Purposes | Selected Programs and Projects | Initiatives Benefiting Profession/Public

Message from the St. Louis Bar Foundation President

Dear Fellow Members of the Bar

I have been asked to serve as president of the St. Louis Bar Foundation for the coming year.  We have a terrific board of directors and steps are being taken to streamline its operation.

Until now, the Foundation has inherited as its president the immediate past president of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis.  Just when the president was starting to breathe a sigh of relief, it was time to gear up for another two-year term leading the Foundation.  This year, the board of the Foundation determined that it was not fair to ask so much of our past bar presidents, and opened the way by a nominating process for new opportunities of service.  I am honored to be able to be the first to so serve.  The job ahead of us now is particularly daunting in that we must find new sources of revenue in order to fulfill the mission of the Foundation.

Now I wish to discuss the modest proposals that I believe can put us on a more secure financial footing. Some steps have already been taken.

In the past, we have raised money for the Foundation by seeking new fellows to join the Foundation at various giving levels, the latest being the establishment of “Golden Anniversary Fellows” in honor of this, our 50^th anniversary.  A number of you have stepped up to join this prestigious group of lawyers dedicated to the mission.  We owe you our gratitude, along with all the other fellows who have joined in various giving categories.  However, we are unable to fund the mission of the Foundation based upon fellowships alone.

I have asked the Foundation board to establish an annual fund and will ask lawyers to make an annual contribution.  Many made such gifts in the closing month of 2006 and I hope we will continue to solicit annual fund donations.  I know of no charitable organization that can succeed without such an annual fund drive.  With this continuing effort I hope we can satisfy some of the requests for funding of projects which are worthy of our support, and which greatly exceed our present ability to do so. 

The board has placed a limit of 5% of our endowment which can be withdrawn in any one year to support our operations.  Let me say here that no costs are incurred for the services and expense of any member of our board of directors.  We do, however, have to pay for supplies, postage, printing, and program costs to the extent of our agreed participation with BAMSL.  Our financial statements are open for inspection by any member.

The financial well being of our Foundation lies in our ability to grow an endowment which will provide an income to the Foundation from the 5% draw, and which should sustain itself and grow to the extent its income exceeds the draw.

In honor of our 50^th  anniversary we are continuing to ask  law firms and solo practitioners to make a contribution in an amount equal to $100.00 per lawyer.  We have called this the ‘Strengthening the Foundation of Justice campaign”.  This has the potential to make a real impact on our efforts to begin the growth of endowment funds.  You can expect to be hearing from our board members in signing up you or your firms, or, should you wish, you may contact one of us to pledge your support for this worthy cause. 

Most charitable organizations with growing endowments have a financial piece which we are lacking.  Today I wish to propose filling in that missing piece. I have asked our board of directors to approve the establishment of a new category of membership – “legacy fellows” limited to those members who have included the St. Louis Bar Foundation as a beneficiary in their will and/or testamentary trust.  No amount of such inheritance would be required for membership, but of course we would hope that such gifts will be generous.

Jim McDaniel
Bar Foundation President