"...Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait."

This week, I'm reflecting on a poem, A Psalm of Life, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, published in 1838.

Reflection questions:

• How does thinking of your donors as partners as well change your perspective?
• If you are in the middle of a fundraising campaign, when was the last time you gave an update to your donors, to your partners for this campaign?

Reflection on poem:

This week, I was reminded of the active nature of charity by donors. One of my clients was near the finish line of raising enough to meet their goal and move forward on a capital projects. But, just before the deadline they were short. Just a small gap. They called one of the donors to the project and shared the information about the gap. What did the donor do? He committed to calling his network to fill the gap. And, the gap was filled. It reminded me the quote often attributed to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. “The life of a man consists not in seeing visions and dreaming dreams, but in active charity and in willing service.” This quote is a paraphrase of his poem, A Psalm of Life.

When we are in the middle of a fundraising campaign, we often think of people as just potential donors. In reality, many of these donors are also partners. They have chosen us and our organizations as a conduit to the cause they care about. Donors chose the charity, not the other way around. That means many of them are emotionally invested into the success of the campaign. They want to come alongside and be a partner. They want to act, achieve, pursue success for the cause. Just like this donor helping my client cross the finish line.

This work has entered the public domain.

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Music credit: Woeisuhmebop