PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
March 2010

Dear Colleagues:

First and foremost, thank you for your membership.  During this time of numerous and significant changes in the philanthropic sector, with intense competition and pressures for your dollar, we appreciate your commitment to and confidence in AFP Chicago.

Now, please allow me to be one of the first to wish you a happy anniversary!

As you may know, 2010 marks the 50th anniversary of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.  Here in Chicago, we’re taking this opportunity to honor our own history.  Let me provide a few historical facts of which you may not be aware:

• The records of the Chicago Society of Fund Raising Executives (CSFRE) date from 1956, and it began with luncheon and other gatherings intended to network and educate;
• CSFRE was unincorporated until 1966;
• In 1976, CSFRE membership stood at 168 and was the largest chapter of the National Society of Fundraising Executives (NSFRE…now AFP) when it joined in early 1979.

Here is a fun fact - in 1971 the cost of luncheon speaker programs was $3.75 per person (those who failed to pre-register paid a wallet-emptying $4.00).  While the pricing may have changed, take a look at some of the educational topics from the 60s and 70s:

• The Economic Outlook for 1971 and Possible Effects on Philanthropy
• The New Congressional View on Philanthropy (by Dan Rostenkowski)
• The Formation, Care and Feeding of Non-Profit Boards
• Seeking, Catching and Keeping a Good Trustee
• Deferred Giving Plans will Make a Difference in your Institution’s Income
• Washington 1972:  Finding Your Way Through the Federal Maze
• The Crucial Importance of Private Funding in the Urban Crisis

Familiar themes, right?  Our purpose has not changed either.  There are two primary values of membership that are perpetual – networking and education.  To that point, please mark your calendar for May 21, when AFP Chicago will again celebrate Chicagoland’s leading philanthropists and community volunteers at the 34th Annual AFP Chicago Chapter Philanthropy Awards Luncheon. 

Sincerely,
 

Alexander F. Pope, CFRE