The IMA quite literally would not be here without the support of our donors and friends. The Art Association of Indianapolis, which would later become the Indianapolis Museum of Art, was formed in 1883 as a membership club that intended to educate the public about art. Membership dues actually started it all!

Generous individuals have shaped the Museum in many ways. John Herron’s estate gift in 1895 provided the means for the Art Association to build our first art school and gallery. Other families have given us the Oldfields estate and the Miller House, so that visitors have a chance to step back in time (be it to the Jazz Age or the modern 1950s!). Donor names are on our gallery walls, not because they ever picked up a paintbrush or sculpted in clay, but because they chose to share the art that they collected with the entire community. When the IMA needed to expand in 2005, our loyal patrons stepped up to provide the funds for a total of 143,000 square feet of exhibition space.

Each gift has a ripple effect – you might think you are just buying a membership or supporting a collection you love, but really you are doing much more. In the last year alone, donations to the Museum have made the following possible:

• The IMA presented 15 exhibitions, acquired 552 works of art, and completed 25 installations in our galleries.
• Our conservators complete treatments on 264 works of art—totaling 2,892 hours of treatment time.
• In addition to eight new art commissions, 100 Acres features 9,749 new plantings.
• The dedicated grounds team also added another 14,709 plantings to the gardens and grounds.
• 27,687 students participated in educational tours.
• 5,861 students from the Indianapolis Public School and Washington Township School systems participated in the Viewfinders program, which allows children to share ideas, think creatively and learn to disagree respectfully through the Visual Thinking Strategies curriculum.
• Our volunteers logged in 34,687 hours greeting our visitors, serving as docents, staffing The Toby, helping at special events, working in the gardens, and serving the Museum in a number of other ways.

We are grateful for every gift that has built the IMA throughout our history, and for every volunteer hour spent here. To anyone who has ever made a contribution to the IMA, thank you for sharing your passions with us!

National Philanthropy Day allows us to reflect on the meaning of giving. At the IMA, we appreciate what your gifts have meant to us, but we’d like to know…why do you give?

As of this month, at the ripe old age of five, it’s ancient in Web 2.0 terms. But for being a senior citizen of the web, Facebook sure has managed to stay fresh and relevant. What started as a social experiment in Mark Zuckerberg’s Harvard dorm room has grown to capture over 150 million users.

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Here are some ways Facebook has managed to grow and adapt so far…

-  its supernatural ability to help you reconnect with old high school buddies, network  professionally (ahem), plan killer bashes, and showcase your wit via status message

- the ever-growing collection of third-party Facebook applications, integration with Twitter, built-in Instant Messaging, blog importation capability, and more

These all allow users to express themselves in a rather addictive way.

Here at the IMA, we utilize Social Networking to reach a more diverse and (presumably) younger audience.  And, like any institution, we are always looking for ways to stay fresh and relevant.

However, TIME ’s tech writer, Lev Grossman makes a humorous argument as to why Facebook is for ‘Old Fogies.’  After all, Facebook’s fastest-growing demographic are those 30+. Could this be the kiss-of-death?

Illustration by John Cuneo for TIME

Others are predicting Facebook’s demise. Blogger Devin Johnston argues that unless Facebook changes drastically, it will fizzle out in just three years.

Sites like Facebook are doomed unless they radically alter their business and development models to reflect the needs, interests, and capabilities of internet users. There is room for Facebook to move away from providing service and toward assembling the services of others in a single location. Frankly, I think that this is the only way that Facebook will survive the coming revolution in social computing.

That’s a lot to ask of a five year old.

Do YOU think Facebook’s days are numbered? Will it continue to adapt, or be wiped out by something better-faster-stronger?