The Endowment Handbook

PART 2Enduring Relationships

en • dur • ing, adj.

Lasting. Durable.¹

Introduction: Why Relationships Matter

For most nonprofit organizations, enduring relationships with donors are essential. The donor who gives year after year (or perhaps month after month) is the bedrock of a successful fundraising program. The magnitude of their gifts is less relevant than their dependability, and their years of giving are a strong predictor of a potential estate gift. An organization with a large cohort of repeat donors is resilient. Endowments, which also provide the assurance of financial sustainability, are often created by the transformational estate gift from loyal donors, fueled by assets they've accumulated over their lifetimes and/or inherited from earlier generations.

Yet this type of loyal donor is becoming less common as participation in charitable giving declines among American households. Whereas in 2002 a higher proportion of people gave to charity (68%) than voted, today fewer than half of all American households participate in charitable giving according to the triennial Philanthropy Panel Study conducted by Indiana University's Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. While giving activity rebounded slightly in 2020 as donors responded to the extraordinary economic and social impact of the pandemic and racial reckoning, the long‐term decline resumed thereafter. And there is a crisis of donor retention among America's nonprofit organizations. The Fundraising Effectiveness ...