Advice for Fund Raisers Shooting for Big Gifts

By M.J. Prest
Senior Editor, Solutions

May 18, 2006

Dream Builders, by Nick G. Costa, outlines approaches to attracting big gifts. The book profiles several organizations that are raising money for capital campaigns and shows how they apply Mr. Costa’s suggestions, which include learning when to casually engage potential donors and when to ask formally for big gifts, as well as identifying personally meaningful ways to thank donors. The book includes samples of successful marketing materials, and workbook exercises accompany each chapter.

Publisher: E3 Fundraising, P.O. Box 2402, Danbury, Conn. 06813; (203) 796-0192; http://www.e3fundraising.com; 317 pages; $47; ISBN 0-9747590-0-7.

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About the Author

M.J. Prest

Senior Editor, Solutions

M.J. Prest is senior editor for solutions at the Chronicle of Philanthropy, where she highlights how nonprofit leaders navigate and overcome major challenges. She has covered stories on big gifts, grant making, and executive moves for the Chronicle since 2004. Her work has also appeared in the Washington Post, Slate.com, and the Huffington Post, and she wrote the young-adult novel Immersion. M.J. graduated from Williams College and after living in many different places, she settled in New England with her husband, two kids, and two rescue dogs.