In addition, there are some well-known Kansas City philanthropists, as well as new members of the Fortune 1000, who will be identified by PKC Associates and invited to help establish the endowment.
The benefits of becoming a founder of or significant contributor to the Friends of Shuttlecocks' endowment will be explained to the potential donors. These include:
Naming opportunities. They may be named for donors, loved ones, favorite faculty or staff.
Fulfillment of mission. One of the most important reasons a donor establishes a planned gift.
Permanence. Endowments allow permanent support for future longevity of the charity.
Challenge. Endowment minimums offer an attractive challenge to those who understand the value of such thresholds.
Participation. Families, friends, and associates may contribute to a fund in honor of an individual.
Living Memorial. The idea of supporting functioning programs can be as appealing as a name on a building.
Purpose. Endowments may be established for specific purposes including scholarships, program support, etc." (Rosenberg, 2001)
Increasing Membership
Increasing membership will, over the long-term, probably add to the endowment as wealthy individuals among the members bestow current or posthumous gifts. The main efforts to immediately increase membership include:
Creating public events allied with each major statute. Performers will be asked to contribute their performance and the public will be hosted free of charge; however, PKC will solicit membership...
In addition, because these are charitable events, they are eligible for public service announcements on the local broadcast media.
Obtaining continuing media sponsorship. The broadcast and print media -- one from each kind -- will be obtained to keep the Friends of Shuttlecocks' program in the public eye continually, asking for memberships in each promotional item they provide, whether allied with a specific event or not.
Soliciting local museums, art galleries and schools to help our membership drive by providing membership information at their sites.
Summary
These are just the initial responses of PKC to Friends of Shuttlecocks' needs. PKC has vast experience in both these fields and will be happy to provide figures for return on investment by nonprofit agencies that have contracted with PKC to perform either or both of these functions.
As a gift, here is one of PKC's tried and true techniques for gaining interest for both missions: Use the voice of those who have contributed or benefited from the organization's efforts. "Testimonials are worth their weight in gold" (Rosenberg, 2001) and will be avidly sought and used in all work PKC would produce for Friends of Shuttlecocks.
References
Addressing Association Challenges With Internet-based Solutions. (2000) Association Management, September 1. Retrieved 2 December 2004 from www.highbeam.com.
Rosenberg, Bridget. (2001) Endowments.(charities need to market benefits of long-term giving) the Non-profit Times, January 1. Retrieved 2 December 2004 from www.highbeam.com.
