Support the Fort: Annual Fund
Won't you consider a gift to
Fort Ticonderoga today?
The Annual Fund at Fort Ticonderoga supports the day-to-day running of the Fort, public programming, collections preservation, educational efforts,
and much more.
Fort Ticonderoga is fortunate for and grateful to the many people who step up to the plate to support restricted, tangible efforts such as new buildings, the Fife and Drum Corps, The King's Garden, new equipment for the Log House or Buildings and Grounds. The day-to-day running of the Fort, however, produces hundreds of thousands of dollars in unseen expenses such as salaries, benefits, program development, electricity, telephone, computers, and fuel oil. These are the unseen, unglamorous aspects of any organization that actually keep the wheels turning and the doors open and allow the Fort to maintain its world-class status.
The Fort’s fall appeal for general operating support is now underway. We share with you a letter from a long-time Friend of Fort Ticonderoga, re-enactor, and history teacher, Tim Potts. His letter, below, illustrates why he feels compelled to support the Fort. Won’t you join Tim in his efforts to keep our history alive?
September 23, 2008
Dear Friends,
The year 2008 has been one of considerable highs and lows at Fort Ticonderoga. The Fort’s lively new web site is now up and running, and donors are now able to make gifts to the Fort directly on line (fort-ticonderoga.org). In the early summer, the Fort celebrated the opening of the Deborah Clarke Mars Education Center and a two-week extravaganza of events giving tribute to the 250th anniversary of the battle of Carillon (I hope you were able to be a part of some of these great activities). Attendance is up for the first time in seven years. In the late winter, the Fort lost the president of its board of directors and major supporter. Since then, rumors and news stories have been rampant. Some speak of extreme measures “being considered to save the Fort.” What I can tell you is that as of this moment, Fort Ticonderoga is vigorously alive and dedicated to teaching the history of this glorious “land between the waters” and the people who settled here.
Since the 1990s, the Fort has been an integral part of my professional development as a teacher. There is little coverage of the colonial wars in textbooks and professional literature for teachers. Having taught the French and Indian War and the American Revolution for almost twenty years, what I learn at Fort Ticonderoga is a vital part of the curriculum. Fort Ticonderoga also provides numerous opportunities for teachers to excel in content and pedagogical knowledge through teacher scholarships for conferences, living history graduate courses, author talks, guided tours, and lesson plan development. The Fort’s education department is looking forward to hosting teacher conferences, designing curriculum units, and applying for federal grants to host national groups of teachers in summer learning opportunities.
We who love and respect the Fort and its people cannot deny that there are financial problems. We can only do our best to increase our support to a level best suited to our ability to give. When making your year-end gifts to the charities you support, please give generously to this important organization that has provided so many generations with so much in the way of education, excitement, and fun. In 2009, the Fort celebrates the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s voyage along the lake that today bears his name and the 100th anniversary of the opening of Fort Ticonderoga to the public. Please help preserve Fort Ticonderoga for our sons, daughters, and grandchildren – send your check today by mail with the form printed from this link (http://www.fort-ticonderoga.org/support/donate/support-fort-ticonderoga.pdf), call the Office of Institutional Advancement (518) 585-2121, ext. 25 and speak directly with Vicki Sperry, or click on the icon under Annual Fund to donate through Network for Good and designate your gift to “Annual Fund.”
Sincerely,
Timothy D. Potts
Re-enactor, middle-school teacher, and friend of Fort Ticonderoga