What does it mean to #GrowTheOak?
It means supporting a community of anglophiles who make a difference – on a special day when your gift can go 3 times as far! Learn More
Giving Tuesday is fast approaching. This December 1, kick off the holiday season right by helping us #GrowTheOak. It’s easy to participate: just make a donation to our Annual Fund and then tell your friends and family why you’re part of the Royal Oak community. Learn more about how to participate here.
The best part about it? All gifts received on Giving Tuesday will be matched on a 2:1 ratio, meaning your gift will go three times as far!
Here are three things that your gift this Giving Tuesday will support:
Protecting Special places with the National Trust
The Ballroom at Knole
Four years ago, the Conservation Team at Knole, Kent faced an enormous challenge. The treasured 600-year old house, one of the largest and most storied in all of the United Kingdom, needed major conservation work. The 500-year old Ballroom, in particular, begged for support: its floor and ceiling both showed evidence of structural and water damage, and its brilliant collection of furnishings and paintings needed a trip to the conservation studio to ensure their survival for generations to come.
The National Trust approached the Royal Oak community with these needs, asking their American family for help in restoring Knole to its unadulterated glory. Royal Oak supporters responded, as they always do, with enthusiasm. Within two years, Royal Oak had raised $1.25 million for Knole. Thanks to that generosity the conservation team moved forward with its work and Knole’s history was safe.
Royal Oak board members present $1.25 million to Knole for conservation
The response to the Knole Appeal underlines exactly what makes the Royal Oak community so special: it understands the deep roots of our shared history and does whatever it takes to support it.
By giving to Royal Oak today, you strengthen that community – you #GrowTheOak.
Together, we can support all facets of the National Trust’s work and celebrate our shared mission.
Fostering a community of American Anglophiles:
Philanthropic and curious, the Royal Oak community both supports and explores special places in the UK. Here in the US, Royal Oak connects them to one another through special events around the hottest topics in the Anglophile world.
Our lecture series brings speakers to cities across the country – we’ve hosted 423 lectures over the last 5 years, and this fall alone we brought renowned lecturers like The Duke of Wellington and the Earl of Shaftesbury to the States.
Your gift to Royal Oak on Giving Tuesday helps us maintain this one-of-a-kind American community and extend our reach to new members.
Offering Fellowships for American scholars:
Earlier this Fall, we were treated to spectacular images of Croome Court, Charlecote Park and other Capability Brown landscapes. These shots, from vantage points we’ve never seen before, were made possible by the work of Justin Kegley, Royal Oak’s 2015 Horan Fellow. Justin worked with National Trust staff to film Capability Brown’s legendary landscapes from above with drone photography. The results, as you can see, were spectacular.
Justin’s work through the Horan Fellowship is just one example of the spectacular opportunities created by your support of Royal Oak. Our Nigel Seeley Fellowship and our support of the Attingham Scholars program allow young professionals to benefit from the National Trust’s expertise. These scholars are also unlocking new ways to see and appreciate the beauty of the National Trust, as Justin did this year. Your gift to the Annual Fund this Giving Tuesday ensures that the continuation of these fellowships and build a future for the appreciation, conservation and curation of the special places at the heart of our mission.
