Weekly News Recap: June 24, 2016
Rob and Tanya Ennis with their six-year-old triplets David, Liam and Ryan. Liam needed heart surgery after being born. (Supplied)
Thoughtful and important
- Google honours Jo Cox on her 42nd birthday and links to donation page This was thoughtful, appropriate, and lovely. Thank you Google. The campaign for Jo Cox is the largest UK campaign Go Fund Me has seen, and the third largest globally. (6/22/16)
Studies and stats
- The 20 Most Generous Companies of the Fortune 500 Here is a list of the top 20 corporate givers in the U.S. In total, these companies gave $3.5 billion in 2015. (6/22/16)
- New Zealanders' charity donation amounts falling Gifts to charity in New Zealand have dropped by 10%. (6/22/16)
- "Pay-What-It-Takes Philanthropy" in Stanford Social Innovation Review Finally! This conversation is long overdue. The Bridgespan study found that indirect costs at many organizations ranged from 21 percent to 89 percent of the direct costs. Funders are coming around to the fact that they have been chronically underfunding nonprofits and the consequences are insidious and far-reaching. We need to start covering these costs or our most important nonprofits may cease to exist. (6/17/16)
Philanthropic controversy
- Rasmussen: Examining the donation fee Many U.S. Colleges are instituting 'donation fees' alongside the regular fees to buy season tickets to their football games. For example, at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln, the 'donation fee' is $2,500 per ticket. For me, this is clearly not a donation, and more importantly, it seems like a crappy way to treat current and prospective donors. (6/18/16)
- Army veteran to take over at Wounded Warrior Project after troubles We have been following this story for a while. Looks like they are bringing in the 'big guns' to get this fixed. Seems like a good move to me. (6/17/16)
Orlando
- Orlando to Give $7 Million Directly to Shooting Victims This is likely very good for the families but it does appear to be a bit of an indictment of the charitable sector. "Too little of money distributed that way [via charities] following past tragedies made its way to victims and families." (6/20/16)
Endowments
- Mott Foundation hits $3 billion mark with 90 years of giving This foundation, based in Flint Michigan, was started by one of the founders of General Motors in 1926 with 2,000 GM shares valued at $160 per share ($320,000). Today, total assets of the Foundation are $2.7 billion. If this story is not a poster child for the value of endowments, I don't know what is. (6/19/16)
News
- Recruiting Volunteers for The City’s Boards, Commissions and Committees Feeling civic minded? The City of Calgary is seeking citizens to sit on a variety of Boards, Commissions, and Committees. Examples include the Heritage Authority, the Public Art Board, the Airport Authority, the Police Commission, and the Saddledome Foundation, to name a few. CALGARY STORY - DEADLINE: June 30
- Jo Cox Gofundme page smashes £500,000 target as Britain bands together to support heartbroken family of tragic MP Often, out of tragedy comes greatness. We all feel strongly about what happened to British M.P. Jo Cox, none more so that Britons themselves. In addition to helping the Cox family, these funds will also be directed to charities that Jo Cox supported. (6/18/16)
- Stampede unveils brand-new Enmax Park Home of the new Indian village during Stampede, this space will be open to the public for the rest of year. CALGARY STORY (6/18/16)
Life and career hacks
- The Ivy Lee Method: The Daily Routine Experts Recommend for Peak Productivity So simple. So true. And, a great story to boot. (6/18/16)
- Why Measurement Improves Performance "If the measures aren’t captured on a highly visible scoreboard and regularly updated, the WIG (Wildly Important Goal) will disappear into the distraction of the whirlwind. Simply put, people disengage when they don’t know the score" Yep. (6/15/16)
Large gifts
- Canadian Museum of History accepts record $2M donation from Eaton family Yes, the very same family that started the great (now defunct) Canadian department store, Eaton's. This gift is from Frederik Eaton and his family. Frederik is the great grandson of Timothy Eaton. The money will be used to develop a new signature exhibit, the Canadian History Hall. CANADIAN STORY (6/22/16)
- $54.5M for women and children health research at University of Alberta Boom! In case you were wondering what happens when you give to important foundations like the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation and the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation. $40 million from the Stollery and $14.5 million from the Royal Alex. These grants are transformational. Thank you Stollery, thank you Royal Alex! ALBERTA STORY (6/22/16)
- Donation from the estate of Erwin Hart to fund professorship programs Erwin Hart was a civil engineering graduate from University of Toronto in 1940 and was the Chief Welding Engineer for the manufacturing company Massey Ferguson Ltd. Mr. Hart made his $20 million bequest to support seven $225,000 research grants to be made to faculty members in the first ten years of their career. Nice boost. Nice gift. CANADIAN STORY (6/21/16)
- Muhammad Ali cultural center gets major donation UPS has donated $500,000 to the Louisville cultural center showcasing Muhammad Ali's fights inside the ring and out, against war and segregation. (6/21/16)
- Louisville chapter of Red Cross receives largest donation ever This $1.4 million gift is from estate of Jack and Gladys Jonas. Their son was gravely injured in a farming accident and the Red Cross was instrumental in saving his life. (6/21/16)
- University of Oregon nets $7 million donation to renovate oldest science building Cheryl and Allyn Ford are making this gift to support the renovations to sections of Pacific Hall at the University of Oregon. The University of Oregon is located in Eugene, Oregon. (6/17/16)
- TCM charity clinic gets $1m donation The Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) charity clinic, Sian Chay Medical Institution in Singapore, has received this gift from Kenny Lim. (6/17/16)
- Revolution Museum opening date set & major donation announced Board Chairman H.F. "Gerry" Lenfest has made a $10 million challenge grant. Mr. Lenfest previously made a $40 million matching gift. The Museum of the American Revolution opens in April 2017 in Philadelphia. (6/16/16)
- 11 Bay Area colleges to split $50 million donation The Koret Foundation has donated $50 million to split between 12 Northern California colleges and universities for scholarships and to fund improved technology and research. The Koret Foundation was started with the estates of Joseph and Stephanie Koret, whose Koret of California sportswear line was a leader in ladies’ coordinated fashion. (6/16/16)
- Forbes' $17.5 million gift to U-M cancer research largest private donation in U-M history Madeline and Sidney Forbes have made this gift to the University of Michigan's $4 billion Victors for Michigan Campaign. The University of Michigan is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (6/16/16)
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