"The level of dedication, organization, and professionalism Addison Reed and the Pennington staff demonstrated was the driving force in our capital campaign's success. Even during COVID-19, Addison kept our volunteers focused and helped us achieve our goals. I would recommend Pennington & Company to any organization."
"We are thrilled with the job Maribeth Broussard has done for us. Her fearless persistence in the face of disinterested and doubting alumni and some less-than-enthusiastic committee members, her good nature, and her enthusiasm for us and our program combined to make what I’m sure will be a successful campaign. When we didn’t reach our goal at the end of the quiet campaign, she convinced us to go another two months, which resulted in a $100,000 improvement in the effort. She helped us do all of that in the face of COVID and, in the Louisiana and Texas oil patch where most of our alums live and work, falling commodity prices and economic disruption."
"As we began the $6 million fundraising campaign to build our new house for the Tau Beta Chapter of Chi Omega at Oklahoma State University, I was asked by Jacquie Kasner of Pennington and Company to be one of the co-chairpersons for the campaign. Jacquie and the entire team at Pennington led us through the process of raising this substantial amount of money.
We celebrated our 100th birthday at Tau Beta in 2020. Our birthday gift to the chapter is to build a new home for the members for the next 100 years. Through the amazing support of volunteers, organized and nurtured by Pennington, and because of their continuous sharing of information, data, and encouragement, our chapter embraced the project fully and to fruition.
Without the experience, the knowledge, and the grace of Jacquie Kasner and the Pennington team of experts, this goal may have been insurmountable. But with them as a part of our team, we will break ground and celebrate another 100 years of sisterhood in a beautiful new home. Thank you, Pennington and Company. "
"Mississippi Theta has exceeded our original fundraising goal because respected alumni leaders got involved, rolled up their sleeves, and are passionate for our success. Pennington was absolutely critical to this success. What is amazing is that we broke ground on construction within almost 20 months of engaging Pennington; no one outside of the original committee thought that would be possible, but we stayed focused, organized, and accountable to each other thanks to the guidance received from the Pennington team.
For me, the opportunity to make new connections with so many SAE brothers from all decades has been an absolute blast. We can’t wait to cut the ribbon and share what SAE has accomplished with the whole Mississippi State community.”
"Our house corporation could not have succeeded in the $6+ million dollar renovation of our chapter house without the expertise of Pennington & Company. Pre-campaign, Pennington’s vast experience and insights helped identify the right leadership, volunteers and target donors. They kept us focused throughout our campaign and supported our post campaign follow-up. Pennington developed a communication plan specific to our membership and helped us approach donors in meaningful and creative ways. No matter how well organized your group may be, the reality is that volunteers simply do not have the bandwidth to complete a proper campaign without professional help. Pennington & Company was an essential ingredient in our success."
We are in the final stages of raising funds for a large capital campaign for the Washington Chapter of ADPhi. This has been a four-year effort to successfully raise $5 million. To put it bluntly, this would not have been possible without the professional guidance and expertise of Pennington & Company and our initial consultant, Aaron Forehand. Simultaneously, our alumni relations consultant, Ginny Brown, focused on improving our alumni relations and fostering mailings to alumni.
Pennington worked diligently to update our email and physical mailing lists by noting bad or returned addresses, making corrections, and seeking out lost alumni. This further included updating records of pledges made and payments on those commitments and following up with running tallies of funds received and outstanding. We plan to continue the newsletter and database upkeep after completion of the project.
In all cases, Aaron and Ginny were on hand to advise us on best practices and strategies for success based on their extensive experience from working with numerous fraternities and sororities nationally. They operated as our continual consultants, offering advice, sharing ideas, and leading us to success. We could not have conducted this campaign without their highly professional consulting and collaborative teamwork. They were and continue to be outstanding!
"I believe that without a doubt Pennington & Company is the reason we were able to succeed in our endeavors. From the feasibility study to the brochure creation and donor solicitations, the dedicated and focused work of Katie Kennedy, our campaign consultant, and the Pennington & Company teams allowed the board to succeed when many of its members had no previous capital campaign experience. Beyond the tools of the trade, the most impressive element was the company's ability to know their craft so well that we could pivot our strategy in the middle of the pandemic and still reach our financial goals.
In a year unlike any other, working to raise funds in a tumultuous time, Katie showed that she was the consummate business professional versed in fundraising strategy and technique that could adapt as we lived each month of the pandemic together. Beyond her clearly defined recommendations for outreach and solicitation, she showed herself to be a woman with a high level of considerate sense, which is something that cannot be taught and rather is felt by someone truly confident in their professional skill balanced with the belief in the value of their work. Treating the volunteers, board members, donors, and prospective contributors with a genuine and endearing level of compassion and kindness, Katie presented herself as a true extension of our sisterhood, and that element led to our fundraising success. Our strengthened sisterhood in 2020 amidst all other things is a bright spot. We will forever be thankful that we chose Pennington & Company to lead this campaign because they ensured our success to further the legacy we are creating for the chapter."
“The entire staff at Pennington was great to work with and made our campaign a success. Their proven processes are just the right amount of ‘push’ needed to keep volunteer boards stay on track. Their advice to our board was spot on from the feasibility study through the campaign.I would not attempt such an ambitious project like this one without Pennington and highly recommend them to my friends in other chapters.”
"Pennington really knows what they are doing when it comes to Greek fundraising! Their methodology is sound and tested. They are professional in every way. The reaction of our alumni base was beyond expectation. The relationship with Pennington and especially our consultant, Tony Quandt, was marvelous. Our success was way beyond our expectations."
“Pennington & Company brings a level of professionalism and personalized service to a campaign. In the 1990’s, in honor of our chapter’s 75th anniversary, I fundraised for a Phi Mu Fountain in the center of the Ole Miss campus without a professional company and it was much harder than I expected. When we hired Pennington for our house campaign, it was amazing how involved our consultant was and the level of work and travel that they provided. I have recommended several more Phi Mu groups use Pennington’s services because it makes the process so much easier.”
“People ask me how we were able to exceed our $500,000 goal during the worst recession in 60 years, and I never hesitate to say, without Molly Cunningham, Holly Neth and the other strategists at Pennington & Co., we would not have been successful. Our Campaign Committee consisted of 10 volunteers from around the country, who did our best to contact our sisters and spread the word about our Campaign, but we needed the expertise of Molly and her team to guide us and keep us on track. We are unanimous in our belief that we could not have gotten to this fantastic place in our Campaign without the help Pennington & Co.”
