March 18, 2008 | Read Time: 1 minute
Jeremy Gregg, director of development at Central Dallas Ministries, has helped almost double his social-service group’s revenue since 2005 — an accomplishment that at times brings him to the verge of crying.
“I will confess, I have occasionally left my office in tears because of our ‘success,’” he writes on his blog, the Raiser’s Razor.
Mr. Gregg must collect more gifts each year because of the large number of needy people in the Dallas area; therefore the revenue growth is “no achievement,” he writes. “This is a testament to our failure as a community.”
“Every gift I secure for my organization helps us to feed more families, but these gifts alone will never solve the problems faced by my neighbors who rely on Central Dallas Ministries for support,” he writes.
“Our success can only be measured in our ability to put ourselves out of business.”
What do you think? How can fund raisers deal with such conflicting emotions? Have other fund raisers for antipoverty groups felt the same way as Mr. Gregg? Click on the comments link below this post to share your thoughts.
