If you draft well, nurture the talent and create loyalty, you might end up with a roster of talented people who can help you succeed for years to come.
That's the route the Portland Museum of Art is taking with its Contemporaries program. The museum launched the program in February with the aim of developing a roster of young people who someday might become members of the museum's Committee of 100 -- the backbone of the museum's outreach for fundraising and community support -- and eventually members of the museum's board.
"The goals are to bring these people close to the institution through programming, and to make them aware of the importance of the museum in the community in the hope that they will want to make an investment in us through membership and then move forward with the Committee of 100," said Marilyn Lalumiere, the PMA's director of development.
"From this group, we can identify leadership for the trustees and for different committees."
The program is common at major museums around the country, but unique to Maine.
Membership in the group costs $250, and most memberships involve couples in their 30s and 40s. With their membership, the Contemporaries get behind-the-scenes and hands-on access to museum events.
When the museum opened a photography show from the collection of Judy Glickman, members of the Contemporaries got the chance to attend a question-and-answer session with Glickman and museum curator Susan Danly.
For another outing, they went to Prouts Neck to tour the studio of Winslow Homer, which the museum owns.
The events include a social component, offering members the opportunity to learn something about art while meeting and interacting with artists and like-minded people in the community.
The program has exceeded expectations, said Amber Degn, who coordinates the Contemporaries program and serves as director of foundation and corporate support.
It started with 30 members, at $250 each. Membership is now up to 150. That translates into roughly $37,000 in new income for the museum.
As important as the revenue, the Contemporaries program represents an infusion of new people into the museum, Degn said.
"The biggest goal is to get younger people involved now, so that 10 and 20 years down the road we have a strong board and the museum continues to be the strongest arts organization in Maine and the region," she said.
So far, it's working. Come January, four members of the Contemporaries will be represented on the museum's board of trustees, Degn said.
Staff Writer Bob Keyes can be contacted at 791-6457 or at:
bkeyes@pressherald.com
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