Museum launches ‘One Book, One Buck’ plan

The Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum has launched a fundraising program that Mark Twain fans on a budget can enjoy, the “One Book, One Buck” fundraiser to grow the museum’s endowment.
Copyrights expired long ago on most of Twain’s writings, and the museum is sustained through admissions, gift shop sales, and donations. Asking fans from around the world to donate a dollar for each of Twain’s work they’ve read seems a fair enough request. So believes executive director, Cindy Lovell.
“Mark Twain was a writer for the people.  He would want us to be respectful of asking for donations. We do need people to give, but it needs to be within their means,” Lovell said.
The idea is grass roots at its finest. Fans of Mark Twain are asked to calculate the number of Twain’s books they’ve read, which number about 30, and then donate $1 for each one they’ve read to the museum. 
“Movies count,” Lovell joked, “and we’ll leave it up to the donors to decide if they want to donate for each time they’ve read a book.” Lovell said she will owe a lot since she reread The Adventures of Tom Sawyer numerous times as a child.
The museum recognizes that through small contributions by many, much can be accomplished. The museum seeks to establish a $10 million endowment by the end of 2010 – the 100th anniversary of Twain’s death. Because he is so beloved around the world as evidenced by the many international visitors who travel to Hannibal to see the Boyhood Home, Lovell feels the goal is realistic.
“We won’t ask for more than people can give,” she said. “But we are asking. This endowment will ensure operations at the museum and reduce the stress on the foundation during economic downturns. In the present economy, we feel the time is right to ask, and the amount is right as well.” Donations can be mailed to the museum or donated online at www.marktwainmuseum.org.