A couple of days ago I found myself defending the importance of legacy giving. It was during a conversation with someone outside of the fundraising industry, so the easy assumptions I usually make weren’t there to support my case.
“Why is legacy giving important?” she asked.
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A regular mid-summer chore of mine is to defrost the deep freezer downstairs.
The 32 bags of frozen blackberries, 10lbs of blueberries, most of an apple tree turned into sauce, a small school of fish and the Christmas turkey dwindled down over the winter to 2 bags of frozen blackberries, one bag of blueberries, and a bunch of crab bait. In the fall it was full to overflowing, but in the summer, I empty it out completely and give it a clean. Read more
Language is wonderful. We communicate all manner of things with the written word.
My mother once wrote a note to the school I attended to excuse my absence with the words: “Please excuse David as he had mild gastrointestinal inflammation of the lower intestinal track.” It was a stomach ache all dressed up in hospital jargon. The staff at reception passed the note around for all to read and admire.
I’ve been thinking about philanthropy lately. And if you’re a fund-raiser I’m sure you have too.
I’ve been thinking about more than the day-to-day mechanics of fund-raising, which is often where we get caught up. For example, have you edited the next direct appeal letter yet? Is the data list up to date? Have you responded to the donor who wants to change their credit card number on file? All of these, and many more, are incredibly important necessary details of raising money. Read more
Photo by Anthony Rossbach on Unsplash