Another Successful Year for AMA PDX Agency! Learn About Our Pro Bono Marketing Program and Strategic Team Deliverables, Milestones, and Accomplishments from 2025
This October, we’re proud to share the closing chapter of our 2025 AMA PDX Agency program. During the past six months, four volunteer teams partnered with Portland-area nonprofits to create pro bono marketing strategies, creative deliverables, and measurable impact.
The Agency Program
What is AMA PDX? Over the years, we have learned it's more than marketing. It’s a special and unique space where passionate professionals and mission-driven organizations come together—building skills, amplifying voices, and making a real difference in our community. As the Portland chapter of the American Marketing Association, each year marketers volunteer their time and expertise to provide pro bono support to nonprofits and community organizations. It’s a space where professionals can grow their skills, nonprofits can access valuable resources, and strengthen the creative fabric of Portland.
Together, these projects showcase what’s possible when creativity and purpose align.
This season, our teams collaborated with four nonprofit partners — Wonderfolk, Lloyd EcoDistrict, Playworks Pacific Northwest, and Portland Fruit Tree Project. From building messaging toolkits to helping fight food insecurity, we lead professional volunteer teams in bringing both strategy and passion into mission-driven work. The work went far beyond deliverables—over the past six months, our volunteers grew new skills, nonprofit organizations gained lasting resources, and meaningful connections were created that extend far beyond this cohort.
2025 Team Recap
Playworks Pacific Northwest – supporting the GoPlay launch
Lloyd EcoDistrict – growing awareness for the Lloyd Lending Library
Portland Fruit Tree Project – building stronger brand and outreach tools
Wonderfolk – strengthening communications and proving impact through data
Each project represented the best of what AMA PDX Agency is all about: connecting marketers who want to give back with nonprofits that are actively working to create impactful change in our communities. This year, the AMA PDX Agency leadership team was supported by Corinne Gould, VP of Agency, Ines Giovannini, Director of Agency, and Alexandra Hagel, Director of Agency Communications.
What We Did
Each team worked hard to create deliverables from strategic go-to-market plans and professional photo packages, to brand refreshes and polished messaging models. The results this year blew us away!
Here’s a closer look at what each team achieved:
Playworks Pacific Northwest – GoPlay Launch
Our volunteer team helped Playworks bring their brand-new GoPlay platform from beta to launch with a phased go-to-market plan, refined website copy, and SEO strategy. They created parent-friendly email templates, social media and flyer designs, and ready-to-use press materials. Surveys and content plans now give Playworks measurable insights and a clear roadmap to connect more families with meaningful play.
Lloyd EcoDistrict – Lloyd Lending Library
To grow awareness and usage of the Lending Library, the team delivered a comprehensive marketing campaign with community outreach, photo and video assets, and social media graphics. They worked side by side with Lloyd EcoDistrict to clarify messaging, design templates, and capture testimonials—resulting in a doubling of registered users and a sharper, more data-driven way to share this essential community resource.
Portland Fruit Tree Project – Growing Awareness
The AMA PDX Agency team supported PFTP with a new tagline—Grow to Share. Share to Grow.—and a full suite of brand design recommendations, posters, and social templates. Seven professional photoshoots showcased staff and programs, while social media audits and newsletter strategies gave the nonprofit a stronger digital foundation. A new website, built in partnership with Clark College students, is set to launch—bringing fresh clarity to PFTP’s mission and programs.
Wonderfolk – Proving Impact Through Story
Wonderfolk’s team left with tools to communicate the essentiality of their work with clarity and confidence. Volunteers built an “Evidence Matrix” of 50+ data points, a new CORE capacity model, and comprehensive communications assets. Updated student and mentor surveys now capture the deeper impact of Wonderfolk’s programs, providing the organization with compelling data for grants, partners, and storytelling. Their client testimonial read: “Our work with AMA PDX has been transformative. This process has been brilliant for us.”
This Year’s Big Milestone: The Storytelling Pilot Program
This year was even more special because we rolled out the launch of our first-ever AMA PDX Agency Storytelling program. Led by the Director of Agency Communications, Alexandra Hagel, this is a companion role on the agency teams that highlights the voices of our volunteers and partners throughout the year. From Bruna Mesquita’s creative nonprofit marketing insights, to Bradley Fischer’s data-driven reflections, to closing reflections on the full arc of the Agency—embracing challenges, sharing knowledge, and celebrating the power of collaboration. These stories captured the heart of AMA PDX Agency: learning, sharing knowledge, celebrating our community, and giving us the chance to deliver deeper strategic creative work and measurable impact. The success of this pilot program exceeded our expectations, and we’re thrilled to share that AMA PDX Agency Storytellers will continue in future years as an ongoing program role!
A Successful Year
This was an incredible year—full of growth, collaboration, and knowledge. The work of our volunteers made a deep impact on each nonprofit partner. Yet the impact on our team was just as valuable: new skills gained, new stories shared, and a stronger marketing community built.
This year, we learned one of the most important lessons: Knowledge is better shared- and we ended the year honoring that exact theme at our Knowledge is Better Shared: AMA PDX Agency Celebration 2025 event at The Heights Lounge & Event Space in September. We closed out the season together, sharing laughter and libations, reflecting on the knowledge we gained, and celebrating the voices that made this year unforgettable. Thank you to all our community members, non-profit organizations, and volunteers who made this year possible!
Interested in joining us?
AMA PDX Agency will return in 2026, with more opportunities for volunteers to grow, give back, and connect with nonprofits that are changing lives in Portland and beyond! Whether you’re a marketer ready to contribute your skills, or a nonprofit seeking support, AMA PDX Agency is your place to connect, learn, and create impact together. Stay tuned for details on the 2026 season—we’d love to have you be part of it.
Volunteer for the 2026 season – applications open in late 2025
Apply for pro bono support for your nonprofit – applications open in late 2025
Follow along on the AMA PDX blog and social channels for more volunteer spotlights and project updates