Women’s Giving Circles: Refl Ections From The Founders
Women’s Giving Circles:Reflections from the FoundersWritten by Sondra Shaw-Hardyfor the Women’s Philanthropy Instituteat the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana UniversityAugust 2009www.philanthropy.iupui.edu
WOMEN’S GIVING CIRCLES: REFLECTIONS FROM THE FOUNDERS
W W W. P H I L A N T H R O P Y. I U P U I . E D UTable of Contents5INTRODUCTION17 Deborah McManus,The WellMet Group (NY)24 Rebecca Powers,Impact Austin (TX)32 F O U N D E R S ’ T I P S F O RORGANIZING,RECRUITING, ANDFOUNDERS’ STORIES11 Sheila Paisner, Women’s18 Amy Kossoff, Womenade(Washington, DC)25 Marsha Wallace,Dining for Women (SC)Endowment Fund (MN)19 Jane Schoen, Women of11 Julie Fisher Cummings,Lovelight Foundation (MI)RETAINING MEMBERS26 Lee Roper-Batker,Texas Instruments FundWomen’s Foundation of(TX)Minnesota (MN)33 A V I S I O N F O R T H EFUTURE35 D I S C U S S I O N Q U E S T I O N S13 Colleen Willoughby,20 Ann Baker & Courtenay28 Lynn McNair, AfricanWashington Women’sWilson, Women’s GivingAmerican Women’s GivingFoundation (WA)Alliance (FL)Circle (Washington, DC)14 Deborah Hoffman, FundingArts Network (FL)22 Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz,Women’s Giving Circle of29 Hali Lee, Asian Women’sGiving Circle (NY)Howard County (MD)Leadership Council (CA)23 Wendy Hermann Steele,38 D E S C R I P T I O N S O FGIVING CIRCLESDISCUSSED IN THIS30 Rosie Molinary,15 Sheila Carroll, Women’s36 I N T E R V I E W Q U E S T I O N SBOOKLETCircle de Luz (NC)Impact 100 (OH)3
WOMEN’S GIVING CIRCLES: REFLECTIONS FROM THE FOUNDERSFOREWORDStories can be transformative. They evoke the imagination, connect us emotionally, and move us to action.Sondra Shaw-Hardy has contributed the valuable perspective of personal narrative to our understandingof how social movements develop by telling the personal, heartfelt philanthropic journeys of the dynamicwomen who created the first giving circles of the contemporary women’s philanthropy movement. Herexperiences as giving circle founder, author, and leader of the giving circle movement provide a uniquelens to view the exponential growth of this recent trend in philanthropy.During her own philanthropic journey, Sondra Shaw-Hardy co-founded the Women’s PhilanthropyInstitute (WPI) with Martha Taylor. WPI, now located at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, isdedicated to deepening the understanding of women’s philanthropy. We are pleased to share these storieswhich connect heart to head to hands.Dr. Debra MeschDirectorWomen’s Philanthropy InstituteAugust 2009D E D I C AT I O NThis book is dedicated to my mother, Nedra Beatrice Chase, whose intelligence and sense of justice areastounding. Her interest, knowledge, and achievements have been an inspiration to our entire family.Mother carried on the tradition of writing established by her mother, Dollie Lee Walcutt, a newspaperreporter in the late 1800’s. I am pleased to be a bearer of this gene to my children and grandchildren.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSTo Martha Taylor, my dear friend, colleague, and writing partner whose vision of women and philanthropyin 1988 at the University of Wisconsin created a movement. I will be eternally grateful for our partnership,both professional and personal.To Colleen Willoughby who physically created women’s giving circles. She has been my mentor, colleague,and friend. Thank you, Colleen, for motivating all of us.To Jack, who knows each of these wonderful women from their stories and who has supported all of usthrough this writing process.And finally, to all the women who have started or become part of women’s giving circles. You inspire me.You are making history through your innovative efforts.4
W W W. P H I L A N T H R O P Y. I U P U I . E D UIntroductionThis narrative shares the stories of the women founders of giving circles. The majority of the first giving circleswere created by women for women members. Though giving circles are now popular among both genders,women have contributed more significantly to the inception and the growth of the giving circle movement.While researchers now study giving circles, I wanted to make sure the personal stories of the early founders’efforts were recorded, too. I wanted to document their experiences; highlight their accomplishments; andcelebrate the excitement, enthusiasm, and energy of their efforts. I hope these stories will motivate others toestablish giving circles, to strengthen their current circle, and take their circle to a new level.I interviewed 18 women founders for this project. They represent a variety of giving circles, differing bymission, organizational structure, location, and membership demographics. The founders and members arediverse in age, religion, race, ethnicity, and income.Organized chronologically, the interviews document the growth of the giving circle movement as it hasexpanded across race, culture, geography, and age. Each founder’s story is unique and reveals her personaljourney into this new philanthropic landscape. Together, the stories reveal the creativity, tenacity, anddetermination of women who wish to transform their communities.Here is a snapshot of these narratives: Hali adapted the Korean “geh” into a giving circle; Oprah helpedMarsha’s idea become a reality; Amy can’t help giving away money; Lynn found her African heritage throughher circle; Sheila turned a horrible tragedy into a reason to live and help others; Lee discovered she’s not afraidto ask women for million dollar gifts; and Julie was committed to helping her friends give away money.Jane wanted to show young girls it’s not “nerdy” to be an engineer or scientist; Buffy’s family of strongwomen gave her courage to try new adventures and focus on women and girls; Colleen raised money forCampfire and mothered giving circles; and Rosie used her personal experiences as a Latina as the basis for hergiving circle.Wendy’s banking background helped in founding her circle; Sheila chaired an 11 million fundraisingcampaign in Minneapolis in the mid 80’s; Courtenay and Ann’s friendship became the Alliance that hasgranted more than 1.5 million; Deborah Hoffman’s mother has always been her inspiration in life; Rebeccaread an article in a time of sorrow that was the beginning of her circle; and Deborah McManus’ circle fills herBuddha bowl.I hope these stories inspire you – perhaps encourage you to join an existing giving circle or to start a newone with a few friends or colleagues. A story motivated my journey.5
WOMEN’S GIVING CIRCLES: REFLECTIONS FROM THE FOUNDERSMY INTRODUCTION TO GIVING CIRCLESOne day early in 1998 I was flying from my home in TraverseCity, Michigan to Washington, DC. In the airport, I pickedup a copy of People1 with a striking photo of Prince Charleson the cover. That surely must have been the reason Ipurchased the magazine.Thumbing through the magazine, I saw a picture of fourwomen in a kitchen throwing their hands up in celebration– Colleen Willoughby and her friends were celebrating thecreation of the Washington Women’s Fund in Seattle. Littledid I know that particular issue would be the beginning ofsomething so incredibly large in my life.I read about how these remarkable women invited theirfriends to contribute 2,500 annually, pool the money, anddistribute it via community grants (see Colleen’s story onpage 13). The idea lingered in my mind. At the time, I wasboard president of our Women’s Resource Center (WRC) inTraverse City. We needed money for our domestic violenceprograms and our shelter, Helen’s House. I thought, “Wecould do this. We could start a program like the one in Seattleto raise money for the WRC.”I really didn’t push the idea. I just talked about theconcept to a few people, including a friend in Florida, mystepdaughter who lived downstate, and a couple of friendsin town. To my amazement, each said that if I organizedsomething she would join at a 1,000 annual commitmentlevel. Wow! There wasn’t even an ask, just a story. It was theeasiest fundraising I’d ever done.Colleen Willoughby shared four pieces of valuableadvice when I called her: start small with people otherswant to be with, take your time organizing, understandthat developing the grantmaking process will take the mosttime, and encourage everyone to serve on the grantmakingcommittee. She emphasized the last point—it is vital to helpwomen connect to the group and its mission. The intensityof that connection is a key indicator of whether they willcontinue to give.STARTING MY GIVING CIRCLESoon afterward my friend, Susie Janis, and I talked. Wedecided to form a giving circle and discussed how to organize6it. We wanted to support the WRC, but also liked theidea of supporting more women and girls throughout thecommunity. We asked questions. For example, how do werecruit members? How do we allocate money? Should we askfor an annual gift or a multi-year pledge? We finally cameup with 14 questions which became the basis for my writingCreating a Women’s Giving Circle Handbook.2Susie and I made two key decisions. We chose to givehalf the money to the WRC and specifically to our domesticviolence shelter which always needed improvements. Theremaining half would be allocated via community grants tohelp women and girls achieve economic independence. Wewanted our gifts to be transformative: to help women becomeindependent and self-supporting.The other decision that we made was the name – ThreeGenerations Circle of Women’s Giving. Susie chose thenumber three for a couple of reasons. First, it takes threegenerations to break the cycle of domestic violence. Thesecond reason emphasizes our philanthropic heritage andgrowth as women; three generations ago our grandmothersgave their time to their family. Then our mothers gavetheir time to their families and communities. This made itpossible for us – the third generation – to give our time andto give our money as well.Three Generations Circle of Women Givers wasincorporated in 1999. We started with 16 members andmade our first round of grants in 2001, giving 8,000 toHelen’s House to resurface the cement threshold leadinginto the shelter. We allocated the 8,000 in communitygrants for three projects: an alternative high school literacyprogram for girls, the community college to assist femalestudents, and the Michigan Women’s Foundation for aprogram to encourage young girls’ philanthropy. The processmoved smoothly because of the staff support from CarmenSlendak, now Carmen Stevens, the WRC development officerwho handed all the details for us.Today we have 65 members and have served as a modelfor two more giving circles in the area. If our small town of15,000 and surrounding area of 150,000 can support threewomen’s giving circles, then every town in the United Statescan and should have one or more.Beginning in 2000, when I spoke to nonprofit
W W W. P H I L A N T H R O P Y. I U P U I . E D Uorganizations and women’s groups for the Women’sColleen Willoughby, so often credited as the catalyst for thePhilanthropy Institute (WPI), now located at the Center oncreation of many other circles, did not call the WashingtonPhilanthropy at Indiana University (COP), I said my dreamWomen’s Foundation a giving circle until the movementwas to have a giving circle in every major city in the Unitedbegan to grow.States. Little did I know that some nine years later, the“tipping point” would have occurred and that dream wouldhave nearly become real. It was just the right time for thisastonishing phenomenon.New Ventures in Philanthropy, an initiative of theForum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers, noticedthat giving circles often attracted a diverse group of newdonors. It invested time and resources to explore thisburgeoning phenomenon as part of its mission to promoteTHE GIVING CIRCLE MOVEMENTphilanthropy, especially to those who had not been partWomen have always contributed time and talent to theirof mainstream philanthropy. In the summer of 2004, itcommunities. The giving circle movement grew in part atthe end of the 20th century because women had capacityas never before. This expanded capacity arose because ofwomen’s increased income, education, and inheritance fromfamilies and marriages. Perhaps most significant, womenhad gained control of their finances – of their wealth andconsequently of their philanthropy. Women began toconvened some of the early giving circle founders inBaltimore to learn more about giving circles. The next yearNew Ventures published Giving Together: A NationalScan of Giving Circles and Shared Giving,4 which garnerednational media attention and generated scores of articles inlarge and small publications.And the movement continued to grow. In 2007, Newappreciate how they could make the world a better placeVentures issued a second scan of giving circles, More Givingthrough their philanthropy.Together: An Updated Study of the Continuing GrowthSome women, accustomed to supporting special eventfundraisers, recognized the benefits of the giving circlemodel. Daria Teutonico, former director of the Forum ofRegional Associations of Grantmakers New Ventures inPhilanthropy initiative, explained, “With the same amountof money you’d use to write a check to a charity, you get toand Powerful Impact of Giving Circles and Shared Giving.5That research, which found more than 400 giving circlesaround the country, suggested that giving circles continue toproliferate and seem likely to be a permanent fixture on thephilanthropy landscape.The final report in the New Ventures series was releasedmake more of a difference, spend more time with friends,in May 2009. Professor Angela Eikenberry, Universityand learn more about what your community needs.”3of Nebraska at Omaha, and consultant Jessica BearmanThese philanthropic groups are called “circles” becausewomen relate to the egalitarian, non-hierarchical, andinclusive concept. The concept has been connected forseveral centuries to women’s groups such as sewing circlesand religious circles. The word “giving” in giving circlescollaborated on The Impact of Giving Together.6 They foundthat when donors participate in giving circles they give more,give more strategically, and are more knowledgeable abouttheir community.Eikenberry has described giving circles as “theis credited to former Women’s Philanthropy Institutedemocratization of philanthropy.” Giving circles allowPresident Patricia Lewis. I called them “donor” circleseveryone a place at the philanthropic table. Eikenberry’suntil she emphatically said no. She said we must use the2009 book, Giving Circles: Philanthropy, Voluntaryword “giving,” because women think of themselves as givers.Association, and Democracy,7 explores this theme moreOne of giving circles’ major goals was to grow women asthoroughly.philanthropists – as donors. We needed to start, however,where women were comfortable – as givers.No one used the term “giving circle” for the early groupsbecause it was not yet part of the philanthropic vocabulary.ORIGINS OF THE SIX C’SMany of the giving circle founders interviewed for thisbooklet reported that the basis for creating their circles7
WOMEN’S GIVING CIRCLES: REFLECTIONS FROM THE FOUNDERSwere the six C’s of women’s giving: create, change, commit,connect, collaborate, and celebrate. As a result, the six C’sare interwoven throughout the women founders’ stories.Realizing the Potential of Women’s Philanthropy.9To gather information we decided to hold two focusgroups with career women – one with her generation, bornbetween 1946 and 1964, and one with my generation bornREBECCA POWER, IMPACT AUSTIN, AUSTIN, TX“We formed Impact Austin around the Six C’s of Women’sbetween 1931 and 1945.Each focus group included fifteen women. When weGiving. I never knew how women gave because I never gave.analyzed the information, we found similar results forI learned that women love to create something that canmotivations and barriers to women’s giving among thechange the world for the better. It’s through collaborationtwo age groups. In addition, we realized that the first fiveduring our grant review process that women connect andmotivations for women’s giving began with the letter “C.”feel really committed to the role they play. We also like toBut the last motivation was “to have fun.” How could wecelebrate our accomplishments and our annual meeting givesturn that motivation into a “C”? Finally an inspiration –us that opportunity. Impact Austin has given women theconfidence to increase their capacity to give because they“celebrate.” That word proved apt as we have experiencedmuch to celebrate about women and philanthropy overhave control over the decision-making.the last 20 years. From these sessions, other focus groups,We knew that if this was how women give, this was howand interviews with individual women philanthropists, wewomen would stay in our group. We believed that if wecompiled the six C’s of women’s giving.accepted those six C’s and kept them in front of us when weWomen give with the intent to:were building Impact Austin, we would continue to grow. And ANN BAKER, WOMEN’S GIVING ALLIANCE, Change things for the better; make a difference Commit through volunteerism to the organizationsand institutions whose vision they share; often giveJACKSONVILLE, FL“We use all of the six C’s. You can’t change withoutcollaborating. You can’t commit to the mission withoutto organizations to which they have volunteered Connect with the human face their gift affects;build a partnership with people connected with theconnecting to the organization and the people involved.And part of the fun is to celebrate your creation.”Create new solutions to problems; beentrepreneurial through their philanthropywe still talk about them. That’s why we’ve been so successful.”project they fund Collaborate with others – often other women – asMartha Taylor and I created the framework for the sixpart of a larger effort; seek to avoid duplication,C’s by accident. We both worked in Madison, Wisconsin.competition and wasteMartha was Vice President for the University of Wisconsin- Celebrate – have fun together; celebrate theirMadison Foundation and I was Assistant Director at theaccomplishments; enjoy the deeper meaning andState Historical Society of Wisconsin. Our paths had crossedsatisfaction of their philanthropybecause we were both in development; we had no idea thenthat women’s philanthropy would be the foundation for anenduring friendship.Fundraising consultant Judith Nichols, editor of the fallTHREE NEW C’S FOR A NEW CENTURYRecognizing that women’s roles in society and inphilanthropy have continued to evolve, we added three C’s1991 issue of the National Society of Fundraising Executivesin 2005. And there is yet another C to consider—capacity.Journal,8 had asked Martha, because of her early work withWomen’s philanthropic potential, through earnings,women and philanthropy at the University of Wisconsin, tomarriage, and inheritance, has created an unparalleledwrite an article on career women and their giving. Marthacapacity to give.asked me to help her, and I agreed. That research providedthe impetus for our first book, Reinventing Fundraising:8Increased capacity enables women to:
W W W. P H I L A N T H R O P Y. I U P U I . E D U Take control of their lives, their finances, and their Gain confidence to become philanthropic leaders Have the courage to challenge the old ways of doingphilanthropythings and take risks with their giving to bring aboutchangeThere was no better proof of the impact of the six C’splus three than Martha’s and my friendship and our ownbigger journey into philanthropy. We helped create thewomen’s philanthropy movement that includes giving circles.We changed the way women think about philanthropy.Our connection and collaboration came from our heartfeltcommitment to women’s philanthropy. We celebratedthe joy of our work together in our publications andpresentations. We also celebrated the results of the womenand philanthropy movement as we saw women take controlof their financial resources, gain the confidence to become
Minnesota (MN) 28 Lynn McNair, African American Women’s Giving . heartfelt philanthropic journeys of the dynamic . an alternative high school literacy program for girls, the community college to assist female students, and the Michigan Women’s Foundation for a
Two circles are congruent circles if and only if they have congruent radii. A B if AC BD . AC BD if A B. Concentric circles are coplanar circles with the same center. Two coplanar circles that intersect at exactly one point are called tangent circles . Internally tangent circles Externally tangent circles Pairs of Circles
Coplanar Circles and Common Tangents In a plane, two circles can intersect in two points, one point, or no points. Coplanar circles that intersect in one point are called tangent circles. Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric circles. A line or segment that is tangent to two coplanar circles is called a common tangent. A
COPLANAR CIRCLES are two circles in the same plane which intersect at 2 points, 1 point, or no points. Coplanar circles that intersects in 1 point are called tangent circles. Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric. 2 points tangent circles 1 point concentric circles. . no points Slide 16 / 150
COPLANAR CIRCLES are two circles in the same plane which intersect at 2 points, 1 point, or no points. Coplanar circles that intersects in 1 point are called tangent circles. Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric. 2 points tangent circles 1 point concentric circles. . no points Slide 15 / 150
COPLANAR CIRCLES are two circles in the same plane which intersect at 2 points, 1 point, or no points. Coplanar circles that intersects in 1 point are called tangent circles. Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric. 2 points tangent circles 1 point concentric circles. . no points Slide 15 / 149
circles that intersect in one point are called tangent circles. Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric circles. A line or segment that is tangent to two coplanar circles is called a common internal tangent A common external tangent two circles. Notes: intersects the segment that joins the centers of the two circles .
Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric circles. 2 points of intersection 1 point of intersection (tangent circles) no points of intersection concentric circles A line or segment that is tangent to two coplanar circles is called a common tangent. A common internal tangent intersects the segment that joins the centers of .
Coplanar circles that have a common center are called concentric circles. 2 points of intersection 1 point of intersection (tangent circles) no points of intersection concentric circles A line or segment that is tangent to two coplanar circles is called a common tangent. A common internal tangent intersects the segment that joins the centers of .
