LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
CAMP Rehoboth Community Center Founder's Circle |
by Andrea Andrus |
The first definition of "community" in Webster's dictionary is "a unified body of individuals" and the second is "people with common interests living in a particular area." CAMP Rehoboth's Community Center Project, with our mission to expand into a full-service community center to be the Heart of the Community and a focal point for connecting people, activities, and resources, embodies that definition. In this fast-paced and ever-changing world, we all need a place to go where we can be involved. Even the Dalai Lama has said, "In today's highly interdependent world, individuals and nations can no longer resolve many of their problems by themselves. We need one another. We must therefore develop a sense of universal responsibility...it is our collective and individual responsibility to protect and nurture the global family, to support its weaker members, and to preserve and tend to the environment in which we all live."
Through the Community Center Project's Founder's Circle Campaign, we are diligently working to raise the funds to create that "community" in every sense of the word. Our five-year goal, beginning in June 2001, was to raise $1 million through individual donations and pledges. To date, we have received pledges in excess of $293,000. This is phenomenal given the short period of time that the campaign has been in existence. In her keynote speech on community at our June Founder's Circle event, the Black and White Beach Ball, Delaware's Governor Ruth Ann Minner lauded our community's support and our fundraising efforts for this very meaningful project. We should be proud of our accomplishment to date, but we have a lot more to do to reach our $1 million goal. For those of you who support our goal but haven't yet given a donation or pledge, please consider doing so today. Remember, CAMP Rehoboth is a 501(c)(3) organization and contributions are tax deductible to the full extent of the law. Those who have given donations or pledges may want to consider if you can do more for the project either by an additional donation or pledge increase, or by asking friends and family to join in and make a donation or membership pledge. From the beginning until we reach our goal, we will all be proud to be a part of this community-building effort and know that we, in some small but significant way, made a difference in our world. As the new Founder's Circle Director, I am pleased to be part of such an exciting group of people with such a wonderful vision. As a long-time volunteer with non-profit organizations and with my experience as a corporate executive, I will move forward on raising funds from corporations and charitable foundations to supplement individual donations and pledges. Forming alliances with those organizations raises additional funds, demonstrates their commitment to, and promotes the viability of the Community Center Project. If any of you are aware of a corporation or charitable foundation that we may want to approach, please contact me at the CAMP office. I look forward to working with each of you as we build a Community Center that is progressive and vibrant. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 12, No. 12, August 23, 2002. |