Michigan Radio, the University of Michigan’s public radio station, just announced that during their spring fund drive, they were able to drum up $620,000 in pledges, exceeding their goal by nearly 15%.
Why are we reporting this on the Dynamic Edge blog? Because we’re proud to say that at least 2% of that total was collected by DE staff last Wednesday, when a group of us volunteered to answer the phones and take pledges during the drive.
Here’s the story:
What started out as 8 Dynedgers rallying behind our favorite listener supported radio program, degenerated rapidly into a fund-drive smackdown with a $5 buy-in — winner takes all. And the wager? Which volunteer could collect the most pledge dollars during our 3.5 hours of fame.
With the best of intentions, Gordon, Jon, Jason, Keith, Tim, Deb, Andy, Thom and I trickled into the station about 4 p.m. Parking is always hit-or-miss downtown, so most of us opted for the quarter-mile hike from the nearest structure.
When we were finally in our seats, Local Anchor Charity Nebbe and Director of Broadcasting Steve Schram were already “On Air” talking about the drive; and the phones were ringing. For a few of us (the fund-drive first timers) it took a few tries to get our feet wet, but within the first 30 minutes, all bets were on.
Answering the pledge lines was easier than you’d think, and with the competition heating up every time the phone rang time, time flew by! With one hour to go, I began to panic, realizing that I was up against insurmountable odds — Jason, Thom, and Tim had all collected multiple Day Sponsor donations ($1/day for a full year = $365), Deb’s phone was ringing off the hook, and I was trailing at a distant second-to-last! Then, out of nowhere, my phone rang.
“Thanks for calling Michigan Radio, may I take your pledge?” I gulped.
“Sure!” The kind man replied.
“Are you interested in being one of our Day Sponsors?” I pleaded, near desperation.
“Well,” he said (with a very long pause…) “I don’t really think I have anything clever enough to say if I do.” He confessed.
“Oh. Ok.” I exhaled, hopes dashed.
“I think I’d just like to make it an even thousand.” He said nonchalantly.
My face flushed red as I wrote down the dollar amount. Silently, I filled out the remainder of the form — being careful to get the *correct* credit card information — and then turned to Tim with an eager grin. I was back in the game!
It came right down to the last few minutes. Deb, Thom and I were neck-and-neck (and neck). The $1,000 pledge had pushed me just a smidgen ahead of the others. So there we sat, white-knuckled, waiting for the phones to start ringing again. But they didn’t. It was 7:30 — time to wrap it up. We logged out of our phones and cleaned up the table a bit, and then we heard it: one more ring. It was Tim’s phone! Could this be it? Another Day Sponsor would hurl him into the lead…
Throughout the evening, we collected pledges ranging from $4.95 to $1,000. Hundreds of phone calls, many interesting conversations, several Thank-You gifts and 3 hours later, we had collected over $13,500 for Michigan Radio. And when all was said and done, I was still the winner! What a night!
Dynamic Edge would like to thank Michigan Radio for letting us invade the studio and have fun for a night. We’re sorry about the paper airplanes and we promise not to throw any more at the broadcasters as long as we can come back again next year! Bella Ciao provided delicious Manicotti for dinner, so a special thanks to them, too.
If you’re interested in donating to Michigan Radio, click here for more information. I’m sure they would appreciate your support.
