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Museum marks endowment milestone as donations, memberships and programs trend up

Museum trustees meeting · November 9, 2024
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Summary

Trustees heard that combined endowments exceeded $1 million, membership and donations are up, Museums for All is a substantial access source and the foundation helped buy an underwater ROV for research; a reception to celebrate the endowment is planned for Nov. 15.

Advancement and foundation updates showed improving financial and programmatic trends and upcoming events.

Speaker 5 reported the combined endowment accounts were $1,056,000 as of Sept. 30 and about $1,066,000 in October, and said the museum will "celebrate the $1,000,000 mark, November 15" at a reception. He explained that once the general endowment account reaches $1 million the museum plans to draw on interest to support exhibits and programs but that the museum would typically draw about 3% with additional returns reinvested.

On fundraising and visitation, Speaker 5 said the museum recorded a strong number of donations through Sept. 30 (180 to date), membership totals are up about 8% from the same time last year, and corporate partnerships are up about 8%. He highlighted the Museums for All program as a significant access pathway: for the first quarter of FY25, roughly 21% of visitors used Museums for All and the Bones & Boos festival had over 1,000 attendees who came through that program.

Speaker 5 also described recent investments in research capacity: with foundation support the museum purchased a remote underwater vehicle for the CHML archaeology team and reported initial work at Philpott Lake documenting submerged structures.

Events and upcoming openings noted included a Nov. 15 endowment reception, speakeasy ticket sales opening Nov. 1, a Feb. 6 reception and Feb. 8 public opening for an Age of Dinosaurs exhibit, plus a calendar of festivals in spring and summer. Trustees discussed board participation at events and rules about volunteers handling money.

Next steps: foundation and staff will continue donor cultivation, track endowment growth and present recommendations once the general endowment reaches a level suitable for annual draws.