Nearly 20 years ago, Ignacio Holtz was suffering from chronic kidney disease.
In desperate need of a donor, his wife, Beatriz, made the life-saving sacrifice of a healthy kidney. Not long after, he joined a Rotary club and was inspired to help others in need.
Since then, Ignacio has founded and dedicated himself to an organ donation program in partnership with the Rotary Foundation. Heart 2 Heart, which is a collaboration between Mexican and US Rotary clubs, designed to save the lives of young people in need of kidney transplants and to help them find donors.
Every day, Ignacio and his team screen donors, recipients, negotiates rates and offer logistical support to those families who need it most. To date, Ignacio’s program has saved over 500 lives.
He still speaks with his first ever patient, then a 15-year-old girl, whose uncle gave his kidney to help her. Ignacio’s program enabled her to live a full and healthy life, and she is now a mother to her own little girl. It is these stories of the young men and women that Beatriz and Ignacio have saved, and the lives they go on to lead, which motivate and inspire them.
A Librarian’s Commitment to Young Life in California
Olga Valencia Cardenas, a librarian at Stanislaus County Library in Modesto, California, started a book club at the local Juvenile Hall and Juvenile Commitment Center for young men a couple of years ago. It wasn’t long before word started to spread out about how popular and successful the book clubs were, and how thrilled the youth were to have their ideas and opinions heard.
For her amazing work, going truly above and beyond her role as a local librarian, Olga was chosen to receive the I Love My Librarian Award, which comes with a $5,000 cash prize. While most people might have used the prize money for personal reward, Olga donated every cent to create a new Juvenile Justice Center Library at the Juvenile Hall and Juvenile Commitment Center. To her, the success of the book clubs showed that the need for a library at the Hall was paramount.
Though the money was obviously important for the completion of the project, none of this would be possible without Olga’s drive to do so much more for the community than expected. Olga is an inspiration to us all and her extraordinary generosity shows that any one person can change the world.
Olga Valencia Cardenas, youth services outreach librarian, Stanislaus County Library.
Of all the donations Vartan Gregorian has received in his years of serving great institutions, one stands out in his memory.
During the nine years that Vartan served as president of the New York Public Library, he would join his old friend and NYPL Trustee, Mrs. Brooke Russell Astor, along with Chairman Andrew Heiskell and other Library leaders at the entrance of the 42nd Street Library to greet members and guests for the annual holiday open house.
Guests ranged from the prominent to ordinary citizens; famous faces and everyday New Yorkers. Some occasionally handed envelopes with checks or cash donations to Library leaders. Vartan would put the envelopes in his pocket for safe keeping.
Vartan fondly recalls one occasion when he later opened the envelopes and found a Social Security check with a note saying, “I don’t have lots of money but I hope this will help.”
To this day Vartan is touched by that giver. That check was a gift of sacrifice out of gratitude and, he believes, the essence of the spirit of true philanthropy. In such small gifts lie the hearts of great givers.
Vartan Gregorian
President and CEO of Carnegie Corporation of New York
Physics classroom in Moscow public school. (Photo by Howard Sochurek/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images)
Dmitry Zimin is many things. A Russian, a scientist, a businessman, and a philanthropist. As a donor, he is exceptional, not simply because of the millions of dollars he has given away to science and education-based projects, but because he is a trailblazer. He created the first family philanthropy in post-Soviet Russia. He had the insight to recognize the positive impact that this could have in Russia, particularly in the realm of science, and the ambition and wealthy to make it a reality.
Zimin’s own scientific work had made him a wealthy man, and he was not interested in leaving all his money to heirs – convinced that it would lead to their ruin. Instead, he retired from his successful telecommunications company, Vimpelcom, Ltd, and used his money to found the Dynasty Foundation. All at once, science in Russia had a major benefactor keen to fund young people engaged in research that could change the world for the better.
During its 13 years of existence, the Dynasty Foundation had an incredible impact on both the academic and philanthropic worlds of Russia, by fostering talented people. Starting in 2002, the Foundation helped provide stipends to university students and young physicists. Zimin was inspired by his early scientific background, lecturing in electrodynamics. Soon it was supporting students and experts doing groundbreaking work, while also increasing interest in science with the general population. They launched their own science program, hosted contests, created a prize for non-fiction literature, and began publishing books, including a Russian language version of the popular Bill Bryson book, A Short History of Almost Everything.
Author Bill Bryson, the best-selling author of travel books, talks to a fan at a book signing. — Photo by Rick Friedman/Corbis (Photo by Rick Friedman/Corbis via Getty Images)
Zimin, 84, says: ‘Memorable donations include some of the lifelong grants we made to people who are now seen as icons. For example, we supported one of the greatest modern-day mathematicians, Vladimir Arnold. He was an extraordinary scientist, a teacher and promoter of mathematics. Memorable donations include some of the lifelong grants we made to people who are now seen as icons. For example, we supported one of the greatest modern-day mathematicians, Vladimir Arnold.
‘He was an extraordinary scientist, a teacher and promoter of mathematics. For example, he published a problem book called 5 to 15, which I would strongly recommend to all children. It contains 100 problems for children to guess the solutions to. We initiated an all-Russia contest to solve problems based on this book, which was extremely exciting.’
Such has been Zimin’s impact on his nation that if you were Russian and involved in science, you were most assuredly positively affected by Dynasty.
Sadly, it could not last. Philanthropy remained a topic that many in Russia were wary of, and in 2015, the Dynasty Foundation was designated as a ‘foreign agent’ NGO by the Ministry of Justice. And while Dmitry did not hesitate in proclaiming this inaccurate, he also did not want to cast a bad light on all the success of the Foundation, so Dynasty decided to close down. But that does not lessen the impact of Zimin’s work – over 3,000 despairing scientists and members of the public signed an open letter protesting the Ministry’s decision, but it seems it was time to move on. Nonetheless, Zimin achieved a huge amount in opening Russians’ eyes up to both science and philanthropy. The impact of the Dynasty Foundation will last through this next generation of scientists, and it is only a matter of time before someone takes up the mantle of Russian philanthropy again, inspired by Zimin’s generosity, vision and practical zeal.
After Hurricane Mitch struck Honduras in 1998, some of the donations that came in included prom dresses. When Haiti was hit by a major earthquake in 2010, fertility drugs were among the items received. And back in 1994, following the genocide in Rwanda, gifts included weight loss drinks and chandeliers.
While probably well intentioned, these examples of inappropriate donations are not uncommon after disasters. In their yearning to help, people sometimes do not donate based on what is needed most and what is most efficient.
The recent disasters wreaked by hurricanes Irma, Harvey, Jose and Maria, and an earthquake in Mexico, have led to an outpouring of support from the United States and beyond. While such tragedies almost always create a need for philanthropy, experts say every act of generosity should follow certain guidelines.
Donations of food and clothing pile up in the parking lot of Qualcomm Stadium’s parking lot. San Diego officials asked for no more donations, having received too much. (Photo by Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty Images)
The most important one to remember is that cash is usually best.
“What we always say and encourage people to do is cash donations – they are the most efficient way of assistance,” says Safiya Khalid, diaspora outreach specialist at USAID’s Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI). “Unlike material donations, cash involves no transportation cost, no shipping delays or customs. It also enables relief organizations on the ground to spend less time managing goods.”
Money also allows relief workers to buy the most urgently needed items. This is typically done locally, so it also helps boost the local economy, she says. And such purchases are usually financially smart as well. Sending bottled water overseas can be 1,000 times more expensive than producing drinkable water locally, according to CIDI.
Another important factor to consider is the long-term need for funding. Disaster-related giving reached $22.5 billion in 2014, and 73 percent of total funding targeted immediate response and relief efforts, according to the most recent report from the Foundation Center and the Center for Disaster Philanthropy. It is worth considering recurring and long-term donations, as funding after a major disaster may be needed for up to 10 years, according to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy.
Donors and funders should also consider which communities are most affected by disasters, and what can be done to prevent future ones, according to Ryan Schlegel of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy.
“We must be ready not just to rebuild houses and bridges, but to rebuild the power and elevate the voice of marginalized communities who were disproportionately impacted by the storms,” Schlegel wrote in a recent blog post.
Figuring out where to donate is not always easy. While American Red Cross often tops suggested lists, a 2015 investigation by NPR and ProPublica found a number of problems with the organization’s work following the Haiti earthquake. And in his book “Doing Good Better,” William MacAskill warns that generally speaking, donating to organizations that are best at fighting poverty and preventable diseases such as AIDS and malaria usually leads to greater returns than donating after disasters.
Karl Shaw of Austin sifts through thousands of pounds of donations Tuesday morning, Sept. 6, 2005, at an unused parking garage in east Austin, Texas. Central Texans gave record amounts of cash and goods over the holiday weekend to aid the 200,000-plus Louisana evacuees in the state. (Photo by Robert Daemmrich Photography Inc/Corbis via Getty Images)
Whether you decide to donate to a national organization or a small community non-profit, here are some resources to help you give responsibly next time a disaster strikes:
USAID CIDI’s downloadable toolkit on giving includes all kinds of tips, including 100 fundraising ideas and 55 ways to repurpose material gifts. The “greatest good donation calculator” is a fun and informative tool that shows you how much good work organizations could do with the cost involved in sending U.S. items abroad. The center also has a page on the recent Caribbean hurricanes, which includes a list of organizations to consider donating to.
Center for Disaster Philanthropy offers a number of resources designed to help donors maximize their impact from giving during disasters. The Disaster Accountability Project works to improve the effectiveness of relief and achieve greater accountability and transparency in the sector.
U.S. President Barack Obama shakes hands with students of Harlem Children’s Zone Promise Academy in New York City as he is joined by representatives and community members from San Antonio, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Southeastern Kentucky, and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma during an East Room event January 9, 2014 at the White House in Washington, DC. President Obama announced the five areas as his administration’s first five ‘Promise Zones’ to help the local communities to combat poverty. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
It is a characteristically direct comment. “I think it’s a bit ironic how much praise philanthropists get because I think it’s a privilege to have this kind of wealth; and my guess is if most of society had this kind of wealth, they’d get involved in philanthropy. Because what else are you going to do with it – roll around in your coffin with it?”
So say Stanley and Fiona Druckenmiller. They are a couple unlike any other in philanthropy. While they mostly shun publicity, they are not shy about taking risks or giving lavishly, and they have no problem doing one thing that most billionaires never need to do – asking others for money. Their giving, their motivation, and their leadership has made the Druckenmillers one of the most lauded philanthropic couples in the world, and while they mostly stay out of the spotlight, their good works speak volumes.
Both Stanley and Fiona have had extraordinary success in the world of finance. For years Stanley worked for George Soros, one of the first recipients of the Medal of Philanthropy. In fact, Soros sought out Stanley’s help so that he could focus more on the philanthropy side of his life and less on the business. Clearly this made an impact on the Druckenmillers, and soon they too were putting a significant amount of their time and resources into giving.
The Harlem Children’s Zone & Promise Academy school and Geoffrey Canada Community Center on 125th Street. (Photo by Jefferson Siegel/NY Daily News via Getty Images)
Recognizing that their success came thanks to their access to quality schooling, much of their philanthropy has focused on providing opportunities for education. And like any good investor, they keep a certain amount of variety in the organizations they fund within the education sector. Along with giving out college scholarships, they have provided significant funds to programs like Teach for America and College Summit, an organization whose mission is to increase college enrolment rates in low-income communities. What they are most known for, however, is their involvement with Harlem Children’s Zone, the community organization providing education, social and health programs for at-risk children and their families. Stanley has had a significant hand in building up the organization, and has sat as the Chairman on the board of trustees for many years. The success of the organization has an impact that money cannot buy – hundreds of other organizations are springing up around the world, inspired by the work the Harlem Children’s Zone does in New York.
Recently, the Druckenmillers have sought to have an even bigger impact on childhood poverty, and that has put them in the unique position of asking other billionaires to chip in too. By pooling money with other wealthy philanthropists, the Druckenmillers are looking to Blue Meridian Partners, a philanthropic fund, to help decide the best and most effective way to use the money. Putting both money and brains together, they hope to identify the best nonprofit organizations working in childhood poverty, and provide them with the resources they need to thrive.
Stanley and Fiona might avoid the spotlight, nevertheless, their commitment to education is one of the most notable stories in philanthropy. And if the Druckenmillers are behind it, bet on success – that’s where the good money is.
Sports Stars are Using Their Platforms to Raise Money for Hurricane Relief
When the recent hurricanes swept across the United States and the Caribbean, many individuals and foundations stepped in to help. A growing number of athletes are among those who have given generously.
Sports stars gave their own money and solicited donations by turning to crowdfunding websites such as GoFundMe and YouCaring. Some donated proceeds from their winning tournaments, or committed to giving a certain amount based on their performance, such as $100 per birdie and $500 per eagle in golf.
Michael Phelps hands out gift bags to children as he visits the Boys & Girls Club of Harford County to present a check for $20,000 from the Michael Phelps Foundation and KRAVE Jerky at the Boys & Girls Club of Harford County on December 16, 2016 in Edgewood, MD. (Kris Connor/Getty Images for KRAVE Jerky)
Disasters aside, there are many athletes who are keen philanthropists year-round, whether it is through their own foundations or working with others. For example, the LeBron James Family Foundation works to help children access education in the NBA star’s hometown of Akron, OH. Tennis star Serena Williams has supported 12 charities and 19 causes, according to Look to the Stars, which tracks celebrities’ charitable giving. The Michael Phelps Foundation, run by the world’s most decorated Olympian, works to promote healthy, active lives and expand participation in swimming. Phelps is among the athletes named in last year’s Bleacher Report list of 10 very charitable athletes.
LeBron James joins 200 youth in a spontaneous ‘chalk clap’ to dedicate a new athletic field at the Boys & Girls Club of Central Florida – Walt Disney World Clubhouse. James, The LeBron James Family Foundation and Sprite donated the revamped facility, along with sporting equipment such as bats, basketballs and soccer nets, to mark the announcement of The Sprite Uncontainable Game at the Boys & Girls Club of Central Florida on February 25, 2012 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Alexander Tamargo/Getty Images for Sprite)
And while Colin Kaepernick may currently be best known as the NFL player who started a peaceful protest against police brutality and racial injustice by kneeling during anthems (and setting off a national debate about sports and the national anthem in the process), he has been engaged in community service and charitable giving outside the spotlight, donating causes as diverse as single mothers in Georgia to a clean-energy advocacy group. His website says he has donated $900,000 out of his $1 million pledge to give to organizations working in oppressed communities.
Tyson’s Corner, VA-based Athletes for Hope has worked with about 4,000 athletes representing 25 sports, helping foster their relationships with charities. Ivan Blumberg, the non-profit organization’s CEO, says that athletes want to ensure their efforts are having impact.
“There are those who have a strong desire to help, but like anywhere else in society, there are those who need a push or the education and resources to make a difference,” he says. “They need the tools to make sure that when they want to make a difference, they are doing it right.”
His organization runs workshops that inform athletes about their philanthropic options, help them explore their role in their community, and teach them how to maximize their charitable impact. Most of the time, starting a new foundation is not the best answer because of the time and money required to run one successfully, Blumberg says. He points out that athletes are often powerful role models for children, so it is great to see so many of them engaged in philanthropy in different ways.
“Athletes have a platform to inspire social change and some certainly use that platform to inspire others more broadly and engage in their communities to make a difference,” Blumberg says. “Social change can fall in many categories, whether it’s the fight for equality or disaster relief, so we certainly applaud athletes who are working to step up and make a difference.”
Anna Ucheomumu high fives Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt after loading a car with relief supplies for people impacted by Hurricane Harvey on September 3, 2017, in Houston, Texas. J.J. Watt’s Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund has raised more than $18 million to date to help those affected by the storm. (Photo by Brett Coomer – Pool/Getty Images)
USA Today has a comprehensive list that includes recent donations from athletes, as well as teams and team owners).
J.J. Watt, who plays for the Houston Texas NFL team, has helped raise more than $37 million for the Houston Flood Relief Fund.
Carmelo Anthony, an NBA player who is half Puerto Rican, kicked off a fundraiser for Hurricane Maria relief with a $50,000 donation. His YouCaring campaign has raised more than $325,000.
Mark Cuban, the owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, loaned the team plane to the team’s guard, J.J. Barea, who flew to his native Puerto Rico to deliver supplies and assist with relief efforts. Barea and his wife, a former Miss Universe Puerto Rico, have also raised more than $200,000 for relief efforts.
Kazuo Inamori is not your average businessman, and that is not simply because of his remarkable success. Something of a maverick, he is also a Buddhist monk. He has consistently challenged common practices and refuses to be beholden to investors, a position that has brought him enormous success. What is more, his views on business, philanthropy, and spirituality have developed harmoniously over his lifetime and are intertwined in a unique and quietly revolutionary way. His is not a life that easily is broken down into distinct sections, but instead is best looked at through a wide lens, giving a true sense of the man and his impact.
Inamori’s business background is an impressive list of success stories. He established the Kyocera Corporation in 1959, and it has since become a multi-national tech company with over 30,000 employees. A quarter century later he founded what is now KDDI, Japan’s second largest telecommunications network. His business skills were of such renown that years later he was asked to come out of retirement to take over Japan Airlines. He started there in 2010 and within three years he had pulled the airline out of bankruptcy and put them back on the stock exchange – while taking no salary.
This remarkable success is all the more praiseworthy thanks to his compassionate approach. Despite operating in a world of shareholders and investors, Inamori has always made it clear that his first priority is the satisfaction of his employees. This view is simply part of Inamori’s outlook on life, seeing material wealth as a byproduct of doing business with a deeper purpose. As he told the Financial Times, “I didn’t want to be a rich person… my motivation has been making people around me happy.”
Unsurprisingly, this is apparent outside his business efforts, too. Upon retiring from KDDI, he focused his time on becoming a Buddhist monk. And while this sounds like an odd choice for one of Japan’s wealthiest individuals, it was very much in line with everything Inamori previously espoused. There was no conflict between Inamori the businessperson and Inamori the monk, it is two manifestations of the same man seeking to bring happiness to others.
German choreographer Pina Bausch (L) receives the Kyoto Prize from Inamori Foundation chairman Hiroo Imura during the awarding ceremony at the Kyoto International Conference Center in Japan’s ancient capital Kyoto city, western Japan 10 November 2007. Bausch and Japanese scientests Hiroo Kanamori and Hiroo Inokuchi received the award. AFP PHOTO / Yoshikazu TSUNO
A wildly successful businessman who focuses on his employees’ happiness as well as his own spiritual fulfilment? That would be enough to make anyone stand out. But Inamori has done remarkable work in philanthropy as well. In 1984, the same year he launched KDDI, he also founded the Inamori Foundation. In an interview with The New Sun, his advice to business people was simple: “Charitable acts, by helping society and other people, are in fact what will drive you wonderfully to your own happiness.” The foundation gives out research grants for natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences, with the funds going to young researchers who will have a positive impact on society. Most impressively, the Inamori Foundation gives out two elite prizes. The Inamori Ethics Prize is a yearly recognition of an exemplary international leader whose actions have improved the human condition. And the foundation is also behind the Kyoto Prize, Japan’s highest award for global achievement. And based on his impact on the world, if Inamori was not giving those prizes, he would most certainly be receiving them.
Gordon Moore’s impact in Silicon Valley is impossible to overstate, and his success has brought him greater wealth than he could ever have imagined. The co-founder of Intel, the “Moore” behind Moore’s Law, and a trailblazer for the entire microprocessor industry, he is a titan in the tech world. He is also reserved and introverted, allowing bigger personalities to make noise while he has continued to revolutionize the industry.
1st microprocessor, 1971 : Intel 4004 (Photo by Apic/Getty Images)
His work achievements alone would leave Gordon Moore in the history books, but he wanted to do more with the fortune that he had amassed. Luckily, he had his wife, Betty, to work with. Her knowledge and passion have contributed a key ingredient to their philanthropic ambitions. Clearly they were extremely capable individuals, with Betty working at the Ford Foundation while Gordon got his PhD at Caltech and began his journey into the world of transistors. Once they saw the opportunity to give back, they jumped at the chance, choosing to fund assorted appeals for help every holiday season. In time, they were able to put more time, money, and rigor into the process, but it has always been a very personal effort. Even with the big foundations working away, Gordon does not shy away from personal philanthropy, telling Fortune: “The things I do personally are hard for the Foundation to do. Education gets a lot of it, some science stuff. I pick up a bunch of screwy things.”
The Foundation that he is talking about is the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, which the couple founded in 2000. This has allowed them to tackle causes they were passionate about in a deliberate and focused manner, which is of course entirely fitting for someone with a scientific mindset. The chief targets of the Foundation are environmental conservation, science, and the San Francisco Bay area, and thanks to their personal involvement, the Foundation has been able to initiate some unique and visionary programs.
A spectator looks skyward during a partial eclipse of the sun on August 21, 2017 at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City, New York. Millions of people have flocked to areas of the U.S. that are in the ‘path of totality’ in order to experience a total solar eclipse. During the event, the moon will pass in between the sun and the Earth, appearing to block the sun. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
The science aspect of the Foundation has proven to be where it truly stands out. It has brought about potentially world changing initiatives like the Moore Inventor Fellows, a ten year project to support 50 aspiring inventors. The Moores know all about what it means to be at the forefront of development, and now they are hoping to ensure others are given this opportunity. They are also not bashful about getting everyone to appreciate science. This past August the Foundation partnered with libraries across the country to provide glasses for the solar eclipse, distributing a total of two million.
And although they had already given over half of their money away before signing the Giving Pledge, they do not seem to be slowing down. They donated $200 million to Caltech for construction of one of the world’s largest optical telescopes. The Foundation is also doing amazing things in environmental conservation, particularly with their Conservation and Financial Markets Initiative, helping bring mainstream financial markets in line with conservation-minded approaches to saving the planet. It is quite a journey from making microchips to awarding million dollar grants, but the passion and intelligence brought to all their projects is as strong a link as any.
Big Bird might be the most famous bird in the world. He certainly doesn’t act like it though. Curious and caring, Big Bird exemplifies some of the most admirable qualities in any species. While he’s always been somewhat cagey about exactly what sort of bird he is (he’s been linked to canaries, larks, condors, and emus), there is little doubt that the world could use more of his type.
Living in a large nest behind 123 Sesame Street, Big Bird manages to stand out even amongst the incredible diversity of the neighborhood. He counts Elmo, Grover, Cookie Monster, and Oscar the Grouch as some of his best friends, all of whom dearly love the big, yellow guy and are quick to help him on his endless quest for answers. He readily admits that there is much that he doesn’t know, pointing out, “Asking questions is a good way of finding things out!” While the audience of the message is typically children, these are words that everyone should take to heart.
While Sesame Street remains the best place to find Big Bird, his curiosity has brought him to wide audiences, appearing in movies and showing up on television shows ranging from the Ed Sullivan Show and Hollywood Squares to Saturday Night Live and the Colbert Report. Recently he’s even appeared with Michele Obama to promote her efforts to get kids up and moving. With this level of visibility, Big Bird also realizes he has a lot of power, and unsurprisingly, he uses it in thoughtful and caring ways. His biggest initiative is the Yellow Feather Fund, which bring educational materials to children in need all over the world. Not just that, but there have been targeted efforts to reach out and help groups like military families, refugees, and children with autism. The Yellow Feather Fund is a way for Big Bird to bring smiles beyond the reach of the television screen.
Sesame Street characters Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Murray Monster, Cookie Monster, Elmo, Abby and Grover post with host Jimmy Fallon on September 11, 2014 — (Photo by: Douglas Gorenstein/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
At 8’2”, everyone has to look up to Big Bird. But he also provides plenty of other reasons to be looked up to. He cares deeply for his friends, whether they’re the neighbors on his street or the millions who have watched him on television. It’s hard to even comprehend the number of adults who spent many hours with him in their younger years, only to later share the friendship again with their own children. Sesame Street helped prove what a powerful educational resource the television could be, and Big Bird has always been front and center. He’s helped people become caring, concerned adults. And he’s proven time and time again that it’s OK to have questions. Most importantly, he has given generations of kids the confidence to be themselves, saying, “I guess it’s better to be who you are. Turns out people like you best that way, anyway.”
We’re lucky that Big Bird is who he is. That’s the way we like him best.
