RestoreHER is a policy advocacy and reentry organization led by and for justice-impacted women of color. Its mission is to improve the lives of women affected by incarceration, convictions, or trauma by promoting leadership, education, civic engagement, and policy change that protect their health, dignity, and rights. The organization works to address the social inequities that contribute to criminalization and aims to end cycles of mass incarceration -- particularly affecting women of color and pregnant women -- while empowering those directly impacted to lead reform efforts.
For women leaving incarceration, freedom often comes with an impossible burden. They return to communities that don't understand their trauma, systems that continue to punish them, and a society that refuses to see them as mothers, daughters, and leaders.
RestoreHER was built to change that story.
"These situations are so much more common than people know," says Sandhya Kripalani, RestoreHER's Director of Operations. She's talking about the women whose stories fill RestoreHER's work—women who were primary caregivers ripped from their families, women whose pregnancies were treated as inconveniences by correctional systems, women who defended their lives against domestic violence and sexual assault and ended up in prison for it.
With support from Progressive Multiplier, RestoreHER launched a year-long independent revenue generation project to amplify these voices and build sustainable funding for their work. The strategy was straightforward: use email marketing and social media to grow their audience, deepen engagement, and create pathways for individual giving.
RestoreHER's digital fundraising initiative consisted of several integrated components designed to diversify revenue while engaging different segments of their supporter base:
Resends to Non-Openers Work
Combined numbers from original sends and resends showed significant improvement, proving that follow-up emails reach people who simply didn't see the first message
Partnership Amplification Matters
Coordinating with partners to accept tags and share content brought thousands more views to posts and expanded reach dramatically
Video Outperforms Static Images
Dynamic content and real-time footage of RestoreHER's work generated far more engagement than designed graphics
Cultural Responsiveness Drives Connection
Audiences noticed when RestoreHER addressed timely issues affecting their community and responded more strongly to culturally relevant moments
Dedicated Capacity Is Essential
Having grant funding specifically for revenue generation ensured the work was prioritized and not pushed aside by other organizational demands
Founder Voice Resonates
Personal appeals and content from Pamela Winn generated the strongest response, as her leadership and accessibility make her a powerful figure for the organization's messaging
By the Numbers
Impact
RestoreHER grew their email list from 2,000 to over 7,100 subscribers—more than tripling their reach. Social media engagement exploded from 2,000-3,000 views to 30,000-40,000 views per post. Through consistent monthly email campaigns, strategic resends to non-openers, and culturally responsive storytelling, the organization built a foundation for long-term financial independence.
At their recent Data is Life conference in Savannah, Georgia, RestoreHER brought together over 100 stakeholders—including directly impacted women, medical professionals, and policymakers—to address the maternal mortality crisis and advocate for the Women's Care Act, legislation that would transform how pregnant women are treated in custody. The conference sparked new partnerships, including a collaboration with Morehouse School of Medicine's Center for Reproductive Health Equity. Even more remarkably, it caught the attention of Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez's office in Texas, opening doors for RestoreHER's legislation in one of the nation's largest counties.
But perhaps the most powerful outcome has been the platform RestoreHER created for survivors themselves. Through their TRASH program (Traumatic Realities American Society Hides), justice-impacted women use art and storytelling to reclaim their narratives. At the conference alone, merchandise featuring artwork from Pamela and program participants generated $600-700 in sales—proof that people want to support this work in tangible ways.
The project taught RestoreHER essential lessons about sustainable fundraising: that resending emails to non-openers dramatically improves results, that partnership tagging and cross-promotion can bring thousands more eyes to their content, that video and dynamic content outperform static images, and that their audience craves authentic stories from the women leading this movement.
RestoreHER now has the systems, strategies, and audience to build independent revenue for years to come. They're planning an annual symposium series, launching a merchandise website, and continuing to grow their email list and social media following. While immediate cash revenue was modest during an election year when donors felt tapped out, the organization established the infrastructure projected to yield stronger financial returns over the next three years.