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Lion’s Leap Campaign

Where We Are Now

On Tuesday evening, September 29, the main shrine room at the Shambhala Meditation Center of Chicago was overflowing with people. Men and woman, long time practitioners, and newcomers were awaiting the first class of Meditation in Everyday Life, the first class in our new format, The Way of Shambhala. Happily, such packed houses now are commonplace for many of our practice and study programs. There is a growing demand for what we offer.

In fact, we have grown so successfully in membership and programs that we have reached a critical point in the life of our Center. In order to continue to grow to meet the needs of the Chicago area, we must have more space and greater organization. After a long community planning process, we have decided that the first major step is to hire a full time Center Director to provide leadership and oversight of the daily operation of our Center. We like to think of this step as a leap: the leap of the Snow Lion, taken with confidence in who we are and the aspiration to manifest the vision of Shambhala in our region.

This lion’s leap is in harmony with the heartfelt desire of Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche that we manifest the Kingdom of Shambhala now. The speed and aggression of our age have created immense suffering and now threaten all life on earth. This situation urgently calls for a peaceful way to move forward. Those of us fortunate enough to have received the teachings of Shambhala Buddhism and the vision of creating enlightened society can not afford to hesitate in sharing this precious gift with the larger community. To further this mission, we have initiated a campaign to raise $162,000 in cash and pledges to cover the full costs of compensation (salary, and benefits) of a Center Director for three years, starting Shambhala Day 2010.

How We Got Here

The Chicago Shambhala Center has a rich history that began with the loving instruction of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche to his early students to start a permanent organization in Chicago. Continuously from 1971 to 1995, a dedicated and growing core of students known collectively as Chicago Dharmadhatu kept a center for practice and study alive, hosting many visits by great teachers of the lineage. Thanks to the pioneering efforts of this group of practitioners, the organization moved from rental space to ownership of the present building on Sheridan Road, shortly thereafter renamed the Shambhala Meditation Center of Chicago.

With the new location came growth. Since the move, our sangha has grown threefold to its present size of about 175 members. Programming growth kept pace. Attendance at programs increased, especially during the last five years, to a point where our lovely building can barely contain our more popular programs, such as Learn to Meditate and Shambhala Training. In the same way, our extended family style of organizing and decision-making is inadequate to meet the needs of an organization suitable for serving many more people. We have been blessed with a series of volunteer Center Directors who have provided exemplary leadership. However, we can no longer depend on this limited arrangement.

For the past few years we have been moving slowly and inclusively to articulate a vision that speaks to our deepest aspirations and to craft a plan to implement that vision of raising the banner of Shambhala throughout metropolitan Chicago. Two areas in particular demanded that we find financial resources to ensure successful growth: space and stable leadership. A Building Task Force explored a number of options for expanding our existing space or moving to a roomier space. All feasible scenarios, though, required leveraging strong equity from our present building. In light of the current real estate and financial markets, the building group made the following recommendation: wait for the markets to improve, rent spaces outside the Center for larger programs, support the development of a stronger financial foundation that will improve our ability to purchase property and/or secure financing when the markets improve.

The Governance Task Force took on the leadership issue and came up with a new structure of organization that will incorporate leaders from all areas of practice, study, and administration, as well as community leaders who bring valued knowledge and experience to governance. Key to making the new structure work was the recommendation that we hire a full time Center Director.

The Role of the New Center Director

As envisioned by the Governance Task Force, the job of a full-time, salaried Center Director will be to:

Provide full time leadership, working at the Center to oversee daily operations and carry out normal executive tasks.

Provide leadership and organizational development support to the Governing Council

Serve as the pivot point for rational and consistent strategic and financial planning to manage our current and future growth

Advise the Program Group in implementing programs of study and hosting visiting teachers, and help in providing administrative support for these activities

Direct organizational outreach efforts to the larger community.

Recruit and develop leadership for the various activities of the Center.

Direct or oversee efforts to find alternate space for programs when needed.

Organize a new building committee for exploring more permanent space options when external conditions are right.

Advise and oversee volunteer management.

Take a leading role in promoting seasonal celebrations and other social and community occasions.

Represent Shambhala of Chicago to Kalapa Court and our administrative offices in Nova Scotia, Windhorse Retreat Center and the Midwestern Shambhala mandala, our neighborhood and the wider Chicago area.

The Lion's Leap

The Dana Committee has set as the goals of the Lion’ s Leap Campaign to secure a large infusion of cash to guarantee the Center Director’s salary for 3 years, and through increased pledging, to establish the financial foundation that will sustain the compensation beyond 3 years.

The Lion’s Leap Campaign asks every member of the Shambhala Meditation Center of Chicago to make a pledge or a gift. It focuses on the commitment of members because membership is the most reliable and sustainable source of support for the fiscal stability and long-term financial health. From members who have the means we are asking for a one-time, special gift so that we can hire a Center Director with a year’s compensation in hand. A generous, anonymous donor has already made an extraordinary gift to use as a challenge grant to match the large gifts. We are asking everyone else to make a pledge for 2010. We will ask those that do not make an annual financial contribution to make one, and those who already make an annual donation, to increase it by 10%. The new and increased pledges will help fund the Center Director, but more importantly, this increase will set us on the path of financial sustainability.

We wholeheartedly invite your participation in the Lion’s Leap Campaign. Your gift will enable us to take the snow lion’s leap with discipline and delight. We will secure the leadership of a full time Center Director to join energy and vision with our own. Together, we will deepen our spiritual lives and answer Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche’s call to bring the wisdom and peace of Shambhala into our hurting, waiting world.