Help OHA reach its campaign goals:
$50,000 raised
50% member participation
Contributions as of 11.30.16:
$25,938
- Donate online at 50th Campaign
- Download the 2016 Endowment Donation form
Read more about the campaign in the letter below from Mary Larson, Chair of the 50th Anniversary Task Force.
Dear Friend,
As the principal membership organization for people committed to the value of oral history, the Oral History Association, through our 50th Anniversary celebration, has a tremendous opportunity to shape the future of the organization for all of our stakeholders. With your help, we can continue the critical work of creating, interpreting, and preserving oral histories for future generations.
OHA’s Council and committees have developed exciting plans for building on the work of the last half- century that require funding and committed volunteers. We are asking for your support to reach our goals for the 50th Anniversary Campaign: grow our endowment by $50,000 and reach 50% member participation in the campaign, through donations of money or time.
Why donate to the OHA endowment? Our endowment is the financial engine that keeps the organization moving forward. The current value of our endowment is $389,000, contributed by our members over 30 years and carefully invested. OHA can use up to 5% of the endowment annually in support of initiatives that you and other members have expressed support for, including scholarships to our annual meeting, website upgrades, technology education, and other special projects. As the endowment grows, so do opportunities. We have raised $15,000 since the campaign began last year, and we ask you to be a part of the next $35,000 we will raise.
What will the money be used for? Council has outlined a few specific objectives:
- Enhance the diversity of our field by building our scholarship and fellowship capacity. Because this was one of Cliff Kuhn’s particular areas of interest, we have created a scholarship fund in his memory. You can honor Cliff while supporting future scholarships and fellowships.
- Process and preserve our organizational archives at University of North Texas. Council has already authorized $10,000 to begin digitizing material in the OHA archives. Your contribution can help us prepare and implement a preservation and access plan.
- Continue our leadership role relative to evolving technologies by building on the Oral History in the Digital Age website, developing new digital tools for oral historians, and creating a new award that honors the best use of new technology.
I will say upfront that making a request for contributions is uncomfortable for me, but I am willing to do this because of what OHA has meant to me throughout my career. It served as a scholarly home base and a place where I can have serious conversations about the meaning and importance of oral history, but it is also where I have met some of my best friends and most generous colleagues. This organization has real meaning and value for me.
If OHA means something to you, I encourage you to contribute to this campaign – either monetarily, if you are able, or through volunteer service with the organization. Your participation is important to us. You may download the Endowment Donation form or donate your time and money online.
These new and expanded initiatives are exciting, as is the future of our association. I hope you will join us as we move forward into the next fifty years. Thank you for your continued support of OHA!
Sincerely,
Mary A. Larson
Chair, OHA 50th Anniversary Task Force
Past President, OHA
2015-2016 OHA endowment contributors:
Linda Arntzenius
Rina Benmayor
Teresa Bergen
Douglas Boyd
Thomas Charlton
Missy Colee
Jeff Corrigan
Emilye Crosby
Terry Easton
Leon Fink
Jeff Friedman
Sherna Gluck
Jacquelyn Hall
Arthur Hansen
Charles Hardy III
Ruth Hill
Margaret Hummon
Alphine Jefferson
Lu Ann Jones
Gayle Knight
Cliff Kuhn
Mary Larson
Calinda Lee
Susan McCormick
James McElhinney
Laurie Mercier
Barbara Meyer
Beth Morgan
David Morse
Todd Moye
Pavel Mücke
Kathryn Nasstrom
Kristine Navarro-McElhaney
John Neuenschwander
Martha Norkunas
Paul Ortiz
Alex Primm
Mary Kay Quinlan
Troy Reeves
David Reichard
Susan Resnick
Irene Reti
Anne and Don Ritchie
Samuel Robson
Thomas Scott
Rebecca Sharpless
Linda Shopes
Stephen Sloan
Society of Biblical Literature
Barbara Sonnen
Amy Starecheski
Bruce M. Stave
Texas Oral History Association
Anne Valk
Juan Vasquez
Regennia Williams
Kathryn Wilson
David Woodsfellow
Valerie Yow
Liza Zapol