Music Fundraising Campaign Letter

Dear Western Music Alumni and Friends,

Thanks to your support and advocacy, Western Colorado University’s Board of Trustees has seen the value and enrichment the music department offers our campus and community. Over the next two years we are leading an aggressive recruitment and fundraising campaign to increase the department’s solvency. With your help, we can make the most of this opportunity.

The Campaign for Music is a focused fundraising initiative to meet two goals.

• Increase funding for Music scholarships to attract and retain more music majors. This also validates the need to retain music faculty in all areas of the Music curriculum: music education, music theory and composition, music history, music technology, ensembles, and private lessons.
• Increase financial support of faculty salaries and positions. Insufficient faculty salaries make it difficult to attract and retain faculty with the cost of living in Gunnison. The ability to add faculty positions would aid in recruitment of students. Increased numbers of promising students working with talented, supportive, and well-supported faculty will create a viable Music Major.

In Fall of 2019, the Western Mountaineer Music Association Fund was created under the auspices of the Western Colorado University Foundation with local community interest and participation. The Campaign for Music seeks to add a minimum of $250,000 in private donations to the WMMA fund in the next two years to demonstrate our commitment to securing the Music Major at Western.

Although large donations are most welcome, the amount of the donation is not important. Our goal is to demonstrate support with a vast network of subscription donors. We encourage you to consider how a modest monthly donation pledged by many meets out goal. Here are two examples.

• 1,000 persons pledging $11/month for 24 months = $250,000+
• 500 persons pledging $22/month for 24 months = $250,000+

The Western Foundation WMMA fund can accept donations in many ways.

• Online via our secure Music Department giving portal: western.edu/elevate
• Check or credit card using the enclosed gift card and postage-paid envelope or mail to Western Foundation, 909 E Escalante Drive, Gunnison, CO 81231
• IRA Qualified Charitable Distribution (for those 70.5 or older, check with your company)
• Appreciated Stock (contact Tom Burggraf at the Foundation, tburggraf@western.edu)

Beginning in 2022, the Western Foundation will begin to seek the long-term funding necessary to perpetuate your generous support. Please join with me and the Western Music Faculty in making a strong commitment to the Western Mountaineer Music Association and the Campaign for Music. This is how we can shift advocacy for Music into investment for its future. We were granted this reprieve because of your overwhelming support. We will be granted permanence through your philanthropy.

Sincerely,

Kenneth W. Todd
Program Director-Chair, Department of Music
ktodd@western.edu
970.943.2162