This article is a repost of the November 21 emailing sent by Dechen Chöling Director, Konstanze Brockstedt, regarding the first End of Year fundraising campaing launched by our residential centre.
Dechen Chöling, 21 November, 2018
Dear Shambhala Friends,
Warm greetings! I am writing today to share an update with you about Dechen Chöling, as well as to let you know how you can be of help.
We were very happy to see so many of you here this summer, despite the current situation and the many unknowns. It is heartwarming to see how our practice and being here as a community bind us together – now more than ever.
Even though many of you still came to Dechen Chöling this summer, the attendance at many of our programmes was lower than projected, particularly for those programs that replaced the previously scheduled Abhishekas with the Sakyong. As the Sakyong’s programmes generate the most revenue for Dechen Chöling, we are now facing a financial shortfall for 2018 as we brought in less revenue this summer than what had been projected.
At the beginning of 2018, we also invested more in Dechen Chöling than in recent years. We purchased a new, much larger marquee tent to replace the old “Lion Tent” which hosted all of our summer programmes and will be used for most of our larger assemblies in the future. We also installed new doors and windows in the Château in the dining room and the post meditation hall of the shrine room. This will help both with insulation, as well as accessibility for people in wheelchairs. And last but not least, we purchased new mattresses for most of the beds – an investment we know that many of you have been asking about for many years now! Although we are very happy about uplifting the centre and making much needed improvements, this has also contributed to the difficulties we are now facing financially.
In order to work with this challenging situation, we are engaging with our community at Dechen Chöling, as well as the entire sangha, in a variety of ways:
We have started a process with the entire staff to look at how we might restructure all the elements that form the Dechen Chöling sangha: work, community, and practice. We are looking more closely at our methods and processes of working together, the division of labour and resources, and how it might be possible to cover the posts that become vacant in the coming months without having to hire new full time staff members.
We are also busily planning our 2019 calendar and many programmes will be online soon. In this way, registrations for our upcoming programmes can begin to come in which will help us greatly with our cash flow.
And we are also reaching out to you today to ask for your financial help.
Starting next year, Dechen Chöling will not be a part of Shambhala Day fundraising in Europe. Instead, Dechen Chöling is shifting to a rhythm of end of year fundraising campaigns going forward. This is in line with how all of the other land centres in Shambhala conduct their fundraising and provides more clarity, as donors will know their donation will go directly to Dechen Chöling. This approach also increases the possibility of raising funds from donors outside of Europe. The previous strategy of annual fundraising meant that Dechen Chöling would receive a share of the Shambhala Day funds raised in Europe only.
Therefore, this letter marks the launch of Dechen Chöling’s first End of Year fundraising campaign and we are reaching out to all of you to ask you to support this precious and important place in our mandala.
How will my donation to Dechen Chöling be used?
- Operating costs shortfalls due to recent financial challenges
- Salaries for critical staff at a time when fewer staff are taking on even more responsibility
- Necessary renovation projects to properly maintain buildings and infrastructure
- Scholarships to keep our doors open to diverse groups of people
Do you have questions about our first End of Year Campaign, or making a donation? Please contact Lia Duggan, Campaign Coordinator, at [email protected]
I am delighted to announce that the European Donor Group has very generously offered a matching gift of EUR 25.000 in support of our 2018 End of Year campaign. This means that whatever amount we raise up to EUR 25.000 will be matched by the same amount.
Again, this is your primary chance to support us at this time, as no funds will be transferred to us from Shambhala Day 2019 fundraising. We have worked closely as a team with leadership in Europe on this new approach and everyone feels very strongly about the benefits for all involved. It is important to be clear about this new approach so everyone can plan their giving accordingly.
I would also like to include our financial figures for this year, and have prepared a simple spreadsheet with those details. Click here to view it.
Thank you for your ongoing support to Dechen Chöling! It feels more important than ever to ask for support of this precious place so it can continue to nourish our community and offer much needed retreats.
With much appreciation,
Konstanze Brockstedt, Dechen Chöling Director
With the support of:
Veronika Bauer & Katrin Stelzel, Interim Managing Directors for Shambhala Europe
Lia Duggan, Campaign Coordinator, Dechen Chöling
Faradee Rudy, Development Director for Shambhala
Information about the different ways to make donations, via cheques, transfers or online, and information about receiving tax-receipts for donations made in France can be found on our website.
How will my donation to Dechen Chöling be used?
- Operating costs shortfalls due to recent financial challenges
- Salaries for critical staff at a time when fewer staff are taking on even more responsibility
- Necessary renovation projects to properly maintain buildings and infrastructure
- Scholarships to keep our doors open to diverse groups of people
Do you have questions about our first End of Year Campaign, or making a donation? Please contact Lia Duggan, Campaign Coordinator, at [email protected]