This document summarizes the July 2016 newsletter of Spark Freedom, a free-market policy organization. It announces the launch of StoryBank, a new searchable database containing stories about people impacted by harmful policies. StoryBank aims to help organizations develop strong messaging by allowing them to copy summaries into their materials. The newsletter also advertises an upcoming event for participants to learn effective strategies for responding to opponents of private giving and donor privacy. It introduces several interns joining Spark Freedom and provides an overview of a past event where humor in policy work was discussed.

1. the newsletter of spark freedom
July2016
SPARKLER
Imagine an immensely powerful tool at your
fingertips. . . leveraging years of message
development from teams like yours. . .
gathering in one place stories about people
across the country who have collided with
harmful policies, and available in one searchable
database. What if you could paste summaries
directly from this database into your reports,
commentaries, and promotional materials?
For five years, Spark Freedom has helped
free­-market policy organizations develop
strong messaging packages on vital policy issues.
StoryBank is a new tool that gives you and your
team access to stories on many policy issues. It
launched this month with a story package on
a topic related to federalism, the transfer of
public lands, or “Free the Lands.”
These policy reforms are so important they cannot
be tied to one location or organization, so partners
agreed to share their messages. We put staff to work
finding even more stories about real people with real
needs who want viable solutions. Together, these
organizations and Spark Freedom are leveraging
excellent work into wider arenas, broader reach.
Benjy stumped for candidates he liked.
He was forced out of one school and
harrassed in another.
Moise went from abandoned, bedridden
“mental patient” to top triathlete when
permitted to choose private health care.
...and on...and on.
Let us show you StoryBank; maybe you’ll decide
to join these StoryBank community, helping not
one, but many organizations to further freedom.
Contact me: Lani@SparkFreedom.org, 520­-954­-0266.
Learnmore
StoryBank Messages
Promote Freedom
by Nicole Williams
PO Box 2472
Cookeville, TN 38502
$5,000 puts
5 stories
in the Bank
S
parkFreedom.o
rg
Next Spark Session:
Great Stories. Be there.
Your questions answered
by experts August 25
Sp
arkFreedom.org/sparksessi
on

2. Imagine your name and address appearing on a
government list for the world to see, simply because
you donated to a nonprofit.
Think about the backlash you could receive from
your neighbors, employer, or child’s teacher if their
opinions are different from yours. Might you be
judged? Ostracized? Fired?
That situation doesn’t sound like America, but
it could become reality if efforts to cripple private
giving are ignored. Fortunately, a movement is
springing up around the country that corrects myths
circulated by those trying to silence free speech.
During a two-day ArrowHead Accelerator
workshop hosted by ArrowHead3
and Spark Freedom,
participants from state-­based organizations learned
the best strategies for responding to
enemies of debate. They practiced
delivering tested
messages in a
variety of the
real­-life situations
that come up in
the attack on
private giving.
Accelerator started
with a battle-tested
core message and
the stories of some people already victimized. The
stories, tools, and practice delevering them with power
will be critical in defending every American’s right to
support causes they believe in – for people like Dina
Galassini, an Arizona resident who was forced
to register as a political committee
and report the cost of pens and
poster board after she emailed 23
neighbors asking them to protest
a local bond measure.
Accelerating Donor
Privacy Protection
by Chantal Lovell
Meet Jonathan Haines
Emily Orr lives in Utah and attends Utah
State University. She will graduate in May with
a degree in political science
and a minor in organizational
communication. The former
Koch Scholar enjoys kayaking,
cooking, traveling, and reading.
She became the president
of Aggies for Liberty, which
has allowed her to spread the
ideas of liberty. She is passionate about free­-market
environmentalism, freedom of speech, fiscal
policies, and the war on drugs.
John Nagle is a senior at
American University, where
he founded AU’s Young
Americans for Liberty chapter.
He will graduate with a BA in
political science and a minor
in economics. He enjoys
reading, listening to podcasts, fencing, and keeping
fit. He read Milton Friedman’s “Capitalism and
Freedom,” inspiring him to learn more about his
political beliefs and helping develop his interest
in the free society. He intends to pursue a career
in the liberty movement.
Allie Harris is a junior at
Miami University, where she
is studying political science
and international studies, with
minors in French and business
law. Allie is the co­-chair of
Miami’s College Republicans
chapter. Allie, drawn to Spark
Freedom because of their
pro­-liberty values, wanted
to get hands-­on experience. Allie used to
competitively figure skate, and now enjoys hiking,
sailing, rock climbing, and reading biographies
and historical nonfiction.
Meet Our Interns
How do you make policy work engaging and,
frankly, fun? Wayne Hoffman offered inside tips
and tricks on incorporating humor into serious
policy work in the May Spark Session. Idaho
Freedom Foundation’s
president has honed
his communications
skills, including
humor, for more
than 25 years.
What is his number-
one piece of advice?
“Look hard at your
policies and then find
ways you can lighten the mood a bit.” You don’t
have to come up with a killer punch line, he says,
so don’t worry if you’re not a stand­up comedian.
Before you incorporate humor in your work,
make sure you know your audience and your
issue. Know what you can and can’t say: the
last thing you want is to offend someone when
you’re simply lightening the mood. Wayne also
suggests that you practice – hard – and be sure
to run your presentation by someone who will
give honest feedback.
Certainly, defending freedom is serious work,
but Wayne insists that humor will work to your
advantage. Humor is “one thing that’s missing
from our side’s toolkit,” he says. “No one wants
to join a club of old, stodgy people who constantly
harp on how bad things are.”
Hear Wayne’s entire presentation on
SparkFreedom.org. Make sure you’re on
the list, so you receive advance notice of
future Spark Sessions.
Humorous Policy:
No Joking Matter
by Allie Harris
Chantal is the media relations manager at
the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in
Midland, Michigan.
David Ray, AFP, blows
out a surprise birthday
cupcake tower at
ArrowHead accelerator.
He’s the newest addition to the Spark Freedom family. Jonathan Haines
joined us in May as vice president.
Jonathan has almost always been interested in politics and public policy.
He is a veteran of numerous political campaigns. His legislative experience
spans the state, local, and federal levels of American government, plus
the Parliament of Canada.
Prior to joining the Liberty Movement, Jonathan spent time in the private
sector, specializing in corporate and external relations, including government
affairs. He comes to us from State Budget Solutions and Federalism in Action.
Jonathan, Amanda, and their four sons live in southern
Tennessee. He enjoys spending time with his family,
genealogy, history, politics, and the outdoors – when it
isn’t really hot. He also loves to travel: so far he’s logged
48 states, most of Canada, and numerous other countries.
Jonathan is committed to Spark Freedom’s vision to
“ignite a hunger for and reverence of freedom so that
people can pursue their dreams.” His goal is to make
Spark Freedom more visible and engaged within the
Liberty Movement and beyond.