Walking the green carpet

[bapopik at AOL.COM]

I was talking to a campaign fundraiser. He spoke several times of having people "walking the green carpet." He said that this is a fundraising term from the 1980s. It means that people come back to you with money.
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I couldn't find a good "green carpet" citation anywhere. (Not to be confused with "red carpet.") But, from the way he used the term, it seems to be established in the fundraising world. No?