Closures happen. A burst pipe shuts the galleries for six weeks, a hurricane closes the zoo for a month, a public health order keeps the gates locked for a season. Members paid for a year of visits, and the fair thing to do is give them the time back. The hard part is doing it for thousands of records without spending a month editing them one at a time.
This guide covers how to decide who gets extended and by how much, the ways to make the change in Altru, and what to check afterward so the extension doesn’t quietly break renewals, cards, or reports.
Settle the rule before you touch any records
Bulk changes go wrong when the policy is fuzzy. Answer these questions in writing first, and get sign-off from whoever owns membership revenue:
- Who qualifies? Usually every membership that was active on the first day of the closure. Decide what to do about members who lapsed during the closure, and about people who joined or renewed mid-closure.
- How much time? The simplest approach is a flat extension equal to the length of the closure (for example, 45 days for everyone). A per-member calculation based on how many closed days fell inside each person’s term is fairer on paper but much harder to execute and explain.
- Which programs and levels? Complimentary, reciprocal, or staff memberships may not need the same treatment. Lifetime memberships with no expiration are out of scope.
- What about lapsed members? If someone’s membership expired the week before you closed, do they get anything? Pick an answer so the front desk isn’t improvising.
Build the list with a query
Create a membership query that returns exactly the records you’ll change: membership ID, constituent, program, level, current expiration date, and status. Filter on status and expiration date to match your rule. Save it with a clear name, and export a copy before you change anything. That export is your before-snapshot, and you’ll want it if something needs to be reversed or questioned later.
Scan the results for surprises: memberships with blank expiration dates, duplicates for the same household, or records that already have a future-dated renewal pending. Deal with those separately instead of letting them ride along in the bulk change.
Ways to make the change in Altru
Check for a global change first
Altru includes global change processes for updating many records at once. Look through the ones available to you for anything that updates membership expiration dates. What’s available depends on your version and your organization’s setup, so don’t assume one exists until you’ve seen it in your own database. If you see one, run it against your saved query or selection. If you don’t, ask Blackbaud support whether there’s a supported way to shift membership expiration dates in bulk. They can tell you what applies to your version.
Use the import tools, if your database supports it
Some organizations update existing records through Altru’s import process using a spreadsheet built from the query export, with the new expiration date calculated in Excel. Whether membership expiration dates can be updated this way in your setup is something to confirm with Blackbaud support or test carefully on a handful of records before you run a full file.
Edit by hand, in organized batches
For a few hundred memberships or fewer, manual edits on each membership record are slow but predictable. Split the export into chunks, assign them to staff, and have each person mark rows as done. Add a consistent note on each record (for example, “Extended 45 days for 2026 closure”) so anyone who sees the new date later knows why.
Always test small first
Whatever method you choose, run it on five or ten records, then open those records and confirm the new date, the status, and the membership history all look right. Only then run the rest.
What to check after the extension
The expiration date touches more than the membership record. After the change, look at:
- Renewal communications. Renewal mailings and emails built on expiration-date queries should pick up the new dates the next time they run. Check that nothing was already queued, scheduled, or exported with the old dates.
- Membership cards. Printed cards that show the expiration date will be wrong. Decide whether you’re reissuing cards or telling desk staff to trust the system over the card.
- Admission scanning. Once the original date has passed for a few extended members, confirm they still come up as active at the door.
- Retention and lapse reports. An extension changes when members show up as lapsed. Note the change in your board or committee reporting so a dip or bump next year isn’t misread.
- Finance. If your finance team recognizes membership revenue over the term, a longer term may matter to them. Loop them in before, not after.
Tell members what you did
An extension members don’t know about earns you very little goodwill. Send a short message explaining the extension, how many days were added, and where they can see their new expiration date. Make sure the front desk has the same wording, because members will ask.
Quick answers
Should renewals during the closure also get extended?
Usually yes, if the renewed term overlaps the closure. Make sure your query catches memberships that renewed mid-closure, and check that you aren’t extending the same member twice.
Can we undo an extension?
Only as cleanly as your records allow. That’s why the before-export and a consistent note on each record matter: they let you identify exactly which memberships changed and what the original dates were.
