The Ten Thousand Dollar Board Member

Early in my career, I took a job as VP of Development for a mid-sized nonprofit. One of our board members was a gentleman I’ll call Bill. He was wealthy, well-connected, and deeply committed to the mission. The largest gift he had ever given us was $10,000.

That month, I ran the first wealth screen in the organization’s history. Bill’s results were eye-opening. His business career, his assets, and most tellingly, his giving to other nonprofits, all pointed to someone capable of giving far more than he was. He was writing six and seven-figure gifts to organizations whose boards he didn’t even sit on.

I asked the CEO why Bill wasn’t giving us gifts like that. I was told not to bother. Bill was only on the board as a favor to the board chairman, his lifelong friend. When I asked if he had ever been asked for a large gift, the CEO said he was sure he had, but couldn’t remember when. “It was before my time, I think.”

I scheduled a visit anyway. I didn’t ask for money. We had a real conversation, and I asked him about his favorite program at our organization. He lit up and talked about it for twenty minutes. Before I left, I asked if I could send him a proposal to help grow that program. He said yes.

Two days later, I sent him a proposal asking him to pledge $100,000 per year for three years to support his favorite program. Fifteen minutes after I hit send, an email came back. Three words: “Let’s do it.”

Bill wanted to be asked. He had wanted to be asked for years. The only thing standing between that organization and a $300,000 gift was a culture that had talked itself out of doing the obvious.

As fundraisers, we know what good fundraising looks like. The hard part isn’t knowing. It’s doing. Go do the things you know are right. That’s usually all it takes. Sometimes, that’s as a simple as a conversation.