Support Mike Quinn

link: http://www.supportmikequinn.net/
                                                         
Eugene Kovalenko The D. Michael Quinn Fund: A Progress Report
By Eugene Kovalenko
October 2006

Dear donors and potential supporters of the D. Michael Quinn Fund:

It has been 6 months since the Wall Street Journal article put our friend and brother on its front page and embarrassed him before the world. Within days, a few of us began a support group in his behalf to get him back into the Mormon Studies saddle where he belongs, so that he would be independent of intimidating pressures. We established the D. Michael Quinn Fund in a bank in New Mexico that accepted the challenge to take an out of state account. Mike was not optimistic that anything would come of it at the beginning, but he appreciated the gesture.

First Goal

I'm pleased to report that, thanks to the few generous folks who stepped up to the plate , our first goal, to get Mike debt free, has been largely achieved (not quite, but close). There have been 16 individual donors to date (of the thousands of hits to the website). The smallest donation was a widow's mite of $1 and the largest was a generous $12,000. As the administrator of the account, I am the only person (besides the bank) who knows the names of donors, and I will be writing a separate bcc financial report to each by the end of next week (to those for whom I have addresses).

The bank account information needed to send donations can be found on http://www.supportmikequinn.net/how for those of you who wish to join this small stalwart band of courageous first contributors. If you can, we ask that you schedule a regular monthly amount so that Mike can work without interruption and distraction.

Second Goal

Our next goal is to provide Mike with a reliable and continuous income stream. When we asked for suggestions on how we might do this, there were two creative and practical suggestions:

1. Pay Pal account. I think more people will donate to Michael Quinn's account if a Pay Pal account is set up. It can be set up in 48 hours and it can be another, but not the only option. I can make a Pay Pal payment is less than one minute, but to write out a check and mail it off to a bank, that was put on my to do list 2 weeks ago and still has not been done. I am not the only person in this situation. [Note: you can set up a Pay Pal account so that it makes automatic deposits the DMQ Fund on a regular basis.]



2. Here is his blockbuster idea for a virtual academic chair: The "DNA Mormon" Chair in Mormon Studies (working title) The Wall Street Journal article discussed how university programs on Mormon Studies refuse to hire Michael Quinn. Why not create our own chair of Mormon Studies? It does not need to be connected with any university at this point; it could be created with a Foundation we create. This way we do not need to ask permission or beg. If Michael were the chair of the foundation, he could receive a stipend for this.

I will appreciate your input in developing these ideas.

Sincerely,

Eugene Kovalenko