FarmHouse - University of Nebraska

FARMHOUSE FRATERNITY Nebraska Chapter / University of Nebraska-Lincoln www.nebraskafarmhouse.org Fall 2018 NEBRASKA FARMHOUSE ACHIEVES LARGEST UNL FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN ON RECORD I want to thank all of our donors and volunteers for making our capital campaign a huge success. We have now raised a total of $4,375,144. Our active members are living in the new chapter house, and we now have a facility that meets our high standards and provides an environment that will allow us to attract, retain, and develop the finest young men the University of Nebraska has to offer. The total amount raised is certainly impressive. It is the most raised by a Greek organization in the history of the University. However, once you understand a few details behind the campaign, the results are even more remarkable. First, we raised far more than a group our size is expected to raise. In fact, the original feasibility study suggested we could only raise $1.25 million to $1.5 million, which would not have supported a new house. Our FarmHouse brothers did not accept that outcome and insisted that building a new house was the right strategy. The brothers then stepped up and donated roughly three times the amount captured in that study. Second, our level of participation in the campaign is unprecedented. We had 555 individuals contribute during the campaign, which is approximately 42% of all Nebraska FarmHouse members, including alumni and active members. That simply doesn't happen. Our participation rate is roughly double the average participation rate for Greek chapter housing campaigns. That breadth of support made all the difference in this campaign. Third, we achieved these results without the large donations experts say you must have in a campaign of this size—those donations that fill out the top of the "donor pyramid" used in all campaigns. We didn't have single donation above $500K, let alone $1M. What we did have is a large number of donors who made meaningful gifts, and those gifts really added up. We also had an unusual level of support from our active chapter, which provided us our largest single donation of $250K. These young men deserve a lot of credit for stepping up. There are many individuals who made this possible, and there is no way I could list them all. The Vision Committee, Fundraising Committee, class chairmen, era chairman, Building Committee, Association Board, FarmHouse Foundation, and the active members all pulled together to create something extraordinary. Together we solidified the legacy of the Nebraska FarmHouse Chapter for decades to come. You should be proud of whatever role you played. Fraternally, Ryan D. Downs '88 Campaign Chairman ryan@ryandowns.net

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