Preserving the future of the county's past, the Historical Society of Carroll County is creating a $500,000 endowment fund to help run its museum and educational programs.
The fund-raising drive, which begins with a dinner at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Winfield Fire Hall, will continue through Feb. 9.
"This is the level we have studied and landed on as what is needed to provide an endowment for sustaining the programs we have under way," said Lester P. Surber, historical society president.
The money will be invested and the interest will be used to supplement the society's $110,000 budget, he said. County money makes up $15,000 of the budget. The rest comes from memberships and individual donations.
Thursday's turkey and oyster dinner will feature Dwight Dingle as the master of ceremonies, music from local soprano Joan Fehle and a motivational speech by Alan Walden of WBAL radio.
"Mr. Walden is very involved with the restoration of Fort McHenry and is involved in historical activity, particularly of the American Revolution," Mr. Serber said. "He also has a good deal of understanding of voluntary organizations and the challenges that are before them."
Proceeds from the $20 ticket price, which includes a cocktail before dinner, will go to the endowment fund.
Dinner reservations must be made by Wednesday.
During the campaign, historical society volunteers will be asking for donations from families and individuals, as well as large xTC donations from corporations. They will also provide information about leaving money or property to the endowment after death.
"We're putting together a brochure about how people can update their wills if they want to include the society and with segments about planned giving, including gifts of annuities, bonds or property," said Doris Pierce, co-chair for the campaign.
Giving levels have been established and named after people who helped start the historical society, she said.
All donors will have an opportunity to include their business or personal history in a 1992 commemorative edition of The Illustrated Atlas of Carroll County, Maryland, first printed in 1877.
"The maps in the book document family names [in Carroll County] that go way back, back to the 1800s," said Ms. Pierce.
Donors will receive a free copy of the book for each $360 they give, she said.
For more information call: 848-6494.