On November 15 in 2002, at Poetry Magazine's 90th anniversary dinner celebration, Ruth Lilly's $100 million pledge was announced. The Poetry Foundation (pre-Lilly) was a modest magazine publisher with a staff of four and $1.3 million budget.
If it does your heart good in these scary financial times to imagine a gift of 77 times your operating budget, enjoy a blissful moment of dreaming about your own Miracle Gift Day. (A joyful 2004 movie called "Millions" plays on that delight. I recommend it whole heartedly.) After your moment, drift gently back to earth and think about a gift that equals, say, one year's operating budget. What audacious things would you do with such a gift?
There may be someone among your circle of supporters who is capable of a gift like that. If you know who that person is, make a goal of spending an hour with him or her in the next six months, without asking for a gift. Talk about your dreams for the organization in 5-10 years. Listen. Listen. Listen. And ask if you can come back for another conversation in six months as your plans crystallize.
Sometimes, good things happen to good people.
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