If you’ve been reading the sites of the other gun bloggers in attendance, you’ll know the Kentucky Expo Center – one of the largest conference facilities in the country – was packed. How packed? And how big was the event?

• 66,229 NRA members entered the Exhibit Hall.*
• More than 25 massive contracts were signed to put the event on, including with 19 hotels and 5 security firms.
• NRA received $1.9 million during the meeting.^
• NRA-ILA raised more than $500,000 during their dinner & auction.**
• John Sigler made it a goal to raise $100 million during his presidency to endow NRA’s programs. He announced that halfway through, they have raised $60,844,197.31.^^
• For the endowment goals, that includes new gifts of $2,053,435 from 20 Board members. A special thanks to Sandy Froman was issued for her spectacular work on raising funds.
• 10,000 members of the military have taken advantage of the one-year free NRA membership program funded by donations from individuals.
• I got to meet the NRA News listener who donated 51 youth memberships to be given away during NRA News broadcasts.
• Matching gifts have become a big thing. August Busch has pledged $250,000 for the Youth Hunter Education Challenge if NRA Foundation can raise $500,000. Someone whose name I didn’t get has pledged $3,000,000 to support NRA programs if they can raise another $6,000,000. If this challenge gift is met, it will be the largest single donation in NRA’s history.

333399;">*This does not include people who attended the Leadership Forum, but did not go over to look at the guns.

333399;">^This is not profit. These events are freakin’ expensive. I don’t know if they made any money.

333399;">**IIRC, this is on par with what they made last year, though tickets were a fraction of the price and it was invitation only. This year they jacked the price up to $300 (a psychologically daunting number according to fundraisers I know – they either go big [$500+] or stay at or below $250) and didn’t sell out with the invitations, so they opened it to public sales which remained advertised and open until days before the event. If they made at least as much as they made last year, that’s fine. But if they want to make more, maybe reduce the ticket price and they will sell out and kick ass with the auction.

333399;">^^This is for NRA’s program side – programs that aren’t cheap. Think of the range programs, education efforts, classes, competitions, women’s programs, hunter outreach efforts, military training programs, disable shooter assistance, etc. This is the biggest part of NRA. It is the part that sets it off from other gun groups. Even if the others were ever doing anything on Capitol Hill, they are doing nothing to promote the shooting sports so that we have a pro-gun culture. Hearts and minds aren’t cheap to win, folks.

Related posts:

1. Facts from the NRA Convention