"Break Through: The Caltech Campaign was a $3.4 billion fundraising effort to support people: faculty, students, staff, alumni, and parents.
Of the $3.4 billion raised:
• 92 percent of the $3.4 billion came from 315 donors who contributed $1 million or more.
• Six donors gave $100 million or more.
• An unprecedented 45 percent of the campaign total was contributed by trustees.
• Caltech was the smallest university to successfully raise more than $3 billion.
At the campaign’s conclusion, our goal was to recognize and honor Caltech’s most generous supporters—those who contributed $1 million or more—whose participation drove the success of the campaign effort. The end-of-campaign mementos were intended to leverage a unique piece of campus—a historic landmark to gather and study—and blend it with our community’s fondness for intellectual engagement, creativity, and fun. This was one element of a month-long, multichannel campaign conclusion plan for the campus community and donors at all levels. We crafted cribbage boards and bookends from a historic, 400-year-old native Southern California oak tree on campus. They were then mailed to select donors and friends in January 2022, following the campaign conclusion on Sept. 30, 2021.
In total, 127 bookends and 30 cribbage boards were sent. The response to these special items was overwhelming. A number wrote to share their stories about what the keepsakes meant to them and continue to use and display the items in their homes."
From the Judges
A wonderful entry that was a true memento of the campus. Very replicable for other organizations as they consider their uniqueness.
