Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Records of the First Virginia Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Accession #2011.12.26, Roanoke Public Libraries, Roanoke, VA

Acquisition Information

First Virginia Chapter, Association of Fundraising Professionals

Historical Information

In January of 2001 the National Society of Fundraising Executives (NSFRE) changed its name to Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). The Society had begun when the National Society of Fundraisers (NSFR) was chartered by the state of New York in June 1960. The first local chapter of NSFR was founded in New York City in July 1964 and had formerly been known as the Association of Fund Raising Directors (AFRD). In May 1965 the second chapter of NSFR was formed when the Fund Raisers Association of the National Capital, located in Washington, D.C., also joined NSFR. By the end of the 1970s there were 23 chapters, including one in Canada. In 1977 NSFR moved its national offices from New York to Washington, D.C. and changed its name to the National Society of Fundraising Executives (NSFRE). The First Virginia Chapter of NSFRE began formally meeting in October 1981. The name of the chapter was selected because it was the first chapter in the state of Virginia. Though the official charter date of the First Virginia Chapter of NSFRE was March 1982, preliminary meetings between founding members Clai Wilcox and Jesse Kent go back to early 1981. The first chapter newsletter was published in October 1981 and reported on the election of the first president of the chapter, Claiborne (Clai) Wilcox, Jr. In December 1981 the National Board of NSFRE approved the charter of the First Virginia Chapter of NSFRE, which became the 38th chapter of NSFRE. From the beginning, a primary purpose of the new chapter was to provide educational opportunities for members and the fund raising community. So the chapter began a successful series of institutes on fund raising, which became a national model for fund raising education. Certification became an important issue for the chapter, and many members sought and achieved certification. Chapter meetings were held on the second Tuesday of the month and the chapter’s newsletter was named The Second Tuesday in July 1982. The second (1983) president of the chapter, Jesse (Jess) E. Kent, collected and retained a large portion of the records contained in this collection. His records are by far the most numerous of the chapter presidents and extend far beyond his years in office, into the tenures of other presidents.

Scope and Content

The collection of First Virginia Chapter, Association of Fundraising Professionals Records 1981-1997 is contained in 5 record storage boxes, a total of 6.25 linear feet, and is located in the Virginia Room of the Roanoke Public Libraries in Roanoke, Virginia. All materials are foldered in acid free, labeled folders. The collection contains correspondence, financial records, membership lists, meeting agendas and minutes, newsletters, statements of goals and objectives, by-laws and other official records. There are many documents, programs, brochures and various records relating to institutes, conferences, workshops, and other educationally related professional activities sponsored by the chapter and other professional organizations for fund raisers, including the National Society of Fundraising Executives (NFSRE). Also included are detailed lists of presenters and attendees at institutes, workshops and various events sponsored by the chapter. Newspaper clippings related to chapter members and activities are interfiled with related materials. Some audio cassette tapes and VHS video tapes of educational programs are included among the other materials. The oldest dated run of materials in the collection coincides with the tenure of the first president of the chapter, Clai Wilcox, at the time of the founding of the chapter in 1981. The latest materials in the collection are from the tenure of chapter president Harold Uhl in 1997. The original order of the materials was retained in processing and there are several roughly chronological sequences in the collection, which mostly follow the tenures of the chapter presidents. However the order of materials is not strictly chronological and some presidential papers are not chronologically arranged. But to preserve the original order of the materials, the various series are arranged by presidential tenures as they appeared in the unprocessed AFP Collection. And the bulk of many of the materials come from the files of Jesse Kent, the second president of the chapter, who held the office in 1983, and who carefully collected and retained a large portion of the records contained in this collection throughout his association with the chapter. His records are by far the most numerous of the chapter presidents and extend far beyond his years in office into the tenures of other presidents. Some of the chapter presidents retained fewer records and so the documentation of their time in office is not as complete as others. The presidents of the First Virginia Chapter, Association of Fundraising Professionals, from the founding of the chapter through 1997, were: Clai Wilcox (1981-1982), Jesse Kent (1983), Jerry Ocorr (1984), Everett Werness (1985), J. Andreé Brooks (1986), David Prestipino (1987), Jennie Sue Murdock (1988), Donna Massey (1989), Bob Kulinski (1990), Jared (Jerry) Close (1991), Bill Bowen (1992), Linda Dodge (1993), Nancy Prillaman (1994), Gail Gregory (1995), Katherin Anderson (1996), and Harold Uhl (1997). Series are arranged under their names, but not strictly chronologically.

Arrangement

The documents are generally arranged chronologically by the President of the Chapter, though in some cases they are also arranged topically. The original order of the documents was maintained.