Pam Feltus asked the questions below. The answers, as
I've been able to glean them in studying philanthrophy
for several years now, include the fact that the same
building may, in fact, be again resold after a number
of years, and that naming rights may only last for a
period of time and not into perpetuity. Sort of like
some of the ne'er do well funeral homes that resold
plots over and over again, just digging the layers a
little deeper.
The alternative, is, of course, to cut overhead. That
often equates to jobs, though those sometimes come
from different budgets.
It's marketing that's needed. How does one market
one's facility in such a way that someone with
disposable income AND the inclination to give (and
there are very often generational issues associated
with giving I've learned) wants to do so in order to
sustain an institution? Gettting charitable partners
from large corporations is one way.
Would those of you who might inherit be willing to
inherit less and/or nothing so that Mother and Father
Dear donate the house, car, and the rest of the estate
to the NPO? There are a lot of solicitations for
graveside privileges making sure that, when the bucket
is kicked, the coffers rain down on the NPO.
This is an insitution (musea) that we all revere. But
let's juxtapose this a little on reality. If there
are only so many dollars to go around, and ravaging
disease is still rampant, and people are starving and
living in abject poverty, are the right numbers of
dollars flowing through to the museums community given
the whole of what is available that can be tapped?
You know, as I sat beside my coworkers at the Phil,
when turned down, many would privately berate those
whom they had solicited, living in areas they believed
would be well off, for being such tightwads. "Oh,"
they would say, "they're so stingy." But have you any
idea in how many different ways a donor is solicited
and how many different attempts there are to "pick
their pocket"?
Are you cognizant that mailing lists are sometimes
sold/shared between NPOs? I joined one last year and
donated to another in the name of GWB last President's
Day, and I've had countless solicitations since then.
Would that I could meet the needs of all, but I can't.
Now imagine being "a Name". How often do you think
they are solicited, sometimes without end?
The alternative, it would appear, would be to either
raise admission fees or taxes, both of which seem
awfully distasteful to many. Could you sustain
patrons if the fees went up? Would you be comfortable
in paying more for your taxes knowing that this would
help to sustain the arts and artifacts?
What would be YOUR solutions?
> Here's my issue with the whole thing. Given this is
> an ethical form of
> fundraising, what happens when every building,
> gallery, meeting room,
> doorknob and toilet has a sponsorship plaque on it?
> How do you then raise
> money? Selling naming rights is an easy, lazy way to
> raise money and it is
> something that museum directors in 10, 20 years will
> be paying for. Are there
> not other ways to raise money and what type of donor
> behavior are we teaching?
=====
Indigo Nights
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