Celebrating Philanthropy 2008 - 2009 Dear Berwick Community, Each year, when I fully digest the breadth of financial support for Berwick from our constituents, I find myself moved deeply. In a year where the world has experienced one of the most challenging economic climates in recent memory, I hope that you will pause to recognize and appreciate the significance of the following statement: this has been the most extraordinary year for fundraising in the history of the Academy. A confluence of major gifts, annual fund results, and BAPA fundraising has combined to yield an incredible message of strength and support within this community. I hope that our donors, development staff, trustees, and other volunteers find an incredibly deep sense of reward from our collective achievements. Perhaps my greatest source of pride has been the results in our annual fund. The need for unrestricted giving to support the operations of the Academy has simply never been greater. Our community stepped up to surpass all previous goals. Our annual fund goal this year was set at approximately $460,000, and we surpassed this number by raising over $570,550, eclipsing the $500,000 mark for the first time in Berwick’s history. Equally encouraging has been the increase in participation, as we were able to reach a parent participation level in the annual fund of 60% with the assistance of our 1791 challenge late in the year. When we include our senior giving program into these figures, over 70% of our families made a charitable gift to Berwick Academy this year. As I have said in previous writings, I believe that these kinds of numbers express publicly how our families feel about the Berwick experience and these will prove to be important statistics to celebrate in our admissions and marketing efforts as well as our development office. Berwick Academy was also the recipient of two major gifts during the past academic year. The first was the extraordinary unrestricted bequest from the estate of Helen Hasty Perrault, who was the widow of Victor Perrault, class of 1933 at Berwick Academy. This gift has resulted in $3.75 million unrestricted dollars that simply could not have arrived at a better moment. The second major gift this year was a $2 million commitment from the Schleyer Family Foundation to fund a group of Schleyer Scholars in our Upper School for twenty years. The announcement of this exciting new scholarship helped build our application numbers in the Upper School, and this creative gift demonstrated an incredible passion for the Academy from a family who knows Berwick and its needs incredibly well. Finally, in a year when auction events have been down considerably across the country, our BAPA organization was able to raise enough funds to support its considerable budget for next year, ensuring another exceptional experience for our students. In addition, they were able to raise approximately $40,000 through the “Fund A Need” initiative to support the renovation of the Commons roof. These are extraordinary accomplishments for our parent organization, and this triumvirate of fundraising stories—annual fund, major giving, and BAPA—together demonstrate an unwavering commitment by our community to steward the future of Berwick. Although we have much to celebrate, it is important for me to mention that next year will present even greater challenges, and I look forward to surpassing our goals once again. New pressures on financial aid and enrollment mean that the need for unrestricted operating support through the annual fund will only continue to grow. I look forward to writing this letter once again next summer with an even greater sense of amazement and pride in our fundraising accomplishments. In closing, I hope that each and every donor included in this publication knows just how much impact your giving has on the students of Berwick Academy. I truly want to thank you on behalf of all of our students. When you choose to make a gift to Berwick you choose to change the lives of exceptional students. Sincerely yours,
Gregory J. Schneider