Conception Abbey |
Tower Topics ~ Winter 2006 |
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The anatomy of a campaign
•••Larry, you have worked on several capital campaigns. What distinguished the A Living Tradition campaign from the others? The workmanlike approach by everyone. While most campaigns enlist volunteers to make campaign calls, all calls in this campaign were made by campaign leadership, primarily Abbot Gregory and Father Benedict. This was partly due to the broad geographical range we had to cover, but also it was the result of the very personal bond between many of our donors and the monks. This also was an efficient campaign. The Development and Communications Office conceived, designed and produced all literature and campaign materials, rather than contracting such highly technical tasks to an outside organization. How were the needs for this campaign determined? Since the completion of the renovated Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in 1999, there has been a dramatic increase in guests to the Abbey. However there had been no central location to welcome them. There had also been steady, incremental growth in seminary enrollment, as well as advances in classroom technology that needed to be addressed. And connecting it all was a deteriorating parking lot and road system. I interviewed Abbey leadership and the monastic community, and held meetings with employees, seminarians, alumni, the Board of Regents, and the Alumni Board to gather further information. Who comprises the Campaign Leadership you mentioned? Abbot Gregory, Father Benedict Neenan, president-rector of CSC, Father Patrick Caveglia, business manager, Brother Mark and Father Allan, both of whom served as director of major and planned gifts, development directors Tim Stransky, Dan Madden, and me. How were campaign goals established? I visited with nearly two dozen bishops in the dioceses served by the seminary college, and we met with major donors and prospective major donors in several dioceses. From those meetings and research into giving histories from the campaign to renew the Basilica, we were able to come up with a dollar amount we could expect to raise. That goal was $10.25 million. Approximately $8 million of that would be for construction and renovation, of which $1.5 million would be covered by a loan. I am happy to report that thanks to the generosity of our donors, that loan was never needed. How were friends of Conception made aware of “A Living Tradition” campaign? Campaign gatherings in Omaha, Wichita, and Kansas City, personal visits, special mailings, campaign brochures and information packets and of course through Tower Topics. What was the Signature Phase of the campaign? The “Signature Phase” was initiated after the original “building and grounds” campaign achieved the $6,500,000 goal. This next phase enabled the campaign to reach the $8,676,150 actual price tag for buildings and grounds, thus eliminating the projected $1,500,000 long term loan, which would have inhibited future projects and cut into annual operations. What are future capital campaign needs? During the past five years Conception has been conducting an Abbey Strategic Plan, which includes the development of visions, goals, objectives and strategies, and a similar Conception Seminary College Strategic Plan. This has required the monastic community to determine priorities for future capital improvement. Architects have begun a Campus Master Plan, which evaluates the abbey’s 18 current buildings to identify critical issues, those that can be deferred, and estimated costs. After all of that planning, what are the priorities? Renovation of the historic monastery is unequivocally the number one need. This is estimated to cost about $10,000,000. The Abbey’s most important resource is the monks, and there are serious safety and fire hazard concerns in their home. There are also needs for new plumbing, new bathrooms, housing for elderly monks, recreation space, and guest rooms. These are not simply comfort needs. They are important to the morale of the community and to the recruitment of new vocations to the monastery, which have continued to grow in recent years. In the interest of efficiency and cost cutting, there will be an intense focus on better use of underutilized or unused spaces in the monastery. The other priority is new guest housing, at a cost of $2,500,000. Initial plans call for a 20-room facility to better accommodate elderly and disabled guests. We welcome your comments: |
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A fund raising and strategic planning consultant, Dr. Larry Kramer has spearheaded the A Living Tradition capital campaign from its inception. Prior to that, he served on the Conception Seminary College Board of Regents from 1994 through 2000. He is the former President of Avila University, and has worked for three decades in education. He sat for an interview with Tower Topics.