Mrs. Leonard (Be) Haas
1905 – 1997

Some will remember Mrs. Leonard "Be" Haas as the tireless volunteer, who donated countless hours to The League of Women Voters in the '30's, trying to do what she could to ensure no one's voice got lost in the clamor of a rapidly growing skyline. To others, Be was the strong woman who became a leader during a time when women were taught not to speak about money and politics. As the only woman appointee to Governor Arnall's commission to redraft and revise Georgia's constitution, she defied the idea of the powerless woman. She knew she could make a difference.

In 1954, Be helped to found the first fund-raising firm our city has ever known, and what a difference she made. She began the joint Tech-Georgia Development Fund, bringing them from $50,000 to $3.15 million. She doubled the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra's annual fund, and she was the woman behind the campaigns that built the Robert Woodruff Arts Center and the High Museum of Art. She was involved in planning more than 400 fund-raising campaigns for schools, hospitals, art groups, churches and civic programs. At one point, she was involved in 90 percent of the campaigns under way in the city. For her efforts, in 1988, she became the 22nd recipient of the WSB Radio/Atlanta Gas Light Company's "Shining Light" award for her service to humanity.

Those who first met Be in her later life, and only learned of her greatest accomplishments through written accounts (she never would speak of them herself), will remember her as a woman whose indomitable spirit allowed her to defy her role in society and the bonds of age as well.

On September 13, 1997, the city lost one of its strongest supporters, the fund-raising community lost its godmother, a family lost its rock, and we lost our advisor, co-worker and friend.

Mrs. Haas, was a recognized leader in Atlanta's philanthropic community, who founded Grizzard & Haas, Atlanta's first professional fund-raising firm, in 1954. For the next 25 years, she and her partner, Claude Grizzard, built their business into the premier fund-raising firm in Georgia. Mrs. Haas served as Principal Consultant for Alexander O'Neill Haas & Martin, Inc. until her death.

During 40 years as a fund-raising executive, Mrs. Haas directed over 200 campaigns in Atlanta. She helped provide the structure to raise untold millions of dollars to improve the quality of life for us all. To her credit are campaigns of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, the King Center, the High Museum of Art, the Woodruff Arts Center, the Battered Women's Shelter, Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine, the United Negro College Fund, Spelman College, Hillside Treatment Center, Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Sibley Center at Callaway Gardens, Piedmont Hospital and the Visiting Nurse Association, among many others. Most recently, Mrs. Haas provided counsel or campaign direction for such diverse institutions as the Atlanta Historical Society, the Northwest Georgia Girl Scout Council, Families First, Emmaus House, Georgia Council for Economic Education, the Southern Center for International Studies, Jerusalem House, the International Service Association of Health and Clifton Corridor Biomedical Research Council. She also taught fund raising at Emory University and for numerous other groups throughout the region.

Before becoming a fund-raising consultant, Mrs. Haas, a graduate of Wellesley College, spent many years as an active volunteer for the League of Women Voters. She was twice honored as Woman of the Year in Atlanta and served on the Board of Directors for several businesses and nonprofit organizations. In November 1993, she received the first Lifetime Achievement Award ever given by the Georgia Chapter of NSFRE.

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