Responding to the Preemptive Gift

“Thanks for the lunch invitation. I appreciating you visiting with me,” the donor said.

Before the gift officer could respond, the donor reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a check for $3,000. “And before I forget, I wanted to make sure I gave this to you,” he said.

The gift was larger than last year’s gift of $2,500. However, the gift officer was there to ask for $5,000 for this year’s annual fund.

The gift officer took the check, read it, immediately smiled and said, “Thank you. You continue to be one of our most consistent and generous donors. We are grateful.”

At that point, for most gift officers, the gift-giving discussion would have ended.