P R E S E R V I N G H E R L E G A C Y

The National Willa Cather Center

For information about the archival treasures shown in this brochure, visit the Willa Cather Foundation online at www.WillaCather.org.

“I am not exaggerating, Carrie, when I confide to you that I would rather go home

to Red Cloud than to any of the beautiful cities in Europe where I used to love to go.”

Cather wrote these words in an April 1945 letter to her lifelong friend, Carrie Miner Sherwood.

“Willa Cather’s literature gives voice to the values that define America’s frontier heritage. By reading her words and promoting her contributions to western culture, we commemorate the pioneering spirit that distinguishes us as a nation.”

Laura Bush

Cover photograph of Willa Cather as a child: the Cather family collection, Willa Cather Foundation Collection of the Nebraska State Historical Society. Photograph of Willa Cather on page one: Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska–Lincoln Libraries. Photograph of Ken Burns by Cable Risdon. All other photographs courtesy of the Willa Cather Foundation.

“The Center will have something for everyone. As

an archive and museum, it will become the

permanent home to some of Willa Cather’s most

personal treasures, items made famous in her

stories, and artwork inspired by her vision of the

prairie. For scholars, it will be a chance to explore,

first-hand, some of her most insightful original

works and papers.”

Ken Burns

Honorary National Chair

ather’s literary reputation is unchallenged. To keep pace

Cwith the growing interest in her life and work, the Foundation’s facilities must also grow. By undertaking a

capital campaign to restore a historically significant building adjacent to our headquarters in the Red Cloud Opera House building, we are now establishing the National Willa Cather Center to provide scholars, students, literary enthusiasts, heritage travelers and casual visitors with:

Ÿ a state-of-the-art archive to safely house scores of original documents and objects related to Cather’s life and work

Ÿ exhibition and gallery space for traveling exhibits and display of archival materials

Ÿ classroom and multimedia spaceŸ new backstage facilities for the adjacent Red Cloud Opera HouseŸ expanded bookstore space.

The new facility will also include street-front retail spaces for commercial tenants and three second-floor loft apartments for scholars-in-residence and other visitors.

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“Our family has a passion for South Central Nebraska, and Willa Cather’s life and writing keep

this special place vibrant and alive for the rest of the world. This project will promote the author’s legacy

and spotlight our great state to an international audience. I hope you will join me in supporting it.”

Joanne Berkshire, Honorary Campaign Chair

The historic “Moon Block” is a prominent building adjacent to the Foundation’s home at the Red Cloud Opera House, at the very center of Red Cloud’s Main Street Historic District. When this once-proud structure is restored and given new life as the National Willa Cather Center, it will become a vital central destination for international scholars as well as area residents and heritage travelers from near and far.

A New Chapter

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he Willa Cather Foundation oversees the Tlargest collection of nationally designated historic buildings and sites devoted to any

American author.

The “Willa Cather Thematic Group” is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and includes four historic districts and 26 individually designated buildings and sites. Of these properties, Cather’s childhood home is designated separately as a National Historic Landmark, one of only 20 in Nebraska and 2,500 nationwide. The childhood home was one of the important sites purchased by the Foundation in our early years and now owned by the Nebraska State Historical Society, from which we receive annual support.

Preserving & Promoting

Our Past

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Ÿ Year-round educational programs, seminars and workshops for scholars and non-scholars

Ÿ Tours of historic buildings and sites

Ÿ Restoration of the Cather Memorial Prairie

Ÿ The Willa Cather Newsletter & Review, published three times annually

Ÿ Art gallery, bookstore and gift shop (and their online counterparts)

Ÿ Music and drama in the Red Cloud Opera House

Ÿ Web-based programs including a virtual tour of Cather’s Red Cloud

The Foundation’s

Activities

In addition to hosting visitors to Red Cloud at many of these sites, the Foundation has a full agenda of programming and publications

exemplifying our commitment to academic and artistic excellence as well as our deep ties to the central Great Plains.

he Moon Block was developed and built Tin 1886 by John W. Moon, a real estate investor and Michigan State Senator who

would go on to become a U.S. Congressman. Built just three years after Willa Cather and her family moved to the area, the Moon Block would become a Red Cloud landmark and symbol of the town’s promise. The Moon Block was home to numerous offices and retail businesses, and Cather would eventually weave it into her novels and short stories. Soon it will enjoy a bright new life as the National Willa Cather Center.

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Our Vision: Scope, Scale

& Promise

“No study of Cather is complete without a trip to Red Cloud. The National Willa Cather Center will be a wonderful, rich archival collection for academics as well as the general public.”

Guy Reynolds, Director, Cather Project, University of Nebraska–Lincoln

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AThe Cather family and other donors have been most generous to the Foundation for many years, contributing to the collections begun by our founders and making the need for state-of-the-art archival facilities ever more pressing. The Foundation’s Board of Governors has made a priority of creating up-to-date storage and display facilities in our expanded home to keep our treasures safe for years to come and accessible to visitors and scholars. A proper archive also will enhance our ability to attract newly identified archival materials to the Foundation’s collection.

A Bright Future for a Special

Place

t the heart of this undertaking are the archival papers, photographs, textiles and artifacts that constitute the Foundation’s collection.

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Project Budget

ExpensesArchitect Services $609,600

Stabilization, Construction $5,387,400

Soft Costs $271,000

Construction Management $100,000

Financing $100,000

Maintenance Reserve Fund $150,000

Furnishings/Fixtures/Equipment $100,000

Total Expenses $6,718,000

IncomeFederal Grants $885,000

Historic Tax Credits $1,000,000

Private Capital Campaign $4,833,000

Total Income $6,718,000

All figures are estimates; final amounts may vary.

he Willa Cather Foundation works tirelessly to preserve Tthe settings that Cather fondly remembered and wrote about so compellingly. The National Willa Cather

Center will be the heart of the Foundation’s properties and treasures, and will enable generations to enjoy and experience the very town, prairie and locales that Cather loved.

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There is no question that the Willa Cather Foundation is critical to the economic vitality of Webster County and the surrounding region. The international organization draws more than 10,000 visitors to Red Cloud every year and the majority of its annual operating budget goes directly into the local economy.

The Willa Cather Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization that promotes appreciation of Cather’s work and strives to preserve the historic sites and archival materials associated with the life and times of this beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning author. The Foundation’s programs and resources directly serve more than 70,000 people every year, and our website is in constant use by readers worldwide. Our offices and operations in Cather’s childhood hometown of Red Cloud, Nebraska (population 1,131) have been critical in sustaining the economic, civic, and cultural development of South Central Nebraska.

A twenty-eight member Board of Governors leads the Willa Cather Foundation, which has six full-time staff, eight part-time staff, and more than sixty active volunteers. A sixteen-member Advisory Council and an additional board with special focus on the Willa Cather Memorial Prairie assist with setting direction and representing the diversity of interests, locations and professions attracted to Willa Cather and her work.

TheFoundation

National Willa Cather Center Campaign Steering CommitteeHonorary National Chair: Ken Burns, Walpole, New HampshireCampaign Co-Chair: Ruth H. Keene, Omaha, NebraskaCampaign Co-Chair: John A (Jay) Yost, New York, New YorkThomas Reese Gallagher, New York, New YorkJane Renner Hood, Lincoln, NebraskaJill Hornady, Grand Island, NebraskaLynette Krieger, Hastings, NebraskaSteven B. Shively, Logan, UtahFrank Sibert, Kearney, Nebraska

Willa Cather Foundation Board of GovernorsPresident: Thomas Reese Gallagher, New York, New YorkVice President: Lynette Krieger, Hastings, NebraskaPast President: Susan Maher, Duluth, MinnesotaSecretary: Glenda Pierce, Lincoln, NebraskaTreasurer: David Porter, Saratoga Springs, New YorkVirgil Albertini, Fairway, KansasMarion A. Arneson, Wayne, NebraskaMark W. Bostock, Windsor, ColoradoMax Despain, Monument, ColoradoRichard C. Harris, Sea Cliff, New YorkJill Hornady, Grand Island, NebraskaAndrew Jewell, Lincoln, NebraskaCharles Johanningsmeier, Omaha, NebraskaRuth H. Keene, Omaha, NebraskaFritz Mountford, Hastings, NebraskaJohn J. Murphy, Santa Fe, New MexicoJulie Olin-Ammentorp, Manlius, New YorkCharles A. Peek, Kearney, NebraskaGuy Reynolds, Lincoln, NebraskaAnn Romines, Alexandria, VirginiaNancy Sherwood, Omaha, NebraskaSteven B. Shively, Logan, UtahKate Sommer, Omaha, NebraskaJames P. Southwick, Heber City, UtahC. Kay Stahly, Kearney, NebraskaRobert Thacker, Canton, New YorkLu Williams, Red Cloud, NebraskaJohn A (Jay) Yost, New York, New York

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Advisory CouncilBruce P. Baker II, Omaha, Nebraska

Laurie Smith Camp, Omaha, NebraskaJames Fitzgibbon, Red Cloud, Nebraska

David B. Garwood, Red Cloud, NebraskaJoel Geyer, Lincoln, Nebraska

Jane Renner Hood, Lincoln, NebraskaRon Hull, Lincoln, Nebraska

Betty Kort, Hastings, NebraskaMellanee Kvasnicka, La Vista, Nebraska

Lucia Woods Lindley, New York, New YorkDale McDole, Overland Park, KansasGary L. Meyer, Red Cloud, NebraskaNancy S. Picchi, New York, New York

Rhonda Seacrest, Lincoln, NebraskaJohn N. Swift, Whittier, California

Gary W. Thompson, Lincoln, NebraskaJoseph R. Urgo, Asheville, North Carolina

Make a pledge. Make a gift to the cam-

paign, pledged over a five-year giving

period and structured in a payment sched-

ule of your choosing. You may satisfy your

pledge through payments by check, direct

deposit, or credit card. We will be happy to

send you reminders of pledge payments as

they become due.

Make a gift of securities. Gifts of appreci-

ated assets such as stock help you avoid

costly gains and significantly help the

campaign at the same time. We will be

happy to assist you in transferring assets to

complete your gift.

Make a customized gift of other property.

The Willa Cather Foundation appreciates

in-kind donations as well as real and per-

sonal property. Please contact us about the

Foundation’s guidelines for accepting

these special gifts.

Make a deferred gift. A planned gift or

other type of deferred giving arrangement

may fit your financial and planning needs.

These can be structured in a variety of

ways, including a bequest in a will, a trust

ar rangement , and other income-

producing vehicles such as life insurance

and annuities. In considering a planned

gift, we will work with you and your advi-

sors to structure a gift that best ensures

your tax and estate planning needs.

How

You Can Help

With your help, the campaign for the National Willa Cather Center will be a success.

Naming and Recognition OpportunitiesWe greatly appreciate your investment in the National Willa Cather Center and are happy to offer you the following special recognition of your gift:

Your gift of Naming Opportunity $1,000,000 or greater The Archives & Library Complex

$500,000 or greater The Opera House Art Gallery

$400,000 or greater West Lobby Main Entrance Main Archives Room

$250,000 or greater Loft Apartments (each separately)

$100,000 or greater Upper West Lobby Green Room Willa’s Corridor Exhibition Room

$50,000 or greater Performer Dressing Room Retail Entrances (each separately)

$25,000 or greater West Entrance Vestibule West Lobby Elevator

Donor Wall RecognitionGifts of $1,000 or greater will be recognized collectively on a donor wall to be prominently displayed within the entrance:Gifts of $10,000 to $24,999 SustainerGifts of $5,000 to $9,999 InvestorGifts of $1,000 to $4,999 Builder

Donor Book RecognitionGifts of up to $999 will be included in a commemorative donor book to be published following the campaign and recognized according to the following levels:Gifts of $500 to $999Gifts of $100 to $499Gifts of up to $99

To learn more about giving options or to arrange a gift, please contact:Ashley Olson, Executive Director866-731-7304 toll-free | 402-746-2653 | aolson@willacather.org

Willa Cather Foundation | 413 North Webster Street | Red Cloud, Nebraska 68970

The Willa Cather Foundation413 North Webster Street

Red Cloud, NE 68970

402-746-2653 | 866-731-7304info@willacather.orgwww.WillaCather.org

P R E S E R V I N G H E R L E G A C Y

The National Willa Cather Center

“There are always dreamerson the frontier.”

— O Pioneers!