GIVING Stories

COVER STORY
While parts of the economy boom, millions of Americans remain locked out of opportunity. In particular, young adults who are out of school and out of work, often called “disconnected youth,” are bearing the brunt of structural inequality. According to Measure of America, nearly 1 in 9 youth aged 16 to 24 are disconnected, a status linked to lower lifetime earnings, poorer health, and higher risk of long-term poverty.

If you’ve ever run a marathon or know someone who has, you know they take preparation and stamina. Running a marathon and implementing a capital or comprehensive campaign have much in common. You wouldn’t show up at the starting line for either without putting in the necessary early work. And you wouldn’t start celebrating success at mile 17 when there’s still a long way to go. Here’s how the phases of a campaign compare to training for and completing a marathon.

The Philanthropy 50 – The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s list of America’s biggest donors – was recently released for 2024. The headline? America’s top donors gave more than $16.2 billion. The full report is worth a read, with an analysis of giving trends and forward-looking predictions.

The concern? Our rush to save time with AI might come at the cost of core skills.Although nonprofit leaders are stretched thin, today's shortcuts may undermine the strategic thinking their organizations need tomorrow. We risk becoming "AI passengers" in a driverless taxi rather than "AI drivers" who actively navigate working with AI tools.

COVER STORY
Planned gifts have long sustained the Wisconsin Humane Society, from the 1926 bequest that built Milwaukee’s first animal shelter to the expanded strategies used today. By integrating digital tools, hosting creative events like “Lattes & Legacies,” and stewarding legacy donors through Buster’s Legacy Society, WHS has streamlined estate gift management and built deeper donor trust—fueling a program that helps 13,000+ animals each year.

COVER STORY
It started with a simple plan: give back to the medical school in India where they met. The San Francisco Bay Area couple—both busy physicians—initially intended to gift $150,000 to a one-time project benefitting the Seth Gordhandas Sunderdas Medical College (GOSUMEC) in Mumbai, India.