a second time.
• Election Day is Tuesday, November 3. Write to the people who will make decisions affecting your community for the next several years. Congratulate newly elected local officials, such as your mayor, county supervisors and school board members, and introduce your organization in two or three sentences. Many are still learning their way around, and your note may be their first introduction to your work. Wait until results are certified, and send the same note to every winner whatever their party.

Week of November 8: Honor and Encourage

• Veterans Day is Wednesday, November 11. Look through your board roster, volunteer list and donor database for veterans. Thank them for their service to the country and for the way they serve your mission now. If you know where or when they served, mention it. It shows you see the whole person.
• World Kindness Day is Friday, November 13. Write to a volunteer or staff member who has been carrying a heavy load this fall. Name one specific thing you saw them do. A sentence like “I noticed how patiently you walked our new volunteer through the intake process on Tuesday” means more than a general thank-you, because it proves someone was paying attention.

Week of November 15: Impact and Reconnection

• National Philanthropy Day is Sunday, November 15. Choose a donor who has supported you for years and tell them what their giving has made possible. Be concrete: a number, a name (with permission) or a moment. “Because of you, Maria finished her nursing degree this spring” is a sentence a donor will remember for a long time.

• Global Entrepreneurship Week runs Monday through Sunday, November 16–22. Thank the local business owners who sponsor your events, donate goods or services or let you hang a flyer in their window. Business owners hear plenty of requests and very little gratitude.

• World Hello Day is Saturday, November 21. Write to a donor who hasn’t given in a year or two. Just say hello. Tell them you thought of them, share one piece of news they’d enjoy and leave it there. You’re reopening a relationship, and that takes patience.

Week of November 22: Gratitude Around the Table

• Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26. Send each board member a Thanksgiving note. These arrive before the flood of December holiday cards, so they’re read and remembered. Thank each person for one specific contribution they made this year.

• Small Business Saturday is November 28. Write to a local shop or restaurant owner who supports your mission, and if you can, shop there that day and hand-deliver your note.

Planning Ahead: Giving Tuesday and International Volunteer Day

• Giving Tuesday is December 1. Do the prep work now. Buy your thank-you cards, pre-address envelopes for your most likely donors and write a few sample sentences you can adapt quickly. Aim to put a handwritten note in the mail within 48 hours of each gift. Speed tells a donor their gift mattered.

• International Volunteer Day is Saturday, December 5. Start your volunteer notes in November so they arrive on time. If you have a large volunteer corps, ask each board member to write to five volunteers.

Three Notes You Can Adapt

Change the names and details to fit your organization. Keep each one short enough to fit on a correspondence card.

To a newly elected official (Election Day)

Dear Council Member Alvarez,

Congratulations on your election to the Town Council. Thank you for being willing to serve our community.

I direct Valley Literacy Partners, where volunteers help adults in our county learn to read. I’d welcome the chance to show you our work once you’ve settled in.

With best wishes for your first term,

To a lapsed donor (World Hello Day)

Dear Margaret,

Your name came to mind this week. You were one of the first people to support our after-school program, and the Friday snack tradition your gift started is still the kids’ favorite part of the week.

I hope you and your family are well. I’d love to hear what you’ve been up to.

Warmly,

To a board member (Thanksgiving)

Dear Tom,

As Thanksgiving approaches, I’m counting you among my blessings. When the roof repair threatened our fall schedule, your calls to local contractors kept our doors open. Our families never knew how close we came.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours,

What these notes have in common

Each of these notes names a specific detail only the writer would know, and none of them asks for anything. That’s what makes them Heartspoken.

For Sales and Other Professionals

This calendar works just as well outside the nonprofit world. Replace “donor” with “client,” “board member” with “referral partner” and “volunteer” with “colleague.” A Thanksgiving note to your best clients, a hello to a client you haven’t heard from in a while and a congratulations note to a newly elected official in your market are some of the most effective relationship-building moves you can make this month.

Want More Support?

If you’d like monthly note-writing guidance, ready-to-adapt examples and a community of nonprofit professionals who share your commitment to relationships, I invite you to join the Heartspoken Professional Circle.

Always remember: Whether written or spoken, words from the heart will never fail you!

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Frequently Asked Questions About the November 2026 Action Calendar for Small Nonprofits