IT’S NOT THE MOST GLAMOROUS PART OF THE JOB. But very necessary. We cannot get to first base with anyone until we get the meeting, either for ourselves or for the principal or key volunteer in our organization. So part of what we have to do is “sell” the meeting to the friend or constituent. [...]
Author Archives: Patrick Sheehy
The perfect fund raiser
April 17, 2010 – 10:16 am
I TEAR UP EVERY TIME I hear Michael J. Fox talk on the radio. Maybe owing to people close to me who suffered the same or similar condition as Michael’s. Maybe because those people demonstrated that same kind of courage and self effacement as this still relatively young man. Michael J. Fox has a new book (A [...]
The toughest question
November 3, 2009 – 9:30 pm
HERE IS ONE OF THE MOST significant and most difficult questions of philanthropy. Why? Three letters and a bit of punctuation within which is captured an inquiry that could easily set us scrambling for information. In our rush we may articulate a reverse justification that begins at that thing we wish to fund. Or so [...]
Philanthropy and the National Parks
October 1, 2009 – 9:15 pm
ART, LITERATURE, science, politics, conservation, history, the depression, two world wars, human rights and nature itself. These unequal things are the characters in the story of this country’s national parks being told by a Ken Burns film this week. We in Montana are privileged to have four of these wondrous places within or in close [...]
Promise
September 23, 2009 – 9:38 pm
AUTHOR, MONTANA HISTORICAL SOCIETY pioneer, history professor K. Ross Toole would taunt his students saying go ahead. Leave Montana. See what the rest of the world has to offer. You’ll be back. He used to get to say that to a lot of young people, myself included. His Montana and the West course was offered in [...]
What we do
September 10, 2009 – 7:14 pm
Photo W O’Leary | Sunrise over the Bridgers IF YOUR ORGANIZATION is interested in having us consult with you here is a brief description of how we do things. We don’t have an off-the-shelf, one-size-fits-all, program for you. We start working on a proposal after we’ve had a chance to talk with you a few [...]
Major gifts and the BIG idea
August 15, 2009 – 12:07 pm
WHAT DRIVES MAJOR GIFTS? The answer: ideas. So often development work is reduced to this notion of ego. What the donor wants. The recognition the donor wants. The entertainment the donor wants. And probably this is not entirely wrong. But these are not things upon which one can build an entire major gift development effort. [...]
What’s a board to do?
July 28, 2009 – 7:46 pm
The Board of Directors does play an important role in any Major Gifts program. This post on the MajorGiftsMT Blog by Patrick Sheehy explores aspects of this in a way that should be meaningful to these all important non profit volunteers.
Bumps in the road
July 11, 2009 – 10:58 am
Patrick Sheehy of MajorGiftsMT writes about the Executive Director’s role in times of crisis — especially in times of cash crunch.
Are you ready?
June 17, 2009 – 9:29 pm
WE BELIEVE MOST NON PROFITS have what it takes to attract Major Gifts to their organization. Is yours ready? As Executive Director here are some questions you might consider going ahead: Do you have a core group of individuals who have been making gifts to your non profit for five or more years? Do some [...]