A supervisor once told me that very few people ever have the opportunity to help secure a million dollar gift.
At the time, I did not fully appreciate what that meant. Throughout the course of my career, I have now been fortunate to be part of four such gifts. Each one was different. Each one required vision, trust, leadership, and teamwork. And none of them happened because of a single person.
Yesterday, marked a special milestone for me because the leadership investment from Hughes Federal Credit Union in support of the Fox Tucson Theatre capital campaign is the first seven figure gift I have helped secure through my own firm, Chalk Consulting LLC.
I am incredibly grateful to Laura Alexander and Jenny Carrillo of Alexander | Carrillo Consulting for inviting Chalk Consulting to be part of this important work and to the many volunteers, leaders, donors, and community champions who have helped move the campaign forward.
As a consultant, moments like this reinforce what I love most about my work. Fundraising is never really about the dollars. It is about helping organizations articulate a vision that inspires people to invest in something bigger than themselves. It is about building relationships, earning trust, and connecting generosity to meaningful impact. It's about listening and to use a fundraising term, it's about being "donor centric" while helping the donor meet their philanthropic goals.
The Fox Tucson Theatre is one of Tucson's community treasures. This investment will help expand opportunities for arts education, strengthen downtown Tucson, and create lasting benefits for generations to come.
I am proud of the role our team has played and excited for what lies ahead. Most of all, I am reminded that when a community comes together around a shared vision, extraordinary things can happen.
Thanks Hughes Federal Credit Union!
