The NonProfit Times - October 1, 2008 - (Page 18)

SPECIAL REPORT Continued from page 17 “Restoring Memorial Hall has been phenomenal in inspiring people who care about children, early childhood education, inner city and underserved populations, art, history, and architecture,” said Resinger. Last year, Please Touch Museum launched the public phase of the campaign. With $17 million to go, Please Touch has not been a textbook campaign. “Because the campaign had fits and starts, some donors had a wait-and-see attitude. From the inside, it was frustrating, but understandable,” said Resinger. With the increasing cost of construction, a $60-million bond with a strict payment schedule, and $17 million left to reach goal, the museum could not conduct a typical campaign. Because the campaign had been going on for so long, the museum went back to donors and prospects to whom they had spoken early on in the process. Donors who had a wait-and-see attitude were ready to give. More than 200 individuals have made repeat gifts. Convincing donors to support the renovation of the beaux-arts landmark that had served as a police station was made easier by getting donors to stand in the Great Hall – dust and all. “Doing tours has been invaluable. As donors and prospects see the building being restored, the museum’s phones have been ringing off the hook,” said Resinger. “People see who has signed on. They want to know how to get their name on an exhibit or on a room in the building.” A virtual tour narrated by Lesly Attarian, the museum’s vice president of external affairs, has been a great tool for fundraising. “Our development team usually showed the virtual tour to prospects after taking them through the building for tours,”said Resinger.“In the early stages, when the building was being gutted and renovated, this was a huge help in getting folks to see what we had planned for the spaces they’d just seen.” The museum also made DVDs and sent them with packets.The Virtual Tour has also been on YouTube. raising money for -- the goals of the organization; and who is going to give it -- those who care about these goals,”said Hartsook. Please Touch is scheduled to hold its opening gala on Oct. 3, prior to opening its doors on Oct. 18. The museum expects to raise additional major gifts after the doors open. “We are committed to raising the full amount of the campaign.They call it ‘development’ for a reason. It takes time,” said Resinger. WHITEHEAD INSTITUTE FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH In contrast to Please Touch Museum’s more than a decade-long campaign, the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research is less than one year into the quiet phase of a $100-million Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology Initiative, $40 million of which is to come from private philanthropy. Businessman and philanthropist Edwin C. “Jack” Whitehead provided $35 million to construct and equip a new building, $5 million per year in guaranteed income and a substantial endowment in his will for a total gift of $135 million. Whitehead’s gift for a strong launch and healthy cushion did not anticipate that funding for embryonic stem cell research would be cut off by the Bush Administration, forcing Cambridge, Mass.-based Whitehead and other similar institutions to scramble for private dollars after having depended largely on government support. Making up for the gap in federal funding is just one The Please Touch Museum’s Memorial Hall – The Great Hall can be a visual wonderland for children and for donors. Right: The Whitehead Institute in Cambridge, Mass., developed a colorful brochure to make its case to potential donors. And, the campaign has continued to receive major gifts. Last month, the campaign announced a gift of $5 million from an individual who already had given $2 million. “We knew we wanted to go back to this individual for a major gift. We took the donor to see the Great Hall, and she saw the museum’s importance to the community in this spectacular space,” said Resinger. Such a gift is why such campaigns are not just about raising money. “Of course you need financial resources, but the goals of the organization must be the primary focus. From the earliest planning stages, your organization’s long-term goals should be imbedded and drive your campaign efforts throughout,”said Robert Hartsook, chairman and CEO of the Hartsook Companies in Wichita, Kan., and Wrightsville Beach, N.C. “I can’t count how many times I’ve heard,‘We can raise $40 million’ or another number,” he said.When asked how that figure was decided, the laundry list of answers includes: A similar institution raised this last year in their campaign;We think this will meet our needs and give us some reserves; It is our 40th anniversary and that number fits. “Setting a campaign dollar goal is a process that cannot be taken lightly. While it might or might not require a ‘feasibility study,’ it always takes into account what you are bucket to fill.There’s also the cost of today’s more collaborative and cross-disciplinary research. And, there’s the ironic result of Whitehead still receiving some federal funding: the cost of its stem cell research is actually made more expensive since federal funding requires that separate facilities be maintained for those stem cell research projects not funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Because of its initial endowment and government funding,Whitehead has to overcome the notion that they have enough money. “Working with mouse cells and human embryonic stem cells is expensive. It costs $100,000 per year for special serum to feed the stem cells, and the purchase and care of mice for just one of our investigators costs $720,000 per year -- that’s a lot of Swiss cheese,” said Patricia Denn, director of development at Whitehead. “Raising funds for biomedical research organizations 18 OCTOBER 1, 2008 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.nptimes.com http://www.nptimes.com

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The NonProfit Times - October 1, 2008 Near Miss & Direct Hit Donor Intent The Focus Of Suit North Dakota AG Investigating The Grant Institute Contents Who...When...Where...How...What? Calendar Kumbaya Tying The Knot Filing Changes Philanthropy Caucus Big Bucks For Capital Campaigns 5 Things NOT To Do In A Capital Campaign Acquisition: Staying The Course ServiceNation Summit Fundraising Guide NPT Jobs Resource Directory

The NonProfit Times - October 1, 2008

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