The Detroit News: The Henry Ford relying on income

The Detroit News reports on Dearborn’s Henry Ford Museum’s somewhat stable economic situation:

The Henry Ford, which also runs Greenfield Village and an IMAX theater, isn’t in dire straits as are many arts organizations.

“From what I read,” said chief financial officer Denise Thal, “we are in somewhat better shape than other institutions because we always relied on earned income rather than donations. At a time like this, donations have dried up more than attendance,” which Thal attributes to the “stay-cation” phenomenon as families canceled travel plans.

The Henry Ford’s donations dropped only 2 percent this year to $5 million and Thal expects 2009 to yield a 1 percent profit. The nonprofit has avoided layoffs and other draconian cuts.

“For so long, people wrongly assumed we were fully subsidized by the Ford Motor Co.,” Thal said. “So we never had the same level of donations other organizations had, and thus did not have those to lose in a slump.”

Thal said income from rentals and catering dipped about $1 million over the last year, but she attributes that to a falloff in corporate events.

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