New foundation leaders often search for the “right” way to operate a foundation. While there are certain rules of the road, the truth is that there are many ways to approach grantmaking. Every philanthropist shares an interest in making an impact, but they may take very different paths to get there. To dive deeper into this topic, experts from our Philanthropic Advisory Services team joined leaders of the Åcahand and Justamere Foundations to talk about the unique choices their foundations made when developing programmatic priorities and how both strategies have led to meaningful grantmaking. In this insightful discussion, we learned that although they started in different places, they landed on a similar course toward impactful giving. ICYMI, you can watch the recording here and checkout our complete Path to Impact kit.
4 Key Topics
Elizabeth Wong, National Director of Philanthropic Advisor Solutions and Robyn Hullihan, Senior Philanthropic Director covered the following topics with Lori Cushman, President of the Justamere Foundation and Steven Harris, Executive Director of the Åcahand Foundation:
- Determining a programmatic starting point
- Deciding among a selection of approaches in addressing community needs
- Drawing expertise from the community
- Allowing grantmaking to evolve as the foundation becomes increasingly informed by its work
The Most Surprising Thing These Foundation Leaders Learned
Whether you’re just starting a private foundation or have had an one in operation for years, it seems there are always new and exciting things to learn. With great curiosity, we asked our Lori and Steven to share the most surprising thing they learned along the way and how it changed their approach.
“By far, it was the passion of the people with boots on the ground that surprised me. They are working so hard to make the world a better place. The best thing that the foundation can do is give them the resources to accomplish their goals,” said Lori Cushman.
“Most surprising was the number of options available for how a private foundation can pursue making an impact,” said Steven Harris. “Program-related investments, charitable activities, and individual emergency and hardship grants are just a few of the different ways that foundations can do their work.”
We are proud to serve the Åcahand and Justamere Foundations and thank them for sharing their unique perspectives and philanthropic journeys with us!
Want to Learn More About How We Support Private Foundations?
Whether you’re creating your first private foundation or want to professionalize your foundation with robust tools and applications purpose-built for your needs, Foundation Source is here to help. Schedule a call with us here or reach us at 800-839-0054. Together, let’s #begiving.
