Topic: personal philanthropy
... a selection of articles, some original and others taken from newspapers, magazines, and online resources that focus on civic engagement and issues of interest to boomers and others 50+. If you would like to comment on any of the articles, please click here to go to the message board.
Changing the World, $5 at a Time
Anna McDonnell, age 51, is passionately concerned about at-risk girls. "I just believe," she says, "that gender inequality is probably the greatest single cause of the imbalances on our planet." So, she created a social networking site called "5 for Fairness" where for a donation as little as $5 you can help to give a leg up to girls both here and abroad.
Here's how the site works. Once you give your $5 you join a team of other site members championing an organization you think deserves a grant. Once the donations account reaches $5,000, members vote where to send the grant, choosing from among the five teams with the most member support.
The site costs very little to run. It uses NING, a free, web hosting service and Pay Pal charges only a small fee for processing donations. The charity has already funded three projects serving at-risk girls in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Los Angeles.
Could You Give Away Half Of What You Own?
Kevin and Hannah Salwen don't look all that different from you and me but what they and the rest of their family have done is quite extraordinary. Together, the family decided to sell their Atlanta mansion, move into a much smaller home and donate half of the savings - about $800,000 - to a village in Ghana through The Hunger Project. What's even more interesting is that the idea for the project came from Hannah, the family's then 14 year old daughter. Kevin, a journalist, and Hannah have now written a book about their experience entitled, The Power of Half.
Check out this short interview with Kevin Salwen from Encore.org. Some have criticized the Salwens saying that they could afford to lose the money or that they shouldn't have sent it overseas. What do you think?
Fun-Raising: Giving Circles and Boomers
"Giving Circles Mix Fun, Fundraising" which appeared in USA Today, is one of several articles that have noted the appeal of giving circles for boomers. It makes sense. Giving circles combine several boomer passions: making a difference, connecting socially, learning and having control over where your charitable contributions go. What are giving circles? They are groups of people who pool their resources (volunteer hours as well as money) and jointly decide what nonprofits will benefit. There are some 400 giving circles in America, both small and large. An example of the latter right here in Delaware is Social Ventures Partners Delaware. The group has given away $1.3 million and 9,000 volunteer hours since its inception in 2002.
