DBS engaged in a wide range of support and charitable giving to the St. Louis Community in 2010 including:

• Gold Sponsorship of 2010 St. Louis Day of .NET Conference
• St. Louis Walk Now for Autism Speaks
• Missouri Association of Rehabilitation Facilities (MARF) Reception
• Susan G Komen Walk for the Cure

However, the most profound, satisfying and far reaching Community Support Event that had at its core an IT Solution, was the role DBS played in founding The Regional Alliance For The Troops (RAFTT). This alliance was formed in 2010 and has involvement from area corporate, military, government and NotForProfit organizations. RAFTT is dedicated to raising awareness of the resources and support available to military members, veterans and their families living in the Greater St. Louis Region. Helping:

• Military and veterans FIND the resources
• Public find the not-for-profit to should they want to support them
• Not-for-profits find each other and discover news ways to collaborate

DBS provided a wide range of support in “starting up” RAFTT which included:

• Creating a sponsorship program that raised money for hundreds of Radio spots advertising many of the not-for-profit. (reaching over 1 million people in the area)
• Holding a one day event at the Touhill Performing Arts Center on 22 January that gave 50+ organizations a chance to provide services to over 1000 veterans
• Triggering the purchase of over 700 Care Packages to be sent to military members with Missouri and Illinois roots who are deployed around the world

The key IT solution was in their recommendation to transition all the information about the NotForProfits that existed in books and handouts to a single, Search Capable, website: raftt.org. This website is now the central repository for all organizations providing support to the military, veterans or their families that have a link to this Region.

• The graphics and technical backbone are simple but elegant.
• The site is rapidly approaching 10,000 hits but more importantly is creating significant increases in hits across the St. Louis Not-for-profit community
• St. Louis City, County and Missouri Veterans Departments are now partnered with RAFTT and specifically with DBS to align electronic communication efforts to enhance this “central receptacle” as the “first stop” to finding what you need
• Functionality is growing daily with this web site: expanding ease and sophistication of the “Key Word” search mechanism.
• DBS has been the catalyst for standardization of veteran related terminology and processes for communicating information.
• DBS has integrated a multi-media engagement plan that includes Facebook and Twitter links from the web site.

The impact is being felt across the Region:

• Over 50 more new organizations have requested membership in RAFTT
• More area organizations are planning more “benefit programs” for veterans
• Cooperation between NotForProfits is growing; examples abound and can be provided