philanthropy

George Aratani: A WWII Internee Turned History Buff

Posted on 02/22/2013 by | Who's News | Comments

Bulletin Today | LegacyGeorge Aratani was as personally well-known as the  imported products sold by the companies he founded — most notably, the Mikasa line of dinnerware, and Kenwood home audio equipment. Nevertheless, Aratani helped ensure that Americans knew the larger the story of the injustice inflicted on him and 122,000 Japanese Americans at the outbreak of World War II, when they were forced to leave their homes and live behind fences and under armed guard in internment camps, often losing their property and businesses …

Larry Selman: He Showed Us the Power of a Dollar

Posted on 01/25/2013 by | Who's News | Comments

Bulletin Today | LegacyLarry Selman had a lot of strikes against him from the start. Weighing just three pounds at birth, doctors thought he wouldn’t survive. In high school, he was identified as being developmentally handicapped and dropped out after a teacher told him that he wasn’t capable of earning a diploma. The best job he could get was working as a laborer for the city parks department. After the death of his parents and a benevolent uncle who’d helped him financially, he …

Caring for the Poor and Disadvantaged – an Act of Kindness

Posted on 10/18/2012 by | Philanthropy & Fundraising | Comments

Volunteering | Your LifeCarlos Slim, the richest man in the world, was recently quoted as saying “We have seen donations for a hundred years … and the problems and poverty are bigger. They have not solved anything.”  I’m perplexed by this statement. If you are a type A personality (like I am), you may think to yourself that Slim may be right.  Though global poverty has decreased over the last five years, according to a Brookings Institute study, the number of fragile states is …

Millennials: a New Hope for Philanthropy

Posted on 06/26/2012 by | Philanthropy & Fundraising | Comments

VolunteeringAs a Boomer, I have often shared my disappointment with my own generation on its performance and commitment to philanthropy.  We have a lot to learn from the preceding generation — the greatest generation — that not only recognizes the importance of giving and giving back, but sees it as a responsibility to be shared with the generations to come.  Actually, I think the Boomers will get there.  It will just take some time. Enter the Millennials (Generation Y or …

Legacy: Waldemar Klasing’s Million-Dollar Surprise

Posted on 06/8/2012 by | Who's News | Comments

Bulletin Today | Legacy | News RoundupsWhen we think of philanthropy, it’s usually as something that high-profile corporate moguls do with the spare millions (or billions) that they don’t spend on mansions, yachts and private jets. We tend to overlook another, less common but even more inspiring category of givers: ordinary middle-class or working-class wage-earners who quietly amass sizable fortunes by practicing extreme frugality, and then, after their passing, shock some college or charitable cause with a seven-figure bequest. In Tennessee, for example, folks are probably …

Three Ways to Cut Back on Fundraising Mail

Posted on 04/26/2012 by | Philanthropy & Fundraising | Comments

Volunteering | Your Life “Why do I get so much fundraising mail?” If you are in my position as a development professional, you sometimes get that call (or letter) from a donor that starts with, “Why do you send me so many requests for support?”  Obviously, if it’s “so much” it must be “more than I want.”  I usually get right to the point – how often would you like to hear from us?  Would you rather join our sustainer program? (A sustaining donor …

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