Have Expertise, Will Travel

This is Terry's story on his decision to join the fundraising business in Asia...

Have Expertise, Will Travel
U.S. fund raisers abroad find hot job market, big challenges

By NICOLE LEWIS

Two and a half years ago Terry Alan Farris, a fund raiser at the University of Hawaii´s health-sciences programs, was recruited to head the development efforts at Hong Kong Adventist Hospital.

Although he was daunted by the prospect of uprooting his family, including his wife, who was pregnant with twins, Mr. Farris ultimately decided that the opportunity to work abroad was too exciting to miss. He hasn't had any regrets.

The mix of cultures in his adopted city intrigues Mr. Farris -- and he quickly discovered that he had moved to a land full of fund-raising opportunities. The hospital is on track to raise $2.6-million this year, 10 times the amount raised the year he arrived.

Mr. Farris is part of a wave of Americans whose fund-raising expertise is being sought around the globe as non-profit organizations increasingly seek to raise private funds to bolster their activities and lessen their reliance on government funds. And as more and more countries are creating tax incentives to encourage giving to those organizations, demand for Americans who have experience showing donors tax-savvy ways to give is on the rise.

Although not every overseas fund-raising experience has been as successful as Mr. Farris's, many Americans share his enthusiasm for other shores despite a variety of challenges involving uncooperative boards of trustees and unrealistic expectations of non-profit organizations. (see full article)