The Heritage Foundation has reached an important milestone in our ten-year Leadership for America campaign.

At the end of August, our membership rolls topped half a million for the first time, reaching 515,000. That’s up from 395,000 at the start of the year and 281,000 at the start of 2007. This brings us one step closer to our goal of one million members by 2017.

These members are concerned Americans from every state, from all walks of life, who have supported our work financially in the past two years. (Not a member? Join today.)

This growth reflects the continued importance of conservative principles. In the absence of real leadership from politicians and political parties, the American people are turning to The Heritage Foundation for solutions to today’s most pressing problems.

Through the Leadership for America campaign, we have rededicated ourselves to the principles that have made our nation great: free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense.

We have a plan to translate these principles into concrete results in Washington and around the nation. And with an engaged membership growing in every Congressional district, we cannot fail to have an even greater influence on national policy debates as we move forward.

From all of us at Heritage, a big thank-you to our members and supporters.