Breaking news from Class Fund Agents Anne Terhune and Molly Rubens Nunnelly, 6/3/21:
Dear ’76 Classmates,
We have exciting news to share! A generous classmate has made a Participation Challenge to help us reach our reunion participation goal!
Here’s how it works: to reach the 50% participation mark, we need 53 more classmates who have not yet given this fiscal year (July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021) to make a gift, that is, 53 new gifts. If our class hits the 50% participation mark for the FY21 year, our generous donor will contribute $100 for each new gift made by midnight Saturday, June 5, 2021 and $50 for each new gift made after that date (but no later than midnight June 30, 2021), up to a maximum Participation Challenge amount of $5,300. Think of that – you can help your class reach the participation goal AND increase the value of your gift to Smith! And the sooner you make that new gift, the more valuable it is to Smith! We don’t get the Participation Challenge amount if we don’t reach the 50% goal!
As we have always said, your participation is so important to Smith! Every gift, at every amount, matters!
You can give now at www.Smith.edu or https://www.givecampus.com/campaigns/14740/donations/new.
All donors now have the option to make gifts via their PayPal accounts AND via Venmo. (You will see the Venmo option when using your mobile device, as long as you have that app downloaded.)
So please dig deep and make your gift between now and June 5 to make the biggest impact, and by June 30 at the latest to help us reach the goal and get those Participation Challenge dollars!
With all our best,
Your Fund Team,
Anne Terhune and Molly Nunnelly
An update from Class Fund Agents Anne Terhune and Molly Rubens Nunnelly, 6/2/21:
Dear ’76 Classmates,
As we enter our 45th Reunion week, we wanted to update you on our class’s giving status. While it continues to be a difficult time for many of us, we want to thank everyone who has given to date and remind everyone else that it’s not too late to make a gift – of any size!!! As of Monday, May 31, our comprehensive one-year total for FY21 stands at $262,003, with our comprehensive 5-year total at $4,755,273. Our class participation rate is at 39.5%.
We ask everyone to stretch as much as they can to reach that ambitious, but we believe attainable, 5-year goal of $5,000,000 and reunion year participation level of 45% (to match our reunion year of course!) The fact that we already have over $4,750,000 towards reaching that 5-year dollar goal is awesome and with your help, we can do it! Remember, we have until June 30 to make the goal!
While our reunion year participation is currently at 39.5%, we also have until June 30 to get that percentage up! Participation is so very important! It impacts Smith’s national rankings and our future financial strength. In college rankings, the participation rate is one measure of graduates’ satisfaction in their educational experience. It is an important consideration because prospective students and their families often reference rankings during the college search process.
To attract the best and the brightest, Smith needs robust community support. Corporations and foundations also require participation rates in proposal requests because they believe their philanthropic dollars should go to institutions with high levels of alum satisfaction.
At our last reunion we hit the 50% participation mark. Wouldn’t it be great to hit 50% again?! To get to 50% we need 53 more classmates (who haven’t given already) to give in ANY AMOUNT. To reach 45% we need only 28 more classmates to give IN ANY AMOUNT. Let that sink in – ANY AMOUNT! While we hope everyone will be as generous as they can, any amount, regardless of size, counts towards participation! Your participation is so important to Smith! Every gift, at every amount, matters!
If you wonder if gifts of $100 or less really make a difference, THEY DO! Here’s why. In fiscal year 2020:
- 75% of Smith Fund gifts were $100 or less
- $602,612 was raised from gifts of $100 or less
- 60% of Smith Fund gifts were $50 or less
- $274,787 was raised from gifts of $50 or less
All donors now have the option to make gifts via their PayPal account AND via Venmo! (You will see the Venmo option when using your mobile device, as long as you have that app downloaded.)
So please dig deep and do what you can between now and June 30!
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We are looking forward to seeing you at our virtual 45th Reunion even if not in person. Since there is no cost to register or attend, we are hoping that you will consider an especially generous gift in honor of our 45th. Maybe you can take the cost you would have paid for a hotel or flight and consider making that your gift, or, even better, adding it to your gift!
While the pandemic has affected folks in different ways, it’s the fact that you participate that counts – not the amount. We hit the 50% participation mark for our 40th Reunion so we really should be able to make at least 45% this time to honor our 45th. It would be so awesome if we could hit 50% again!
We can’t emphasize enough that ANY amount counts. No amount is too small!
Be well! See you in the Zoomosphere in June!
Anne Terhune and Molly Rubens Nunnelly, Class Fund Agents