Donor: Eleanor Whitfield
Meeting: Coffee, Tuesday Jul 28
Prepared from: CRM and Knowledge Center research notes
The short version. Eleanor is a loyal nine-year donor who gives reliably at year-end and steps up to $10,000 at the gala. Her capacity is rated well above what she currently gives, and everything she has funded points to youth literacy. There is room for a program-specific ask.
Giving history. 11 gifts totaling $47,500 since 2016, with no lapsed year. Her last five:
| Date | Amount | Designation |
|---|
| Dec 2025 | $5,000 | Year-end appeal (unrestricted) |
| Oct 2024 | $10,000 | Gala — Youth Literacy Fund |
| Dec 2023 | $5,000 | Year-end appeal (unrestricted) |
| Oct 2022 | $10,000 | Gala — Youth Literacy Fund |
| Dec 2021 | $3,500 | Year-end appeal (unrestricted) |
Capacity and affinity. Your prospect-research note from May 2024 rates her a major-gift prospect and cites board service at the Hartwell Foundation and a $25,000 gift to the regional hospital campaign, both from public sources your researcher logged. Her affinity is strong: she has opened nearly every appeal, attended the last three galas, and referred the Castellano family, who now give annually.
Connection to us. Board member Priya Anand introduced her in 2016, and she has served on the gala host committee twice. Both of her gala gifts were restricted to the Youth Literacy Fund, and at last fall’s gala she asked our program director about the new bilingual reading pilot.
Interests. Early-childhood and youth literacy, consistently. She attends the author-visit events, and her conversation notes flag a specific interest in reaching Spanish-speaking families.
Suggested ask. $15,000 to $25,000, restricted to the bilingual reading program. That is a genuine stretch from her $10,000 gala level but sits comfortably under the capacity on file, and it matches an interest she raised herself. Three points to open with:
- Thank before you ask. Nine unbroken years and two host-committee terms — lead with what her steadiness has built, not the number.
- Name the program she already raised. She brought up bilingual reading first, so frame the gift as funding the pilot she is curious about, reaching Spanish-speaking families.
- Offer recognition at the top of the range. Her file notes she valued the gala naming at the $10,000 level, so a named classroom or session for the pilot may land the $25,000 ask.
This brief reflects only what is in your records — there is no outside wealth data here. If prospect research turns up more before Tuesday, add it to her file and I will fold it in.
