Lana Peacock - Executive Director, East Texas Crisis Center
I met Patrick Willis the year he was graduating from University of Texas at Tyler in 1997. He had completed an internship at the UT Tyler Health Center working for John Anderson who was the Director of Development for the hospital. John Anderson also served on the ETCC Board of Directors and he gave me a call one day to tell me about a young man that he felt I should meet…someone who might be a great help to our non-profit organization.
Patrick volunteered that Spring of ‘97 working with one of our Board Members on an upcoming fundraising event for the East Texas Crisis Center. Shortly thereafter, Patrick joined our staff as Special Event Coordinator which over a period of years led to contracting with him as our Director of Development.
Expanding our vision
This is an event that began in 1987 as a fundraiser for the East Texas Crisis Center and typically raised $4,000-$5,000. Patrick came on board in 1997 and he made several significant changes that transformed a party into a major signature event in Tyler.
Adding levels of giving
Recognizing donors on the invitation
Establishing a person or couple as Honoree each year
Cultivating donors to open the most prestigious homes in Tyler to host the event
These changes quickly took the event from raising an average of $5,000 each year to raising $40,000 in 2002, averaging $150,000 in 2008, hitting $200,000 in 2011 and the highest gross proceeds of $235,000 in 2016 and beyond.
Bringing people to the table
With his warm and gracious personality Patrick easily arranged meetings to meet with potential donors and introduce the East Texas Crisis Center as an important mission to support.
In 1999 Patrick worked with Board Members and ETCC staff to develop a master plan to launch a $3.5 million dollar campaign to raise funds to build a new emergency shelter and counseling offices. Patrick set up meeting after meeting with Tyler philanthropists and businesses and actually raised $4.5 million which allowed the Center to establish an endowment fund for the organization in addition to the cost of construction. The new facility was opened in the Fall of 2003.
A visionary you can trust
Patrick Willis has been able to merge creative intuition and vision with genuine warmth, great taste, and abundant social skills into a career of public relations, development and marketing.
His greatest strength is his ability to make you feel welcome and that he is always happy to see you.