Every December I phone giving partners and friends on our mailing-list—some I don’t know well. My goal is to remind as many as possible of the end-of-year appeal letter they received in early December. But I also listen and encourage—donors and non-donors.

Here are some of their words from 39 calls (so far):

Excerpt from Scott’s travel journal.

It was 7:30 in the evening, the last day of my New Jersey vacation, and I found myself at one of Newark’s finest restaurants—Burger King.

After placing my order, a 20s-something young man…