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Jan
24

Philanthropy Is Where He Lives

Bruce L. Blumer of the Dakotas United Methodist Foundation shared this story with us:

A donor invited me to visit with him to discuss his estate, so we set up a time to meet at his farm.

I drove up to the nice two-story home and knocked on the door. A lady answered, and when I asked for the donor, she said he lived next door – in a trailer.

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Jan
02

Marketing Gift Annuities After The Rate Reduction

by Brian Sagrestano

With the November announcement that the American Council on Gift Annuities recommended gift annuity rates would be reduced effective January 1, there was a healthy debate in the charitable community about whether to advertise this change to prospects. With the change behind us, it is a good time to reaffirm that our planned gift marketing should be focused on:

  • supporting the good that we do (our mission),
  • while helping the prospect meet a personal planning objective (like increasing retirement income).

This donor-centric approach ensures that our appeals will produce qualified leads, regardless of gift annuity rates.
Dec
13

Gone Without Trace:
Man Bequeaths $2 Million to Uncle Sam

By Viken Mikaelian

I don’t think any of us would be in this business if we didn’t believe that philanthropy, giving, the act of charity – no matter how humble – ennobles everything it touches.

But I don’t know whether to laugh or cry just now, because I learned recently that a man in Florida willed his house to the U.S. government so the sales proceeds could be applied to defray the National Debt. Read more »
Dec
02

Jessica

Before she became ill, I used to see Jessica every Sunday night when her parents came to play in the little mixed-couples pickup basketball league at the parish gym. At that time — and this was twenty years ago — Jessica was about one year old. Cute kid. An only child who was barely talking yet.
During the games when I was on the sidelines, I’d try to say hello to her and make friends. Usually, a child will come over and get acquainted with me sooner or later, but not Jessica. No matter what I tried, she wasn’t having any part of it. She kept her distance.  For some reason, I frightened her.
Later that year, Jessica became ill. The doctors said she had neuroblastoma, a form of cancer that most commonly affects children under the age of five, usually detected only after it has started to spread. So even before she was age two, Jessica knew what it was to lose her hair to chemotherapy.
The illness brought our whole parish together to find ways to help Jessica and her family.  It was no surprise that one major area where help was needed was money.  Jessica’s parents were not well-to-do people — just good people.
Many Voices
So with the parents’ permission I began organizing fundraising events.  One was a multi-choir concert featuring singers from four multi-denominational local churches. It seemed a life-affirming way for the community to contribute. Ticket proceeds would help to pay the $5,000 deductible on the little girl’s health insurance.
One day I met Jessica and her parents at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh — where the little girl was receiving an emergency transfusion — to finalize some important concert details. Jessica’s dad invited me to stick around until his wife and Jessica returned.  Knowing the effect I had on the child, I was hesitant to stay, but ultimately
I did.
Soon, Jessica’s mom turned the corner pulling one of those portable IV drip trolleys.  Jessica was in her arms connected to an IV tube.  When Jessica saw me she immediately hid her face against her mom.  We all chuckled, and I thought, “Some things never change.  What is it about me that frightens her?”
Jessica’s Gift
But the next thing I knew, Jessica turned back, stared at me for what seemed like minutes, then reached out her little arms like she wanted to give me a hug!  After I cautiously approached, she put her arms around my neck and just squeezed. One-and-a-half-year-old Jessica was giving me the biggest hug she could. Words can’t describe how I felt at that moment.
Then her parents explained.
“Do you know why Jessica hugged you, Jack? It’s because you’re bald. Jessica thinks you have cancer, too. And she’s trying to comfort you.”
Jessica passed away a few months later. If she had lived, she’d be celebrating her 20th birthday in 2012. Fortunately, her parents were later blessed with another daughter and a son — all healthy.
I share this story because Jessica’s compassion changed my life. I began by trying to generate a gift for her, and in the end her gift to me was greater — a lesson on how suffering can help people put aside their fears to serve one another.  She enabled me to realize that there is no greater gift than the gift of compassion.
When I was recently ordained a deacon in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, I incorporated Jessica’s story into my first homily.  I continue to share it today with others as I have with you.
Despite Jessica’s short lifespan, she lives on through her kindness and compassion.
That’s what I call leaving a legacy.By Jack Miller, CFRE

By Jack Miller, CFRE

Before she became ill, I used to see Jessica every Sunday night when her parents came to play in the little mixed-couples pickup basketball league at the parish gym. At that time — and this was twenty years ago — Jessica was about one year old. Cute kid. An only child who was barely talking yet.Jessica knew what it was to lose her hair to chemotherapy

During the games when I was on the sidelines, I’d try to say hello to her and make friends. Usually, a child will come over and get acquainted with me sooner or later, but not Jessica. No matter what I tried, she wasn’t having any part of it. She kept her distance.  For some reason, I frightened her.

Read more »
Sep
27

You Can’t Take it With You – Even if You’re Buried with It

By James Pierson

Yet another shock headline: A cemetery worker in Wisconsin stole a valuable Fender Telecaster electric guitar from the casket of a deceased individual who had asked to be buried with the instrument.

Hey, I’d like a Tele, too – but I draw the line at robbing graves.

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Aug
23

There IS Money out there – Example #71

by James Pierson

I ran into a philanthropically-minded couple recently at a little farmers market that my hometown hosts weekly. A charming little event, it’s actually not a place to buy fresh produce at bargain prices…but that’s not what this couple was there for.

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Jul
13

Billions and Billions…
Yale Tomorrow Raises 3.88 of Them

The five-year Yale Tomorrow campaign that concluded on June 30 after raising $3.88 billion did absolutely nothing to interfere with Yale University’s enviable position as one of the two richest institutions of higher learning in the United States.

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Jul
05

UP the Down Economy!
Chapter Five – Accentuate the Positive Giving Outcomes

Refuse to be part of the slowdown. You’ve got the ambition, motivation, energy, and ingenuity. We’ve got some ideas to share. But start now – because he (or she) who hesitates is lost!

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Jun
14

UP the Down Economy!
Chapter Four – Got an Advantage? Better USE It!

Refuse to be part of the slowdown. You’ve got the ambition, motivation, energy, and ingenuity. We’ve got some ideas to share. But start now – because he (or she) who hesitates is lost! Read more »
Jun
09

$59 Million for a House with No Name?

That’s right: Late billionaire John Kluge’s Palm Beach estate – known as “Casa Sin Nombre” – is on the block for $59 mil. It’s currently the priciest parcel up for purchase in La Playa de Las Palmas, and Kluge gifted this property to his alma mater, Columbia University, by bequest in 2007.

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