The Hammonton Gazette 03/18/15 Edition | Page 5

Eagle Theatre looking to raise $3 million in three years Page 4 • Wednesday, March 18, 2015 • The Hammonton Gazette EAGLE, from Page 1 THG/Paul J. Macrie IV. Eagle Theatre Chairman Dr. Michael Hozik outlined the fundraising campaign. The campaign has a goal of securing $3 million within three years from donors across the region, Philadelphia and even beyond the Tri-State area. Early leadership gifts from the board of trustees and donors have totaled more than $300,000, according to a press release, and will be given as a matching donation. The initial funds are planned to be used as an incentive to attract new annual donors to match the board’s gifts in the first year of the campaign. “We have a committed staff that has taken multitasking to new heights. What we are doing here at the Eagle Theatre is unique. A yearround theatre at this level has not been done in South Jersey before. The Eagle Theatre is really now a regional theatre. To continue onto that trajectory, we need to take our operations to the next level. While our productions are rivaling those in Philadelphia and New York, some of the rest of our operation are not. We are a nonprofit theatre, which means every penny we bring in goes back out into producing our shows. The reality is that no nonprofit theatre is supported by ticket sales. The best nonprofit theatres in the country raise about half of the funds they need through ticket sales, and the rest comes through donations. So far, the Eagle Theatre has never run an annual fundraising campaign. Annual donations that support us at the theatre are essential for every nonprofit theatre, and the Eagle Theatre needs