Black History Month is a celebration of resilience, brilliance, and impact. It is a reminder that despite what has been stripped away, Black communities have consistently created institutions that shape culture, faith, education, and civic life.

It is also a time to recognize something deeper: intention. We have always known how to build.

I once visited a historic Black church in Savannah, one of the earliest in the city. What stayed with me was learning how it was built.

They were running what we would now call a capital campaign.

They may not have labeled it that. There were no feasibility studies or donor pyramids. They were simply building a church for themselves and their community.

They understood that having their own space mattered.

So they organized. They pooled resources. They raised the money however they could. And in some cases, individuals sold themselves back into slavery to generate the funds needed to build the church.

That detail is difficult to sit with. It is not a story about glorifying sacrifice. It is a story about how deeply Black communities have always valued institutions. They were not chasing expansion. They were securing a place to gather, to worship, to organize, to exist.

A place their children and their children’s children could return to and say, this is ours.

They were building permanence in a world that treated them as temporary.

That understanding sits at the heart of Black philanthropy.

It has always been rooted in collective care. In foresight. In responsibility to the next generation.

Lesson 1: Institutions Give Us Space to Breathe

Black communities have always known that physical space is not a luxury. It is safety. Churches, schools, and community buildings gave us room to tell the truth, to rest, and to be in community without having to explain ourselves.

Capital campaigns, especially in Black communities, are about securing those spaces. They are about making sure there is somewhere for us to land, now and in the future.

Lesson 2: Capital Campaigns Are About Building for Who Comes Next

That Savannah congregation was thinking beyond the present moment. They were building something that would hold generations they would never meet.

That is the deeper meaning of a capital campaign. It is not just about meeting a goal. It is about deciding what we want to still exist long after we are gone.

People give when they believe they are helping create something that will endure and continue to serve.

Lesson 3: Black Philanthropy Is Deep and Collective

Black philanthropy has never depended on excess. It has depended on commitment. It has been shaped by care, shared belief, and a willingness to invest in one another.

That church in Savannah was built because people understood the value of pooling resources to create something larger than themselves. Giving was not transactional. It was relational.

That same spirit continues to guide successful fundraising today. When people trust an institution and see themselves reflected in its mission, they invest with intention.

Lesson 4: Values Shape What We Choose to Build

The institutions Black communities have built were grounded in values like dignity, care, and self-determination. Those values guided not just what was built, but why it mattered.

Fundraising today should still be guided by that same clarity. Capital campaigns work best when they are honest about what they stand for and who they are meant to serve.

Conclusion

The story of that church in Savannah is about builders.

It is about people who understood the power of institutions and safe spaces. People who chose to create something that would last, something their community could return to, something that would hold generations.

Black philanthropy has always been rich. Rich in intention. Rich in care. Rich in vision for the future.

At Our Fundraising Search, this understanding shapes how we work with institutions navigating capital campaigns, leadership searches, and philanthropic strategy. We believe fundraising is strongest when it is rooted in meaning, aligned with values, and clear about the future it is building.