CMF 53rd Annual Conference

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are our most frequently asked questions about the CMF Annual Conference. We will update this page as more information is available and additional questions emerge. If you have a question, please connect with our conference planning team at [email protected].

Online registration will open on Wednesday, July 23, and continue through Tuesday, September 30 (or until capacity is met). Rates increase for on-site registration.

Your registration includes all conference programming and access to available recordings and resources via the conference mobile app, as well as all provided meals, snacks and receptions. Additional fees may apply for select immersive experiences.

Full Conference Registration

  • Member: $925 online | $1,025 on-site
  • Nonmember: $1,225 online | $1,325 on-site

Single-Day Conference Registration
During registration, you will choose which day of the conference you are planning to attend. 

  • Member: $500 online | $550 on-site
  • Nonmember: $625 online | $675 on-site 

Thank you for your interest in elevating your support for Michigan's community of philanthropy at our 53rd Annual Conference by partnering as a sponsor or exhibitor!  

With over 500 anticipated attendees, engagement as a sponsor or exhibitor offers invaluable opportunities to reach the audiences you care about most.  

All exhibitors and sponsorship packages also include at least one conference registration!  

Additional sponsor benefits include: prominent placement on the conference app and website, digital attendee communications, inclusion in printed marketing materials provided to attendees, visibility on monitors during mainstage events, and digital displays throughout the conference. Further information on sponsor benefits and opportunities are featured in our 2025 Sponsor/Exhibitor Packet.

Additional exhibitor benefits include: a booth in the Exhibitor Area located in Conference Central and listing in the Conference App, maximizing your exposure and engagement with conference attendees. Further information on exhibitor benefits and opportunities are featured in our 2025 Sponsor/Exhibitor Packet.

We invite you to connect with Randy Van Antwerp, CFOO at CMF for more information on becoming a conference sponsor or exhibitor.

We are committed to ensuring that our conference is an inclusive and welcoming environment for learning, growing and connecting. We ask all attendees to honor our community agreements for how we will interact and engage together. We have also established a variety of resources and practices within the conference experience to support greater inclusion and accessibility, ranging from main stage closed captioning to holding spaces in the conference hotel for personal reflection and a nursing suite. Please visit the Building Inclusive Spaces area of our event site for more information. If there are supports we can provide to help ensure you are able to fully access the conference and engage with your peers, we invite you to let us know via the registration form or reach out to our conference support team at any time.

This year’s conference is being designed with a focus on in-person engagement. We anticipate recording only select main stage events, such as the Annual Members Meeting and Philanthropy Award presentations. Those recordings will be available to CMF members following the conference. 

Yes, there is a mobile app for this year’s conference that we will encourage all attendees to download. The mobile app will be the best resource to access the conference agenda, session details and event resources, and to connect with other attendees. It also supports CMF's efforts as we strive to be eco-conscious of our environmental impact when it comes to printed materials. The app will be launched approximately one week prior to the start of conference; registered attendees will receive access information at that time. 

We are not offering a group rate, recognizing the significant variance in size across our member organizations means the lower rate would not be an offering that many or most of our members would be able to utilize.  

We recognize cost can be a barrier for newer professionals in particular, given they do not always have as large a professional development budget. CMF offers scholarships for conference attendance, available to emerging practitioners (individuals newer to the field). The scholarship covers the cost of a "full" conference registration. We appreciate the support of EPIP Michigan in promoting the scholarship opportunity and assisting in the review of the scholarship applications. The 2025 Annual Conference application will be available this summer.  

In addition, CMF offers a single day rate as a more affordable option, which is about half the cost of the full conference registration.

CMF policy prohibits conference participants and vendors from any form of solicitation of its members during the conference. Note that this policy does not apply when an attendee explicitly invites a solicitation.

Generally, attendees’ attire is business casual throughout the conference. Most important is that attendees are comfortable and welcomed to show up as their authentic selves! Select immersive experiences and off-site events may include time outdoors and travel between locations; attendees confirmed to attend those sessions may be advised to bring/wear a coat and comfortable shoes. 

CMF members may pay via credit card, check or EFT. For nonmembers, payment via credit card is required when registering.

Please note: As a CMF member, if you would like to pay by check, you must be logged into your account on the website. If you do not see a "Pay by Check" option and you are logged into the site, please reach out to our conference support team. 

CMF continues to prioritize the well-being of members, staff, partners and communities. The following measures reflect our current in-person event health and safety procedures:  

  • We recommend attendees test for COVID-19 and influenza within 48 hours prior to this gathering.  
  • Any attendee who is feeling unwell, who has tested positive for an illness in the 10 days prior to the event or who is showing symptoms and awaiting test results is asked not to attend. If a registrant is unable to attend due to illness, they are invited to transfer their registration to another individual within their organization or CMF will refund the registration. Please notify CMF via [email protected] with a request to transfer or refund your registration.  
  • All attendees will be invited to wear one of three color-coded lanyards to indicate to other attendees their personal comfort with in-person interaction: red (greet from six feet), yellow (elbow-bumps only), green (hugs, handshakes and high-fives permitted).  
  • If you start to feel unwell while attending the event, please reach out to CMF at [email protected] if you would like a COVID test and/or masks brought to your hotel room.
  • We will have hand sanitizing stations set out in common areas of the conference connection points in the hotel, and at the beginning of food and snack stations. 

Full refunds were available upon request made in writing until online registration closed on Tuesday, September 30. For requests moving forward, you may transfer your registration to another individual within your organization. If you cannot attend due to illness, we will offer a refund or transfer. If you have a related question or would like to transfer your registration to a colleague, please contact our CMF team at [email protected].

The 54th Annual Conference will be held October 12-14, 2026, in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  

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