Update: Advancement

Home » November 2009

The magic words

One of my favorite holidays here in the United States is Thanksgiving, which will take place later this month. It’s an opportunity for each of us to recognize and give thanks for those things which we have been blessed with throughout the year.

My young son Jacob, pictured with me below, once asked me what I do at my job, and the easiest way for me to explain it to him was by telling him that I use the magic words “please” and “thank you.” Development work involves appealing to the donor’s sense of generosity and kindness, and the coming holiday is a good time to think about that. After all, Thanksgiving is literally about giving thanks, for our families, our friends and our prosperity. The need to do this is certainly shared; all of us benefit from taking the time to appreciate what we have. But like a lot of holidays or special occasions, Thanksgiving is also about feasting with your family and friends. That makes Thanksgiving the most Lebanese holiday Americans celebrate each year!

Looking back on the years, LAU has similar reason to give thanks. We have a lot to be thankful for at LAU this year, more specifically. We have more students than ever at our campus, with 8,000 enrolled on both campuses for the new academic year. And despite the challenging global economic environment, our comprehensive campaign has had a very successful year. Individual donors, corporations and government agencies have been persuaded to support us, giving over $41 million so far. The advancement team has worked hard, not only raising valuable support for the university from every corner of the globe, but also organizing and supporting our alumni throughout the world, communicating LAU’s message in print and through electronic communications like this one. Thanks to your work, I hope we will have more to be grateful for in the years to come.

Sincerely,
Rich Rumsey

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