In a world of rapid and constant change, it’s nice to know that some things in fund raising will probably never change. Donor recognition has always been, and will always be, the backbone of a successful fund raising program. Donors must be thanked for their generosity, no matter what the size of the gift.

Thanking donors, in an appropriate manner, can be a challenge. When a significant contribution is received, one that makes an impact on your organization, how do you show your sincere appreciation to the donor, and at the same time herald the gift to the community? The solution for many organizations is the donor wall.

"A donor wall is a medium that allows an organization to recognize those people who have made contributions for a particular purpose," explained Richard Baum, President of W & E Baum, a full-service recognition company in Brooklyn, NY. "In some cases it’s a capital campaign where they are recognizing people who gave money to help build or expand a facility. Another type of wall is for annual recognition. A donor makes a thousand dollar contribution a year to be part of an annual recognition club. Every time you make a contribution or renew it, your name stays on this wall. It’s an ongoing way of bringing in funds to an organization. There are other walls, Trees of Life, for example, that are used to recognize small donations, memorials or happy occasions."

John Ferree, President of the Scottsdale Healthcare Foundation in Scottsdale, Arizona, has developed numerous donor recognition displays and believes they serve several purposes: "The donor wall should be for three primary reasons: 1. To give recognition to those who have been most generous to us. 2. It’s an encouragement to others who see the names of people they know, friends or peers, and encourages them to give. 3. A simple reminder to everyone who sees those walls that we are a non-profit and we are supported by philanthropic gifts."

Recognition can also be a major boost to the ego of donors, according to Steve Wells, President of Metal Decor of Springfield, Illinois. "Recognition is such an important part of any fund raising campaign because first of all people have egos. In our business basically what you’re selling is ego. And although a lot of people won’t admit that, there’s not a better feeling than to walk into a university or hospital and see your name on a wall, knowing that you gave $50,000, or $100,000 or $100 to a particular institution. To people who say they don’t want their name up on a wall, my answer has always been, I understand you don’t necessary want the institution to spend the money to recognize you, but how many people out there in the community may know you and if your name’s not up there it may never strike a chord with them. However, if they see that Bill Harrison donated $5,000 to the St. John’s Hospital Foundation, then they may say, if Bill Harrison thinks it’s a good cause, then maybe I should make a donation. That’s certainly another reason to recognize your donors, not just for them, but for those who know them and for the recognition it may bring them in their community."

"We’ve had excellent response to our walls," stated John Farree. "We have literally had people call us after seeing the wall and say, I want to get on the wall. In one case we received $5,000 and then the donor asked what does it take to get on the wall, and we said $20,000. The individual went home and issued $15,000 worth of stock to us. In another case we received a $50,000 gift from someone who wanted to be on the wall after seeing it. And in several other cases we have gotten $20,000 gifts from people who wanted to be on the wall."

Cynthia Haffey, Development Manager of the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa, Florida, agrees that the wall generates enthusiasm and contributions. "The donor wall helps facilitate and increase the donors desire to give. I see visitors stopping and looking at the wall to find their name. Donors want to see their name on the wall. We’ve had numerous inquires from people who ask: How do I get my name on the wall? When would it go up? How long will it stay up on the wall?"

In some cases a recognition wall can begin generating gifts even before it’s constructed. This was the case at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois. When Sue Ann Kortkamp, CFRE, Executive Director of the Foundation Council at the Medical Center, was developing the initial plans for their recognition wall, it was decided that former donors would be contacted to explain the new project. The results were very exciting. "Over the past year we corresponded with our donors telling them that our records showed they were currently at a certain level of giving and this was the name of the category where they would be listed on the new wall. People called and wrote back and said, I want to be at this level so I’m going to pledge additional money. We raised in pledges about $48,000 after we sent out our first two mailings about the new donor wall."

A recognition wall is a major undertaking and should be approached with considerable care and planning. In addition to the time and effort involved, a donor wall is a substantial investment. Steve Wells of Metal Decor believes an organization must make some fundamental decisions internally before they begin the process of developing a donor recognition display. "Organizations need to ask themselves why are they going to put this wall up? What is their main motivation? My opinion is that their main motivation should be to recognize their donors. That sounds simple, but there are organizations who have put up a donor display for the wrong reason. They want it to be a work of art. Of course it should be beautiful but beauty becomes the primary reason and the secondary reason becomes the donor. So first and foremost they need to establish what the primary reason is and that should be recognition of their donors."

"Next the organization should decide on what system is going to work for them? A lot of organizations make the mistake of looking at the beauty of a display and not looking at the versatility and functionality to see if it actually works for their program. There are many donor displays out there that look great but when it comes time to move somebody from one category to another, you can’t do it."

Developing a recognition wall should not be the exclusive task of the development department. It’s not only wise but prudent to solicit the advice and support of Board members, senior management, the architect, and contractor. Your recognition wall should make a statement about your organization, so actively involve a broad spectrum of your internal and external publics.

Steve Wells of Metal Decor has noticed a trend toward new materials in donor recognition displays. "There are a great many displays being built today with new contemporary materials. Six or seven years ago you could find displays built of walnut, cherry, mahogany with metal plates. Now you’re seeing new materials such as Corian, new laminates made by Formica, and different types of acrylics and glass. These are all being used as well as combinations of materials. The industry is trending that way and has been for some time now."

The cost of a donor wall is dependent on several factors, including: size, number of donors and the materials used. No two displays can ever be exactly alike, so it’s important to discuss your recognition needs with several companies to help you compare creative ideas and costs.

Richard Baum explained one way of estimating costs. "I try to get a flavor for how much money the actual campaign is going to bring in and I try to use a percentage. So if they’re doing a $1 million recognition campaign, then they could spend $10,000 for a donor wall. Walls range anywhere from $5,000 to $100,000. Most organizations we deal with are looking to spend in the $10,000 to $30,000 price range."

Recognition walls are beautiful and serve a very valuable purpose. However, before deciding to purchase an expensive wall or donor display it’s wise to seek out advice from the experts. They can save you a great deal of time, effort and perhaps embarrassment. Steve Wells has been in the recognition business for more than 20 years. There have been times when he’s advised against building a wall. "I once had a customer who said to me, I want to put up a Tree of Life. I have no donors and I want to sell it from the point of being empty. I said, I don’t think we want to do that. You want to have at least 40 to 50 percent of your donors before setting up the recognition display because we want it to look like you’re being successful. If you don’t have any names on the wall, people are going to ask, what’s going on? Isn’t this project successful? I may want to be a part of this campaign, but is anybody else involved?"

"After quite a bit of discussion, we sent him the wall. When I showed up thirty days later it was full. He had gone out and literally sold 500 spaces at $500 each for this capital campaign for a small hospital. I was just amazed because it went against everything I had been taught, but this guy knew his community. Local knowledge is certainly important when you’re making those decisions about how and when you’re going to put up your donor display."

Richard Baum has also suggested to clients that perhaps a certain display may not be appropriate. "I will always tell an organization not to install a Tree of Life in the middle of a capital campaign because a Tree of Life is set up to recognize a large number of small donors, and they need to recognize all of their big donors. For example, if someone has the potential to give $5,000, you don’t want them to turn around and make a $500 gift just to get their name up on a wall."

Take your time and do it right, is very good advice. The initial concept, planning and design of your new recognition wall will be time-consuming — the actual manufacturing of the wall will not.

Steve Wells describes the process. "If an organization is ready to act, our salesman will meet with them to get an idea of what they want. Then an art request is sent to our art department. Within ten days to two weeks we will have a design shipped to the customer. So that part of the process could take three to four weeks. If the customer immediately approves the design, it’s then about a six to eight week process depending on the type of display. The time lines run longer for more complicated displays depending on what materials are used and if things have to be hand-crafted. A recognition wall can conceivable be done in three months, although it rarely happens that quickly. Generally it’s a six month to a year and a half process in terms of going back and forth with revisions on the sketches, getting all the names together, and setting up a time for the dedication. So to do all that in a timely manner it usually takes a year to a year and a half. Can it be done in three or four months? Yes."

After months, or even years of planning, a donor wall will become a central focus of your facility. Most organizations plan grand openings and other gala events to herald the unveiling of their new wall. Sue Ann Kortkamp of the Saint Francis Medical Center planned just such a dramatic event. "We invited everyone whose name would appear on the donor wall. We held it on a Sunday afternoon from 1:00 to 3:00 because we felt that was the least medical traffic time in our center. We took over the surgery waiting room which was right behind where the wall was being dedicated. We had a thirty minute program where we explained the categories, we thanked the committee, we thanked Metal Decor, the contractor, etc. Then we had a little service because we’re a Catholic institution and that was important to our Sisters as well as our donors. We had the whole wall draped with white satin and ribbons and at the count of three everyone pulled the ribbon and the cloth fell to the floor. It was very exciting and dramatic. We then had a formal blessing by one of our priests at the medical center. Afterwards our guests were invited to look and touch the wall, then attend a very nice English tea accompanied by harp music. It was a wonderful event."

John Ferree of Scottsdale Healthcare Foundation provides the following advice for organizations planning to develop a donor wall. "Never compromise quality for cost. If you do, the recognition is not nearly as meaningful as it is when you put up something of quality. If people are going to make large and significant gifts, they need to be recognized at the level of their giving."

The typical donor wall will have some type of categorization to designate levels of giving. Standard categories include: Patrons, Benefactors, Sponsors, Donors or some variation.

When OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, IL was developing their new donor wall, they wanted to use unique categories of giving that would add a more local and personalized touch to their wall.

The brochure explaining their donor wall, "A commitment to Life" explains their creative categories.

"The categories of support on our donor wall reflect the history and tradition of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis. Each is named for a person whose life represented the ideal in service to others, consistent with the Sisters’ Mission. Some are religious figures; others played a prominent role in local history. The cumulative categories are as follows:

St. Francis of Assisi - Patron Saint of The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis

$250,000 and above

Mother Frances Krasse - First Mother General of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis.

$100,000 to $249,999

St. Luke - Patron Saint of Physicians.

$50,000 to $99,999

Jean-Baptiste Point Du Sable - Frontiersman of French/African descent - married a woman of the Potawatomi Tribe.

$25,000 to $49,999

Father Jacques Marquette, S.J. - Jesuit missionary and first priest to encounter the Peoria Tribe.

$10,000 to $24,999

Bishop John Lancaster Spalding - First Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Peoria.

$5,000 to $9,999

Mother Thecla Mersch - Administrator during the first two construction phases of St. Francis Hospital

$2,500 to $4,999

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