Donor Spotlight
MULTIPLIER EFFECT How do you turn two into 351? Well, for one thing, you start with a very special two. In this case it was Barb Torborg Melsen ’78 and Kathy Kurvers Henderson ’85. With a lot of generosity and a dash of competitive flair, these two were able to transform their gift into 351 new alumnae donors in the last three weeks of fiscal year 2013.
Barb Torborg Melsen ’78
Kathy Kurvers Henderson ’85
Early in June, we announced that Barb and Kathy were … prepared to give the college a matching grant … but there was a catch. They wanted to help raise Saint Ben’s alumnae participation percentage. So, for every 50 gifts we received from new alumnae donors, they would give $1,000 — through the end of the fiscal year on June 30. We announced the challenge in social media and during our All-School Reunion. And our alumnae responded. When the fiscal year ended and the dust settled, 351 new donors had given during that stretch — triggering a $7,000 donation from Barb and Kathy. Thirty-one of those donors were alums who hadn’t given in over 10 years, including 21 first-timers. Those numbers helped lead to our first year-over-year increase in alum donors since 2007.
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