By Roger Seidenman, Director of Development
I’d be lying if I said there was a hue and cry to bring back my blog, but there have been a few of you who have asked for it to return (thanks big fella, you know who you are), and even if those requests were made out of pity, here goes: Last year, I tried to steer my blog clear of fundraising life at Park School, and I focused primarily on the classroom and the fields. Since the lion’s share of my time is spent working on growing the Annual Fund and increasing the school’s endowment, I thought perhaps I’d share some observations as the fiscal year winds down.
I’d be lying if I said there was a hue and cry to bring back my blog, but there have been a few of you who have asked for it to return (thanks big fella, you know who you are), and even if those requests were made out of pity, here goes: Last year, I tried to steer my blog clear of fundraising life at Park School, and I focused primarily on the classroom and the fields. Since the lion’s share of my time is spent working on growing the Annual Fund and increasing the school’s endowment, I thought perhaps I’d share some observations as the fiscal year winds down.
This year we tried a completely different approach for the Annual Fund. In design, the plan was to virtually eliminate our standard on-campus phoning sessions and assign each volunteer ten prospects who they would contact at their convenience. So far, I’d say it has been a success. We’ve enlisted many more volunteers than in years past. In terms of dollars raised, we’re running neck and neck with last year and hoping, as always, to finish strong. Surprises along the way included discovering how many volunteers like the structure of phoning at Park. So next year, we’ll again try to devise a framework that accommodates our volunteers and our donors.
The endowment efforts continue in a leadership gift phase. Much work is put in before gifts are committed, but the progress has been rapid in the last few months. Planned gifts are becoming more common as a means of providing for Park. Perhaps more about that in the weeks to come.
We had a fabulous auction that surpassed our wildest expectations in what could be raised. Liz Block, auction chair, masterfully navigated some very choppy waters, and Ellen Small, formally, Parent Program Coordinator, and less formally, Auction Maven, helped make sure the event came off in fantastic fashion. Feel good moment of the night was the live auction item to provide a full year’s tuition. Six guests each bid $4,000 to support a full tuition. It was sold in less than fifteen seconds. Thank you to President of the Board of Trustees Josh Fidler for this innovative, and very successful, idea.
We’re looking forward to the 2010 Park Golf Classic on Monday, May 24 at Chestnut Ridge Country Club. There are a few spots left if you’re interested. Just contact Jayme Gilden Wood ’93 at jwood@parkschool.net. There are big plans for Alumni Weekend of May 21-22, including an all-community Toast to the Brown & White Cocktail Party and a special event to honor Jim Howard’s retirement on May 24. Learn more and RSVP at www.parkschool.net/events.
A lot to cover in the first blog of the season. Ultimately, it has been a good year. We hope to have a strong finish to the Annual Fund, and if you have not yet made your contribution, please know how much your participation is valued and needed. You can do that at www.parkschool.net/giveonline
I’ll aim to be blogging more frequently. Things are good in Bruinland, and you should know about as many of them as possible.
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