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Creating a Culture of Giving

5/12/2018

We have worked hard over the past several years to create a culture of giving at Sanford. What does this mean—a culture of giving?

A culture of giving exists when everyone in an organization, regardless of their titles or roles:

Understands that philanthropy and fundraising are critical to the organization’s health
Recognizes that each individual has a role in the process
Supports the organization by giving.

In our case, we want the strength of our exceptional program and our pursuit of continued excellence to inspire every community member to give generously. Gifts to the Annual Fund support Sanford’s current needs. Restricted capital gifts fund campus improvements. Endowment giving helps to secure our future. A parent once asked me which type of gift I prefer. My response: “I prefer the one that you want to give.” More importantly, I am grateful for every gift that Sanford receives.

Community support of giving has been exemplified recently during our Home & School Auction, a post-New York City alumni event breakfast, and our Annual Fund campaign. Thank you to:

Everyone who supported our Field Day 2018 auction. Thanks to your generosity, the event netted $160,000. Kudos to Auction Chair Laura Giardina and her army of volunteers. The proceeds will be used for teachers’ professional development and improvements to the Lower and Middle School playgrounds. Both initiatives are critical for our success and Sanford’s health.

Vipul Tandon '91. The day following a Sanford alumni event in New York, Vipul and I met for breakfast. We talked about current Sanford student success, the health of our school, and our financial needs. After our discussion, this proud Sanford alum decided to give a generous gift to support something near and dear to his heart—Sanford’s merit aid program.

Community members who have made a 2017–18 Annual Fund gift. To date, Sanford has raised $400,000 of our $500,000 goal, and 42% of our parent families have donated. Last year, that figure was 63%. The National Association of Independent Schools’ average for overall parent participation is 66.9%. Our Annual Fund participation rate is significantly behind our peer schools. We are pushing hard to reach our half-million dollar goal. If you haven’t made your Annual Fund gift yet, please donate now or contact Janice Payne at 302.235.6511.

Connecting the love folks have for Sanford to the needs of our community—that is how we will continue to build Sanford’s culture of giving. By harnessing this spirit of support, Sanford will become a bolder, brighter, and stronger school.

In the photo: 2018 Auction Chair Laura Giardina and Home & School President Kate Rosenthal announce the name of the 50/50 winner at Field Day 2018. Special thanks to Sanford parent Ted Rosenthal/Izmaddy Studios for sharing this image with our community.

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