There is no requirement to give or pre-commitment required in order to attend. That said, there is an expectation that families will be moved to give a meaningful gift and willing and able to do so. We have spent the past 10 months in the “quiet phase” of this campaign, seeking our first and top 300 pledges to the campaign. If you look at our gift chart (see “What size gifts are you looking for” below), our top 300 pledges to the campaign will be for $10,000 or more over 3 years ($3,333+/year)… some of them much, much higher. As this is an invite-only event, we have done our best to identify donors and families that are passionate about Valley Christian and that we anticipate will make a significant financial gift to the campaign. Because of the limited seating for the event, and because of the event’s fundraising purpose, we are unfortunately unable to welcome all of the more than 10,000 guests who we identify as part of the VCS community.

If you are interested in attending the event, and plan to make a meaningful financial gift (even if that gift is not quite the numbers stated above), please request an invitation – we’d love to have you!

Instead of a mass invitation to this event, like we do with many other events, we are filling this event with “table captains,” who personally invite guests to fill their table (10 guests/table). Because of this, we sometimes miss people that should be there! If you are interested in attending the event, and plan to make a meaningful financial gift (even if that gift is less than the gift amounts we are currently seeking [see “Is there a requirement to give…”]), please request an invitation – we’d love to have you!

See the gift chart below for Phase I of the Campaign, with an overall goal of $19.9M. Since January, we have been seeking our first and top 300 pledges to the campaign (generally $10,000 or more over three years; $3,333+/year). This event is intended to identify more of these donors, although we have and will continue to welcome meaningful gifts of any size to the campaign.

Yes! President Bush was gracious in offering two VIP opportunities that evening: the Foundations VIP Meet & Greet and the VIP Photo Opportunity. Read more on each opportunity under “VIP Opportunities” on this page. 

Foundations VIP Meet & Greet donors are able to send 1 member of their family to the private Meet & Greet, with a minimum pre-event campaign commitment of $75,000 over three years ($25,000+/year). A second member of the same family may participate with a total family campaign commitment of at least $100,000 over three years ($33,333+/year).

VIP Photo Opportunity donors are able to take a photo with up to 5 members of their immediate family (note that this increased from 2 to 5!). No “friend” photos are allowed. VIP Photo Opportunity participants are expected to make a pre-event campagn commitment of $5,000+/year over 3 years ($15,000+ total).

Note that these are pre-event pledges to the Secure the Future campaign for the school, not “purchases” for access. We see these opportunities as a way of thanking our generous donors for their support for the campaign!

We are currently seeking 3-year pledges, meaning gifts given over 2019, 2020, and 2021. Upfront gifts are especially helpful, as we already have a number of costs incurred. Some donors have equally spaced out their gifts (ex: $100,000 pledge; giving $33,333 each year for 3 years), some are doing 50%/25%/25%, some are doing a monthly recurring gift, some are doing a one-time gift upfront, others have advised that their first gift is coming in 6-12 months from now, and others are doing something entirely different. Our primary goal today is raising pledges; our second goal is raising cash in hand, although cash in hand is especially helpful.

Thank you! We are asking everyone in the VCS community to consider doing 3 things as part of this campaign: 1) Pray, 2) Give, and 3) Connect. We anticipate/hope that everyone in our community will pray for VCS and for this campaign. We have also set a generosity goal of having 100% of our community participate financially in the campaign, no matter the amount. Lastly, we want everyone in our community to connect us with others in our community. We eventually need 1,400+ donors to this campaign, and that will not happen without a lot of help!

You can “connect” us by introducing us to someone 1 on 1 (or 1 on 2, or 2 on 1, etc), by hosting a campaign dinner with 5 or more people (or lunch or coffee), or by personally soliciting someone for a gift to the campaign. If you have other ideas, we are all ears – however you want to help, we welcome it!

Because we are still in the “quiet phase” of the campaign, the campaign webpage has just enough information to be helpful right now (valleychristianaz.org/campaign). When we go public with the campaign on 11/22, the webpage will become the primary driver and entry point for new donors, new inquisitors, and new connections to the campaign. Visit the page today to read more!

This private event is intended for members of our community, but we understand that there is additional interest in the event because of our special guests. Non-VCS community members who would like to attend may do so with a $5,000 one-time gift (up to 2 guests), by purchasing a table for $12,000 (up to 10 guests), or by participating in our VIP Photo Opportunity for $30,000 (includes table for 10). 

Yes! Valley Christian Schools is an IRS-registered 501(c)3, nonprofit organization. Gifts through nonprofit organizations like VCS are eligible for a tax-deduction when you itemize on your taxes. VCS provides year-end contribution letters each January. As always, we recommend working with your tax advisor on the deductibility of your donation.

We’d love to help! Please email Legacy Director, Troy Thelen ’03, at [email protected].

We plan to go public with the campaign on 11/22 at the Legacy Auction & Campaign Kickoff. Once the campaign is public, you will begin to see much more information about the campaign, hear more updates about construction and timelines, learn more about next steps for the school, and more. More information on this event is available at valleychristianaz.org/Auction19.