Muny discovers internal strengths,
raises $4 million in 4 years

Overwhelmed with the idea of an endowment campaign? Many clients have told us the notion of simply getting started presented their greatest hurdle.
But Christine Ivcich, Director of Civic Affairs and Development of America’s oldest and largest outdoor musical theater, the Saint Louis Muny, shares that in 2007, the organization’s long-term outlook was a bit stuck: “Just seeing the need to go out and ask for endowment funds and planned gifts kept us from pursuing an endowment program.”

Four years later, The Muny has benefited greatly from the eye-opening first steps the theater’s development team and Board took with Endowment Builders. “They brought us the basics and a framework about endowment,” says Ivcich, “which gave us the confidence to create an endowment effort.” And that boost of focused energy produced impressive results for the organization.
Ivcich explains, “We’re both off the ground and achieving endowment and planned giving fund raising better than we ever expected. Over the last four years we’ve raised $4 million in new endowment dollars, through a recession no less.”

Even in recession, endowment and planned gifts can be successfully solicited with a good process, motivated leadership and interested donors. “Rather than approaching The Muny’s endowment program as a stand-alone giant,” explains Dianne Johnson, President of Endowment Builders, “the key was to leverage their reputation as a civic gem and to build on already cultivated relationships.”
The first step was to create a marketing piece that communicated to The Muny community that endowment and planned gifts are appreciated. From this piece, Board leadership began to step forward and, with some training and support, solicit individual planned gifts from fellow Board members. As a result, The Muny successfully launched a gift annuity program and began visiting with donors who wanted to make current irrevocable gifts such as charitable remainder trusts and gift annuities.

Through an annual custom event, special friends of The Muny are reminded year after year what makes America’s outdoor theater so special. At the same time, they are reminded by a passionate Board member that they too can help sustain The Muny through a planned gift for future generations.
Ivcich reports, “We really appreciated Endowment Builders’ skills in developing a marketing plan and calendar to fit endowment and planned giving into our overall development program. I’m surprised how clearly our audience has heard our message that we need endowment funds for the long term security of The Muny.”