The term “philanthropy” is defined as “the desire to promote welfare of others, expressed especially by the generous donation of money to good causes, time, and other forms of altruism.” In our region there are hundreds, if not thousands, of charities that rely on support from gifts. Americans tend to be open to donating to worthy causes. American tax laws generally allow for a deduction for donations, which helps motivate giving. Nonprofit organizations have been essential in raising funds to support a long list of causes including faith groups, healthcare, education, welfare, sports, environment, and historic museums. The most thriving charities focus on their core mission and are successful by making a compelling case to potential donors. While it might be too strong to say that everyone has a duty to help others, there is a reward and a good feeling for lending a hand to people in need or who are working to make our world a better place.
I have been involved with several nonprofit organizations over the years and have learned some of the techniques that are effective. There are many sad stories of charities who start out with good intentions but fail when most of the money gathered is used to, in turn, raise more money. An organization named “Charity Navigator” rates the efficiency of nearly 200,000 charities. It is a good resource to study before sending a contribution. I advise checking the financial information of a charity’s Internal Revenue Service 990 form. These forms are easily found on the internet. The information will give you confidence that your funds will be used appropriately.
One nonprofit museum I am involved with needed a hefty dose of funding to completely renovate a historic building and add modern interactive displays. The facility was closed for the work and there was no revenue other than donations. The Board of Directors was charged with raising the funds. It was going slowly. A development committee was activated but that group also struggled to raise the necessary funding. The next step the Board took provides a helpful lesson on how to raise funds. The Board asked five members to serve on an ad-hoc committee to work on the project. The new group was given six months to raise $5 million. It looked to be a daunting task. I was one of the five committee members. Our first act was to hire a skilled manager to help us make our case. Our committee met every Monday morning. I quickly learned that you did not want to be on the call and not have raised something over the previous week. We drew up lists of potential donors and assigned one or two members to make the calls. The manager would follow up with a package of materials that included a brochure, a personalized letter, a link to a few videos, and relevant financial information. Each week we would compare notes and fine tune our pitch. Our project got off to an encouraging start when we received several donations.
We invited prospective donors to the facility to get a first-hand look at the construction progress and learn about our vision to attract visitors. Our manager did research on the capacity of the potential donors. At these receptions, the committee members took turns talking with the guests. We limited the attendance to 25 people. Drinks and snacks were provided but the guests spent most of the time listening to our formal pitch and touring the facility. It was a good sign that the guests were more engaged with the program than the snacks. The first reception netted $600,000. We were inspired and pressed forward. At the end of six months, we had exceeded our goal and the museum had the funds to complete the project, open debt free, and be able to operate for two years as revenue sources were put into action.
For additional perspective on the importance of philanthropy to organizations and, indeed, the entire community, I spoke to five managers employed by local nonprofits. Each person was passionate about their mission. (For the record, I have served on the Boards of four of the organizations I spoke with).
Jan Wood is the president of the Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center Foundation and has been working in healthcare fundraising for fifteen years. She makes a strong case: “Hospitals touch every family at every stage of life. To meet our growing needs, we must have investment of philanthropic dollars.” Wood says the hospital’s needs have changed due to the Covid pandemic. “It forced us away from event fundraising and face-to-face contact with donors. We’ve had to find new ways to connect and maintain the quality and closeness of those relationships.”
Suzanne Armstrong is the Vice President of Development of the Chesapeake Bay Trust and explains what donors look for: “Some are motivated by quantitative data and what their gift will accomplish, and others love a story that demonstrates human contact. Many will have a personal tie to the mission. Stories are memorable and storytelling has been a powerful tool to build connections.” Armstrong suggests that the “ask” needs to be tailored to the individual donor. And, most importantly she adds, “People give to people.”
Alice Estrada is the President/CEO of the Annapolis Maritime Museum. She explains how her organization makes asks. “We take every opportunity to spotlight our accomplishments like our restoration of the skipjack Wilma Lee, serving underprivileged kids, and our exciting, state-of-the-art exhibits. We emphasize that their contribution provides a great return on investment in terms of impact in the community.”
The open campus of St. John’s College has been an iconic institution in downtown Annapolis since its founding in 1696. Kelly Brown is the Vice President of Development and uses a straight-forward approach to fundraising. “I start with understanding what is most important to them. We match the donor’s passion with our need. It is individualized to each person. Scholarship support goes directly to students to keep tuition low and access to St. John’s for all. This message resonates with many, many donors.”
Historic Annapolis’ President and CEO, Robert Clark, points out that his organization has been in operation 70 years and works to, “Maintain, interpret, and conserve 13 historic buildings of the rich history of Annapolis. We have impacted the quality of life for residents. We welcome all gifts, even the smallest of donations are critical to sustaining an organization. We believe it is important to provide a personal touch that welcomes donors at all levels to give again. Larger gifts are typically restricted toward a particular project or program.”
One important lesson I learned from these five leaders is that education is an essential ingredient of their respective missions. The Chesapeake Bay Trust works with over 80,000 school children on environmental projects each year. The Trust believes that young people will be good stewards of our world if they learn to appreciate the environment at a young age. Estrada reports that education is the cornerstone of the Annapolis Maritime Museum. “We had a banner year with 12,000 youth participating in our various environmental education programs,” she says. “Last year we hosted 85,000 visitors.” She points out that the museum’s logo is proudly displayed on the Wilma Lee, which had a total of 2,800 passengers sail on her in 2021.
St John’s offers courses and lectures to the public each year. Brown notes that during Covid, “We learned how to offer content online, which we’ve never thought to do before. So, there are some silver linings in this pandemic. We had to learn to do things out of our comfort zone.”
The medical staff of the hospital is continuously working to keep the public educated about healthcare methods to practice and embrace. The Covid pandemic era has been particularly challenging to these and other nonprofits. Wood says, “Covid has dramatically changed things. It has created an urgency for giving to help us to maintain high-quality care.”
Clark says a nonprofit has to be nimble and willing to adapt. “The pandemic has required us to streamline and be more creative in our programming and revenue sources. Virtual lecture series are increasingly popular.”
Armstrong says the fundraising and philanthropy sectors in 2014 sought to learn from the popular “Ice Bucket Challenge.” “We studied the techniques they used to convert ice bucket participants into long-term donors and educate them about ALS disease.” Everyone I spoke with say they work with other nonprofits and compare notes on how to be effective. While the missions of each organization are different the quest to secure adequate support is universal.
At the end of every year, I receive dozens of requests for donations. The mailings create quite a large stack of letters and convenient envelopes. It can be confusing deciding which organizations to support. As a practice I like to spread out donations throughout the course of a year. I usually focus on specific projects that seem important. My priorities change over time. Most of us have limited funds, but I have learned that every gift is appreciated and with a little research you can choose charities that are working on a mission that is important to you.
Gary Jobson is a world-class sailor, television commentator, author, longtime resident of Annapolis, and pre-eminent ambassador for sailing of the United States. He either serves on or has served on the boards of Operation Sail, US Sailing, Olympic Sailing Committee, Leukemia Cup Regatta Series, Annapolis Yacht Club, National Sailing Hall of Fame, Chesapeake Bay Trust Board of Directors, and Visit Annapolis, among many others.
