Crain’s New York Business
August 16, 2010
Nonprofit greeted by Getty surprise
Donation keeps Big Apple Greeter alive
By Lisa Fickenscher
Buck Ennis
GIFT KEEPS GIVING: A $200,000 donation from Ariadne Getty enabled Lynn
Brooks (right) and Alicia Pierro to keep Big Apple Greeter running.
Dire pleas for donations from worthy organizations are so common these
days, they sound like background noise. So it's remarkable when one
succeeds in attracting a large donor.
That's exactly what happened to Big Apple Greeter, the tiny nonprofit
that matches tourists with volunteer guides. It was on the brink of
extinction when a wealthy Californian picked up the phone to offer help
after watching a TV news segment about the group's financial woes
(first reported in Crain's on June 21).
Getty gives
Oil heiress Ariadne Getty recently wired the nonprofit a check for
$200,000, buying the group another six months in which to raise more
funds.
“We really, really needed this money,” says Lynn Brooks , founder of
Big Apple Greeter, adding that her board of directors had instructed
her to start shutting down operations by September.
The 18-year-old organization offers unique tours of the city, taking
visitors on hours-long trips to neighborhoods off the beaten path. But
when corporate donors scaled back last year, Big Apple Greeter hit a
wall and had to cut its operating costs to the bone. In June, the group
launched a Save Big Apple Greeter campaign, appealing to its 300
volunteers, past and future visitors, and corporate sponsors to help.
The campaign netted nearly $100,000, including $35,000 from the city
and many smaller donations from individuals giving as little as $5 to
$2,500. But that wasn't enough to keep Big Apple Greeter afloat.
Enter Ms. Getty, one of five children of J. Paul Getty Jr. She runs
Fuserna Foundation, which, according to its website, supports charities
that have financial constraints and lack exposure—an eclectic group
including the Sierra Leone War Trust for Children and the Santa Monica
Mountains & Seashore Foundation.
Ms. Getty could not be reached for comment.
More funds needed
Others clearly share Ms. Getty's admiration for Big Apple Greeter. A
Canadian couple, Frank and Margy Slater, who visited the city in July
and toured the Brooklyn Bridge and lower Manhattan with two volunteers,
gave $50 and say they will give the organization a second donation next
year if it's needed.
But it will take another large gift like Ms. Getty's to save Big Apple
Greeter once and for all. With corporate supporters still struggling,
reaching the group's $600,000 annual budget is no slam dunk.
“Without a new infusion of cash,” says Executive Director Alicia Pierro, “we won't be around next year.”
