Since the Opening Doors Capital Campaign began in 2005 and went public in 2007, a total of 43,539 individuals, companies and organizations contributed to the $515 million raised before it came to a close in October 2012.

Steve Hoeppner, executive director of Development, said there were a variety of ways St. Thomas was able to exceed its goal in the campaign.

Hoeppner said St. Thomas had a team of people who met with potential donors individually to talk about making contributions to the campaign. Along with one-on-one discussions, St. Thomas had a corporate and foundation-focused area, made up of people who would write proposals to potential corporate contributors and foundations.

Students in the phone center called alumni and parents of students throughout the campaign to gain more donations. Letters to alumni and friends of St. Thomas were also sent, informing them of the campaign.

An Opening Doors website was made to present the campaign’s priorities and to show the amount of dollars as they came in.

Hoeppner said the majority of the money from the campaign came from one-on-one meetings with donors.

“If I can spend an hour talking with someone about how exciting the things are that are going on at St. Thomas, the vision that we have for the future, and then what it’s going to take to help us get there … they can get a sense for your enthusiasm and your excitement for the future at St. Thomas,” Hoeppner said.

Donors contributed to the campaign in a variety of ways, two of the most popular being gifts given in full right away, and pledges, which are given to St. Thomas over time, Hoeppner said.

One of the concerns that came out of the campaign was that current students wouldn’t see any benefit from the donations, as not all of the money from the campaign will be seen up front, Hoeppner said. However, he noted that three of the most significant benefits of the campaign can already be seen on campus.

“The fact that some of the money will be coming in over time doesn’t mean current students won’t be benefiting from Opening Doors … (the Anderson facilities) are three examples right now, or even for a few years now, where students today are absolutely benefiting,” Hoeppner said.

Scholarships are another way that current students are benefiting from the campaign.

“We raised a lot of money for scholarships, and same thing. Some of it will come in over time, but some of it, millions of dollars of it, are already in the door, and are being given out,” Hoeppner said.

The campaign will continue to fuel St. Thomas for years to come.

“The nature of fundraising is that we’re also trying to raise money for the future,” Hoeppner said. “Some of what we raised in Opening Doors we will put in the bank, and the income off of that will be helping to fund St. Thomas education for students 10, 20, 30, 50 and God willing, 100 years from now.”

Gabrielle Martinson can be reached at mart5649@stthomas.edu.