2024 Capital Campaign
Soon after the catastrophic 1923 Berkeley Fire leveled the Hillside Club’s original Maybeck-designed Club House, members banded together to finance the construction of a building to replace it. They commissioned Maybeck’s brother-in-law, John White, to design a new Club House.
White’s new structure rose quickly. It was dedicated and put into use in 1924. The updated Club House preserved the beloved “First Bay Tradition” style of Maybeck’s original Club House while augmenting it with facilities better able to accomodate and showcase the emerging enthusiasms of local members.
Today, close inspection reveals that a century of loving wear-and-tear has taken its toll on the Hillside Club’s charming, iconic meeting space. The classic “simple” redwood shingles sheathing the Club House’s exterior walls have weathered to the point of severe decay. The production support facilities in its basement dressing rooms are rough and substandard, frustrating performers trying to use them. The hall and its stage’s sound and lighting equipment are outdated and inflexible, often limiting the range and quality of performers willing to appear at the Club. The Club House’s gardens and public spaces are also well overdue for rethinking and upgrading.
Repairing the Club House’s exterior and raising its technical capabilities to modern standards — while preserving its quaintness and visual charm — will assure the Club House’s graceful evolution. The improvements to be financed by this campaign will maintain the Club House as a haven to Hillside Club members and preserve its utility as a cultural resource throughout the wider Bay Area community as the 21st century unfolds.
Hillside Club membership dues and hall rental fees fall far short of producing sufficient income to realize the vision set by the 2024 Capital Campaign. The donations of club members and the public must provide the lion’s share of funds to fulfill Club House priorities.
Over the past year, the dedicated effors of many have made financially supporting the Club’s headquarters easier and more advantageous than ever before.
Recently, the Hillside Club helped in the formation of an independent organization called the Berkeley Historic Building Fund, Inc. (“BHBF”). BHBF was established as a “Section 501c(3)” non-profit corporation, which makes donations to it tax-deductible. This tax advantage can help donors earn the biggest “bang for their buck” when they contribute to BHBF’s preservation efforts.
In addition, BHBF is able to accept donations directly from individual retirement accounts. This capability can often yield special tax benefits to more= mature donors, particularly those required to take mandatory retirement distributions. BHBF is also able to accept donations in the form of securities held in brokerage accounts.
Donations made to BHBF over the past year have already helped defray the cost of significant Club House roof and gutter repairs, landscape improvements, and the purchase of audio equipment.
The costs of the repairs, renovations and improvements envisioned in the Club House plan are, of course, considerable. To achieve the significant, concrete impact the Hillside Club and BHBF hope to achieve, the 2024 Capital Campaign has A TARGET GOAL OF $250,000 in donations. A quarter of a million dollars is a heroically ambitious goal, but one that can be reached through the great generosity of club members and other sympathetic donors.
To provide greater recognition and incentive for generous donor support, the 2024 Capital Campaign has established a number of separate donation ranges, or giving “tiers,” each named after a native Californian tree. A variety of gifts will be given as “thank yous” to donors within the different tiers.
We warmly invite you to take part in this exciting Capital Campaign, and hope you are able to give generously.
MADRONE
less than $500 | Listing as Campaign Donor in 2024-25 Yearbook and Hillside Club bookmark. |
BAY LAUREL
$500 - $999 | Hillside Club Poster by David Lance Goines. |
SPRUCE
$1,000 - $4,999 | Name listed on a special Club House Campaign Plaque. |
LIVE OAK
$5,000 - $9,999 | Limited edition special printing of “The Hillside Companion” book. |
CEDAR
$10,000 - $24,999 | Invitation to a Special Event Donor Dinner at a Unique Venue. |
REDWOOD
$25,000 and above | Naming rights for one of seven Clubhouse/Grounds areas, for a period of five years and guaranteed reservations for Member Dinners in 2025 and 2026. |
