THE NATIONAL SPORTING LIBRARY NEWSLETTER,
Winter 2000

PRESERVING OUR CULTURE
By Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, Director

The first-time visitor to the new National Sporting Library cannot help but be overwhelmed by the splendor of the facility.

As I came to know the library, I was also struck by just how few families and individuals were actually responsible for building this magnificent facility - and the extraordinary collection that it houses.

But I quickly came to realize that for this institution to fulfill its potential as a dynamic cultural force, we would have to widen the spectrum of those financially committed to the future of the National Sporting Library.

This we are well on the way to achieving.

As the year ended, more than 50 NSL supporters had agreed to be members of the Chairman's Council, each contributing a minimum of $2500 (and much more) to the operating budget of the library. By spring, membership in this select group of supporters could exceed 75.

In coming days, we will be mailing renewal notices to the Friends of the Library, and while we are asking for increased levels of giving from the Friends, we have no doubt that support will be forthcoming.

One factor in the success we have enjoyed in fund raising is the sporting community's gratitude to those benefactors who enabled us to have such a marvelous facility. I get the impression that many Friends sensed that if these benefactors could contribute hundreds of thousands, then we could pony up $2500.

Another factor in increasing previous levels of support is the absolute joy people experience using the library.

Thoroughbred owners wanted to be a part of the Chairman's Council so they could stop by the library to view live racing via the NTRA's TVG satellite network. (They'll never have to drive over the mountain to Charles Town again.)

The size of audiences for our Friday lecture series threatens to spill over into the foyer where, thanks to our extended sound system, we can accommodate overflow crowds. Exhibition preview receptions - such as the one for Eleanor Iselin Wade in the Forrest Mars Sr. exhibit hall - fall into the category of not-to-be-missed events. You will see elsewhere in the newsletter that member participation in the recently concluded duplicate book sale was up more than 50 percent.

But I also sense that the significant increase in financial support for the library is linked to the growing awareness of the role we play in preserving both our individual sporting passions and the open-space culture so vital to these pursuits.

Perpetuating the library's role as a research center for turf and field sports is an important part of this big picture.

Towards this end, an anonymous donor has pledged $100,000 towards a million dollar endowment we must raise by year 2002 to support research and writing of papers (and books) on topics related to turf and field sports. (In the future we want to do the same with documentaries through our Edward P. Evans Media Center and Film Library.)

As soon as we raise a significant portion of the million dollar endowment, we will announce plans for competition for grants for research and writing projects. We plan well-publicized competitions - and hope the notoriety associated with our efforts will encourage writers and scholars to come up with inspired projects that can be researched utilizing our 15,000-book collection. I spent the bulk of my professional life writing and editing, and I so look forward to working on these projects.

No doubt some of our members have association with educational foundations who could help speed us towards our million dollar goal. (Please contact me at the library if you have leads.) In the tradition of a rising tide lifts all boats, stimulating research (and papers and books) will provide a very real legacy for the future of this institution.

Meanwhile, when in coming weeks you receive your solicitation to renew your membership, I trust you will make every effort to increase your level of giving. Our future rests in your hands.