Civic and social groups of all sizes, professional associations, and nonprofit
organizations have a new resource available:
the WILLpowerSM Speakers Bureau.
Members
of the Speakers Bureau can bring clarity to the sometimes confusing
topics of planned giving and organized philanthropy.
Their focus is on how everyone can use charitable giving to preserve
their values and protect the causes they care about, during and even
beyond their own lifetimes. All
presentations are free and can be tailored to the needs of the sponsoring
organization. Materials
are available for participants at no charge.
Topics speakers can cover include:
-
Taking Care of Your Family and Your Community
Through Estate Planning
-
Doing
Good While Doing Well: Starting
a Program of Charitable Giving
-
Planned
Giving Primer: What
Is It? Why Do It?
-
From
Simple Bequests to Complex Trusts, Making Planned Giving Work for
You
-
Establishing
an Organized Giving Program for your Business
To
request a presentation, or for a list of Speakers Bureau volunteers,
contact the Grantmakers Forum at (585) 232-2380 or WILLpower@grantmakers.org
WILLpowerSM
partners include Rochester Grantmakers Forum, Advertising Council of
Rochester, Rochester Area Community Foundation, Jewish Community Federation,
and United Way of Greater Rochester.
Also participating are advisors representing the legal, accounting,
and banking professions along with executives from various health, human
service, and cultural organizations.
Rochester,
NY – The Monroe County Bar Association has endorsed WILLpowerSM,
a collaboration of local organizations and professional advisors dedicated
to increasing the level of planned giving and organized philanthropy
in the Rochester area. It
is only the second bar association in the country to lend its weight
and credibility to a project whose sole purpose is to encourage and
increase the dollars available for philanthropic purposes throughout
the community.
QUOTE FROM GENE O’CONNOR:
Happy to endorse; good fit; the entire community benefits from
PG & org’d philanthropy, and anyone can do it.
“The
Bar Association’s endorsement will enable us to encourage more attorneys,
accountants, and other professional advisors to raise the topic of philanthropic
giving with their clients,” commented Jane Ellen, WILLpowerSM project director.
“Many people appreciate the chance to increase their support
now, and beyond their own lifetime, for the causes they value.
Often, all it takes is an inquiry from a trusted advisor to remind
them of this opportunity.”
Members
of the Bar Association are key participants in WILLpowerSM’s new Speakers Bureau.
The Speakers Bureau offers free presentations on all facets of
planned giving and organized philanthropy to nonprofit organizations,
civic and social groups, professional associations, and more.
For information about joining the Speakers Bureau or to schedule
a presentation, please contact Jane Ellen, executive director, Rochester
Grantmakers Forum, at (716) 232-2380.
WILLpowerSM
partners include Rochester Grantmakers Forum, Advertising Council of
Rochester, Rochester Area Community Foundation, Jewish Community Federation,
and United Way of Greater Rochester.
Also participating are advisors representing the legal, accounting,
and banking professions along with executives from various health, human
service, and cultural organizations.
Washington,
DC—The WILLpowerSM Project, led jointly by the Rochester
Grantmakers Forum and Advertising Council of Rochester,
is being awarded a three-year, $158,000 grant from the national
Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers.
Made through the Forum’s New Ventures in Philanthropy initiative,
the grant will help continue a program established in 1996 to broaden
the base of philanthropic dollars available for the Greater Rochester
community.
New
Ventures’ funding will enable WILLpowerSM
to increase its educational programming, implement a community-wide
speakers’ bureau on planned giving and organized philanthropy, expand
its “role model” program highlighting donors and the professional advisors
who assist donors, and more.
“This
grant acknowledges the value of the WILLpowerSM
partnership,” comments Jane Ellen, project director.
“For four years we have successfully encouraged advisors to raise
the topic of philanthropic giving with their clients.
We have also educated people of varying means about using the
power of a will to continue their values beyond their lifetimes, as
well as using their personal ‘willpower’ while alive to establish organized
forms of giving individually or through their business.
According
to Jennifer Leonard, chair of the WILLpowerSM
task force, “The New Ventures grant will enable our consortium of community
organizations and professionals to have an even greater impact on the
level of individual and business philanthropy in our region.”
WILLpower
is one of 12 grantees chosen from a highly competitive pool of 30 applicants
and, according to Albert Ruesga, director of New Ventures, submitted
one of the most highly rated proposals.
The new grant brings to almost a quarter of a million dollars
the amount of non-local funding that WILLpowerSM
has drawn into our community.
Project
is partnership of local nonprofits and professional advisors
WILLpowerSM
is a collaboration of local organizations and professional advisors. In addition to Rochester Grantmakers Forum and Advertising
Council of Rochester, partners include Rochester Area Community Foundation,
Jewish Community Federation, and United Way of Greater Rochester.
Also participating are advisors representing the legal, accounting,
and banking professions along with executives from various health, human
service, and cultural organizations.
WILLpowerSM’s
goal is to increase the dollars available for philanthropic purposes
throughout the community, now and in the future.
During the three-year grant period, 2001-2003, WILLpowerSM
will expand its work, promoting the creation of family foundations,
funds, trusts, and other giving vehicles, as well as helping businesses
develop organized giving programs.
WILLpowerSM
also serves as a resource for other Upstate New York communities seeking
to advance philanthropy in their regions.
About
the Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers
As
nonprofit membership associations of private grantmakers and related
organizations, regional associations of grantmakers (RAGs) share a common
goal: to be a resource and leader for effective philanthropy in a distinct
geographic region—be it a city, state, or multi-state area. The Forum
of RAGs provides a national framework for strengthening the capacity
of regional associations to serve their members and maximize their collective
relationship with each other, the Council on Foundations, and other
national organizations. The Forum’s 28 member RAGs cover the country
and represent more than 3,400 grantmakers of all types.
Rochester
Grantmakers Forum is the RAG serving funders in Greater Rochester, Monroe
and surrounding counties. Rochester
Grantmakers Forum is also expanding its reach through the recently formed
Funders Alliance of Upstate New York.
New
Ventures grows philanthropy
Launched
by the national Forum of RAGs in 1998 to expand philanthropy in the
United States, New Ventures in Philanthropy promotes the creation of
new foundations and corporate giving programs and encourages new donors
to endow philanthropic funds whose income and/or principal will be used
for grantmaking. Through
its own grant program, New Ventures supports local and regional coalitions
that are learning new ways to encourage individual and corporate philanthropy
and offers technical assistance and information sharing.
In three rounds of grantmaking, it has awarded a total of nearly
$6 million to 32 coalitions. More
than 300 organizations nationwide participate in the work of these promotion
of philanthropy coalitions.
For more information, please contact Liz Wilder, executive director,
Rochester Grantmakers Forum, at (585)
232-2380.
###
