It’s not that I’m against fundraising – I’m not – it’s just
that these kids give fundraising a bad name and I’m sick and tired of it.
I spent more than 25 years of my life raising funds for
various, worthy non-profits in New York City. And perhaps the most frustrating
aspect of this career was how woefully misunderstood , underappreciated and
maligned it was. It’s weird, when you think about it. Why people would discount
the efforts of a cadre of professionals trying to make a positive difference in
the world. Not so weird, when you realize that their pocketbooks are
affected. Anyone who has worked with
money – whether they’re a teller or a mortgage lender or a cashier – can tell
you that people get pretty touchy when it comes to their funds.
I came into fundraising the way most of us do: I was a
directionless graduate with good communications skills who wanted to help but
didn’t want to get my hands dirty (so to speak.) Actually, I worked in the development
office of my college as my work-study job as an undergraduate. My job was to read the files in the corporate
and foundation relations department and prepare a one-page summary. To me, each
file was like a mini-novel, a tale of meetings and letters that led to
buildings erected, professors hired and other lofty achievements. Much of the
history had happened decades before my birth and the correspondence was typed
on onion skin paper. I felt like a philanthropic Indiana Jones. I could work in peace and quiet, practice my
writing, but there were also swanky parties and receptions to attend. And I
could be part of making the world a better place. I was sold.
So that is how I started my career. I wrote corporate and
foundation grants that helped to fund rehabilitation programs for disabled men
and women and feed hungry New Yorkers. Then I went on to learn how to throw tasteful
reception for donors, craft an effective direct mail appeal, create
mutually-beneficial cause-marketing campaigns, guide board members as they
approached their wealthy and influential friends, ease donors into charitable
estate planning, manage junior committees, design five-year strategic plans, build
websites, establish facebook pages, while tending to the needs of my staff, my board,
my bosses, my donors, the public, government officials and more. And let’s not forget that ever-looming budget
I was responsible for raising – the proverbial sword of Damocles -- hung over
my head until the final day of the fiscal year.
Despite all the skills, expertise, experience, patience,
tolerance and love needed to be successful in this career, I still received
comments like this: “oh, you’re a fundraiser….my daughter does that too. She
runs the bake sale for the temple,” or “fundraising, huh? You must be on the phone all day. “ Or people would joke that they wanted me to raise
money for their wallet, or they’d immediately jump to discussing one of the
rare, ugly scandals involving non-profits.
Sure it irked me, but it never stopped me. I truly believed
in what I was doing and I still do. It’s
not easy to ask for money but that’s not what I thought I was doing. I believed
that I was selling a much-desired commodity. It is my conviction that most
people want to improve the world in one way or another: some want more art and
music, others want to protect animals or children, millions want to cure
cancers and other diseases or eradicate hunger. For those people, I have
provided a way for them to be part of the solution. I have ensured them that their funds will be
used responsibly and safely to make the world better in just the way they want.
And I have given them a nice way to take a tax-deduction and earn a bit more
self-esteem. And, if there gift was big enough, they’d get some public
recognition too. Not too shabby.
So this is why I want to douse those guerilla marketing
pseudo-fundraisers below my window. They have taken the art and science of fundraising
and turned it into begging and accosting – everything I have always feared people will think it is. But the problem is it works. And that is
another thing I learned in my career: if it works, do it. Do you know why you
get telemarketing calls at home? Because it works. Maybe not for you, but there
are those who will sign up for whatever they’re selling on the phone. Maybe you
don’t like direct mail appeals crowding your mail box but millions still send
in a check this way (including my mother, God bless her!) Maybe you would never
show up for a black-tie fundraiser, but they are still selling lots of $1,000
plates.
So the next time you get a call, or email or are greeting by
a smiling young person on the street, I hope you will reserve judgment. But
more than that, I hope you will think about the difference you can make in the
world – whether you sign over your credit card to that young person, or join a
walk-a-thon, or send a check in the mail or get your company to sponsor a
charity. Philanthropy is truly a
beautiful American tradition and the folks behind it are – for the vast part –
honest, skilled hard-working people.
For those of you looking to support some great charities at this time of year I am happy to recommend the following:
City Harvest - rescues food that would otherwise go to waste and helps hungry New Yorkers
League of Conservation Voters - ensures that environmental issues are at the forefront of political campaigns
ASPCA - helps protect animals and sponsors adoptions
Brooklyn Museum - a vastly underrated but amazingly powerful cultural institution
Green Chimneys - pairs at-risk youth with animals that need rehabilitation in a farm setting
Gods Love We Deliver - delivers nutritious meals to people with AIDS and other terminal illnesses.
City Meals on Wheels - provides companionship and meals to elderly and frail New Yorkers.
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