Springbanc Philanthropy Advisors

Interesting Recession Statistics

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 06:43:00 +0000

From the Southern California - Center for Nonprofit Management The Center's "Recession Survey" was sent out December 18, 2008 to approximately 3,000 individuals. There were 260 surveys completed.Impact of the Recession on Organizational Funding:

1. What trends are you seeing in individual donations to your organization?
Increasing 6.6%
No Change 7.8%
Decreasing 50.6%
Too Soon to Know 28.8%
Not Applicable 6.2%

2. What trends are you seeing in foundation support at your organization?
Increasing 7.0%
No Change 14.8%
Decreasing 42.2%
Too Soon to Know 29.3%
Not Applicable 6.6%

3. What trends are you seeing in corporate giving to your organization?
Increasing 3.6%
No Change 16.1%
Decreasing 47.4%
Too Soon to Know 19.7%
Not Applicable 13.3%

4. What trends are you seeing in government funding at your organization?
Increasing 4.7%
No Change 20.4%
Decreasing 32.2%
Too Soon to Know 20.0%
Not Applicable 22.7%

5. What actions has your organization taken in response to the recession? (Choose all that apply.)Looking for new streams of revenue 79.1%
Increase board’s fundraising activities 51.2%
Delaying planned new initiatives 39.8%
Hiring freeze 32.7%
Staff cuts 24.0%
Service reductions 20.5%
Joint Ventures 15.7%
Tapping lines of credit 15.4%
Layoffs 11.4%
Cancel fundraiser event(s) 7.9%
Planning no actions, our revenue looks good for the next year 5.9%
Outsourcing back office functions 5.1%
Looking to merger 2.8%

Wealth Advisors Role in Philanthropy Grows

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:36:00 +0000

This originally appreared on the Tacticle Philathropy blog written by Sean Stannard-Stockton.

In each of the past few years, Bank of America and The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University have conducted a study of high net-worth philanthropy. The study focuses on the giving of wealthy families, not institutional foundations (although the wealthy families may very well have their own foundations).You can find a summary of the findings here.

Because they’ve been conducting the survey for the past couple of years, they are now able to track changes in donor behavior. What was most striking was the marked shift in whom major donors are turning to for advice on their giving decisions. The study shows the number of wealthy donors who reported they asked nonprofit personnel for advice dropped by 29% while the number who reported asking their wealth advisor for advice increased 96%. Major donors are now turning to wealth advisors for giving advice more frequently than they turn to nonprofits.

NFTE Needs some help......

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 00:44:00 +0000

Lots of great things happening this week with Global Entrepreneurship Week. We recently received this request for help from NFTE. If you have a story to share or some time to volunteer please contact Betsy below.

The National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) is a global partner with GEW and in Los Angeles NFTE has over 20 events scheduled at 14 different schools, with over 45 volunteers scheduled throughout the week. If anyone is interested in getting involved in sharing their story as an Entrepreneur this week, or volunteering as a coach or business plan judge, please contact Betsy Blanchard, Program Director at betsy.blanchard@nfte.com.

Global Entrepreneurship Week

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:04:00 +0000

Global Entrepreneurship Week, the world’s first-ever celebration of enterprising behaviour, starts this week. Recognising the global nature of many of the challenges we face, Global Entrepreneurship Week aims to connect enterprising young people with their counterparts all over the world, and ultimately create a global movement of entrepreneurial people.

GEW was created by the UK’s Make Your Mark campaign and the US-based Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Globally more than 11,000 events are taking place in 77 countries involving an estimated five million people, from the US to Mozambique. “You can be making a difference, so be bold, be imaginative, be brilliant. That’s really what this week is all about. Enjoy it.” Carl Schramm, President and CEO of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation said: “For seven days, millions of young people around the world will be introduced to entrepreneurship and encouraged to think about how innovation can take them anywhere, no matter their location on the map."

GEW is a true testament to what foundations can accomplish. During this week we should not forget about social entrepreneurship and all the great things that are being accomplished in the social arena. More to come on social entrepreneurship later this week.

Civic Engagement

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 05:10:00 +0000

Earlier today I had the pleasure of listening to Sterlin Speirn speak, of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, at the USC Center for Philanthropy luncheon. Among his many remarks he commented on civic engagement and the need for society to participate in deliberations and dialogue around the challenges that face us today. He suggested that dialogue and deliberations would greatly change the outcome of elections where most voters are either uninformed nor have had the opportunity to explore both sides of the argument in discussion among equals. Not to mention that 1/3 of all registered voters did not vote in the elections two weeks ago, despite the historic turnout.

So what does this have to do with philanthropy? Everything if you accept his premise that education must create more than a skilled labor force - but rather citizens capable of participating in their own governance.

It's Different this time.......

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 04:34:00 +0000

Recent Headlines.....

The Red Cross is suffering as much as a 30% drop in responses and contributions from new donors, and corporate donations are "coming in at lower amounts" at the halfway point of a campaign to raise $100 million by Dec. 31, Towers says.

The Salvation Army reports its western territory suffered a 9% drop in overall fundraising since August alone. Data for the organization's other territories weren't available.

Many charities are between a rock and a hard place, being asked to do more with less," says Ken Berger, president and CEO of Charity Navigator, a large independent U.S. charity evaluator.

“Our nonprofit partners will bear the brunt of shrinking resources and growing need. Within parameters defined by our respective missions, resources and work, we should actively look for creative ways to assist the sector in weathering this storm and serving those most impacted.”

To be sure, foundations themselves are hurting from the financial meltdown and stock-market volatility, which may limit their ability to respond.

Across New York, nonprofit organizations are anxiously tracking the demise of longtime donors such as Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, American International Group and Bear Stearns, as Wall Street's problems begin to trickle down to the city's poorest residents.

Philanthropy - Art of Science?

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:20:00 +0000

We have all heard the saying, ”it’s a little bit art it’s a little bit science” applied to many topics, it holds true for philanthropy as well. Given the volatility we are seeing in the financial markets much more focus is being placed on the effectiveness and efficiency of the philanthropy sector – or the science. It’s the “Art” though, that for many, drives giving. Statistics show that regardless of whether the economic numbers are up or down, donors have the innate desire to help others. These are real people who are also passionate about making a difference. This is good news for our local charities and their operations.

With that said donors are taking a much more active approach to their giving, looking more closely at the operations of their favorite organizations and how their dollars are being deployed. This will require a change in activity from both donor and charity alike. As donors move away from automatic giving to their favorite charities they are moving toward a model that might be considered more “business-like.” Their involvement is somewhat akin to making a financial investment where planning, structure, procedures, measurement, monitoring, accountability, evaluation, effectiveness, and efficiency are essential tools in measuring the worthiness of a particular philanthropic investment.

The ideal approach is to give with both the heart and mind; to merge the “art” of philanthropy with the “science” of philanthropy. A quintessential concept that defines the philanthropic sector is private initiative for the public good. Indeed, Peter Frumkin, in his book Strategic Giving: The Art & Science of Philanthropy writes that “philanthropy is best conceived as a private activity that allows donors to use their funds to explore their own private visions of the public good.”

While there are no statistics available regarding end of year giving, most charities conduct fall appeals, touting the next few months as an opportunity to give and still receive a tax deduction for the current year. Due to the economic crisis this year, maybe more than any other time in history, charities will have to ensure they appeal not just to our hearts - but to our heads. Demonstrating not only the need for our money but that they will deploy it efficiently, its a little bit art and a little bit science.

Is this time different?

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:31:00 +0000

Yesterday I shared with you some links from a colleague that suggest that philanthropic giving may hold up despite the financial crisis. After todays over 7% drop in the market, I decided to do an informal survey. One individual I spoke to told me his DAF was down 40% for the year, and his end of year giving would definitely be effected. Many foundations apply an 80/20 equity to fixed income ratio. Equities are down 39% for the year as measured by the DOW. Assuming our model foundation was not invested in Action Rate Securities or any other fixed income instruments that lost value thier portolio would still be down over 30%. Reducing thier prior year minimum distribution requirement by the same 30%.

While October, November and December are the best performing months for stocks, and this market could turn on a dime, I think its time to consider that giving will indeed be impacted more than the 1-2% typical decline.

Perspective on the Giving Environment

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:41:00 +0000

Earlier today I recieved an email from a friend of mine, Russle Rush of Crown Philanthropic Solutions, who shared his perspective that philanthropic giving remains strong. In his email he refrenced the following articles that I want to share with you. History suggests that philanthropic giving does not vary by more than 1-2% during recessionary periods. The question - Is this time different?

"Reducing Guesswork" by Karen Demasters, Financial Advisor magazine" Despite the current flagging economy, charitable giving is expected to total more than $2.7 trillion over the next 10 years, with a significant part of that going to donor-advised funds, and many of those funds will be set up through community foundations."

"Charity Buoyed By Resilience of Wealthy Donors" FT Magazine (Registration required)"The economic slump is already causing financially stretched middle-income Americans to curtail their charitable donations, but philanthropic giving by the wealthy is likely to remain strong – if not quite as generous – throughout the rest of the year."

"Giving By The Rich to Remain Strong in 2008" The WSJ Wealth Report"A recent survey of 77 businesses by the Chronicle of Philanthropy found that 50 would keep their giving the same as last year, while 21 expected an increase, and six said their donations would drop."

Foundations Newsletter Fall 2008

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 20:21:00 +0000

Each quarter my firm writes and distributes a Newsletter focused on current topics in the philanthropic space. Earlier today we released our Fall 2008 issue. Our Fall 2008 issue of Foundations discusses some increasingly popular alternatives to traditional foundation investments. Program-related, mission-related and social purpose investments are becoming more common as foundations begin to align their investments with their missions to achieve greater capacity in their giving. These new models can be highly complementary to a foundation’s grant making objectives, as well as to their portfolios. I hope you will find the articles in our Newsletter covering these areas, of interest and value to you.

The newsletter is complimentary and does not require a subscription, unless you would like to be added to our mailing list to receive future issues.

A Time for Efficient and Effective Giving?

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 18:19:00 +0000

The Coming Charity Crisis, Newsweek 6/12/08

Corporate donors adjust to economic slump, Philanthropy Journal 9/15/08

On Eve of Philanthropy Forum, Clinton Worries About Economy, Washington Post 9/23/08

Less Wealthy, Less Charitable, Forbes 9/26/08

How Bad is it?, Chronicle of Philanthropy 10/2/08

It is being called the "perfect storm". Charities are likely to see a reduction in governmental support as dollars allocated to the bailout grow; at the same time their largest benefactor the individual giver is feeling squeezed by the economy, as prices rise on everything from gas at the pump to milk; at the same time foundations are seeing their endowments fall on a daily basis reducing their grant giving budgets.

There is no question that the philanthropic sector will suffer during these difficult times, the questions is by how much? and what can be done to mute the effect. Donors and charities have more at stake now that ever before to ensure that charitable dollars are efficiently and effectively spent.

Clinton Suggests Philanthropic Capital Will be Scarce

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:36:00 +0000

Clinton in an interview with national philanthropy reporters said earlier today, "Around the world, the thing that I worry most about with other stock markets going down and the American market here is that it will reduce the availability of capital . . . to do things that otherwise make good sense."

Clinton is not the only one worried about a decrease in philanthropic capital. Prognosticators from every sector of the charitable sector are discussing the economy and the expected reduction in capital. Though history tells us that regardless of whether the economy is up or down, donors have the innate desire to help others and will continue to do so.

A Google search regarding fund raising during past recessions returned an article by Alexander G. Douglass (June 1 1991) that could have been written this week. The reference to DOW 4,000 aside,....... then again that could have been written this week as well.

Profit Phobia

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:20:00 +0000

Earlier this month I wrote a blog on Non-Profit vs. For-Profit. The size of the private equity and charitable sectors are strikingly similar yet they couldn't be more different from how they operate. Jerr Boschee in his opinion posted to the Chronicle of Philanthropy Wednesday suggests, "many nonprofit leaders are still suspicious when the conversation turns to business ventures designed to meet social needs."

The volatility of the last week, and the spectacular business failures blamed on greed, are likely to fan the flames of distrust of the for profit sector - perpetuating this problem. In fact a blog from earlier this week titled, AIG Bailout And Eli Broad, questions the validity of Mr. Broad's gifts of millions of dollars to improve American public education, because in part he is pushing schools to be run more business-like. Mr. Broad is one of the most philanthropic Americans of our generation and one of the most innovative. To suggest that the problems of AIG are remotely relevant to Mr. Broad's philanthropic activities is ludicrous!

Business methods might not be the end all for all social needs, but many social enterprises have greatly enhanced our society: adult day-care centers; educational programs for small children, high-school dropouts, and adult students; low-cost-housing projects, vocational training and job-placement efforts; home-care services for the disabled and elderly, hospice care, and outpatient mental-health and rehabilitation services; prisons; wind farms; psychiatric and substance-abuse centers; and dozens of other businesses that deliver products and services previously provided by nonprofit groups or government agencies.

Its time the charitable sector put their phobia's aside and work with social entrepreneurs to more effectively deploy the sectors $300 billion plus of yearly capital.

Where are all the philanthropy magazines?

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 03:31:00 +0000

I was thinking about the evolution of philanthropy and the chart Lucy Bernholz posted recently; and why as a sector of our society philanthropy is not further developed. Take video games for example, in 2007 the sector has $17.9 billion in sales a little less that 6% of the $307 billion given to charity during the same period, according to Giving USA. If you stop by your local magazine stand you can find at least a dozen magazines dedicated to various game platforms and some specific to individual games themselves. You won't find a dozen magazines on philanthropy, even though the sector is 17 times as large. Why is this?

I would estimate that Boarders magazine section has close to 500 magazines, and while I couldn't find one dedicated to philanthropy, with out exception every one I opened had an article relating to charitable giving / philanthropy or an advertisement that referenced it.

With all the ink given to efficient giving, and how to spot a wasteful non-profit you would think we could support one magazine targeted at the individual giver. So whose with me......."Philanthropy Today"....a monthly magazine dedicated to you and your giving.

Youth Philanthropy

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 05:55:00 +0000

Youth Philanthropy is one of my personal passions. Earlier this week Nestle issued a press release announcing their sponsorship of a program I developed - the Pasadena Independent School Foundation Program (PISFP).

The PISF program is a private foundation funded by corporate sponsors to provide independent school students in the 7th-10th grade the opportunity to learn how to operate a foundation and make actual grants. The two year program is being piloted with over 30 students from six independent schools and will be followed by local media.

Our hope is to take the program nationally after the pilot, providing foundation related non-profit education to students across the country. We are in the process of setting up a website http://www.pisf.org/ . Information on the program can be found here soon, including a chronicle of the students activities by the Pasadena Outlook News.

Note: All cost associated with the creation, delivery and operation of the Program and Foundation have been donated, no fees have been paid to any provider.

Non-Profit vs. For-Profit

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 04:10:00 +0000

Giving USA reported $307 billion was given to charity in the US last year, and Dow Jones Private Equity Analyst reported $302 Billion was raised in private equity during the same period. These markets are approximately equal in size but couldn't be more different.

With similar amounts of financial might why is one market serviced by countless advisers, analysts, outside rating firms and countless journals and conferences opportunities and the other only sparsely served. As Sean Stannard-Stockton has commented the difference between "giving" and "investing" makes all the difference. As long as we perceive an ability to earn money we are willing to pay for advisory services and a whole host of related services, but if we are giving money away, we are unwilling to pay for similar services even if they will improve the effectiveness of our gifts.

So how does one change the philanthropic sector to look more like the private equity one. If we start with defining what the return on investment (ROI) is we will have begun the process. ROI can be measured as monetary return or as social return - allowing funding to take the form of a grant or of a mission investment. But is this enough, it would seem not to be as these terms of measurement have been around for some time and these sectors remain strikingly different.

So then what will it take? The Chronicle of Philanthropy earlier today highlighted the expected reduction in giving as more and more big corporations , who were significantly philantropic, are erased from the financial landscape. Maybe some good will come from this crisis in so much as the need to strech our philanthropic dollars farther will force us to reexamine the support we have available to us.

Social Entrepreneurship

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 22:13:00 +0000

I'm back from a great trip to Oxford. The UK is the second most generous nation (in the philanthropic sense) in the world behind the United States and has embraced many of the new philanthropic and social models being used here in the U.S. What I found most interesting though, was that social entrepreneurship was very much a part of the educational fabric of Oxford University, an educational institution that predates the term itself.

Oxford has emerged as a world leader in the Social Entrepreneur area. The Skoll Center For Social Entrepreneurship at the Saïd Business School, Oxford University - was created in 2003 to promote the advancement of social entrepreneurship worldwide. While at Oxford I participated in an interesting discussion on what exactly social entrepreneurship means. This definition remains open to interpretation. In fact in listening to the definitions offered it was quite apparent that many include philanthropy within the definition and the statistics used to describe it.

In its simplest form I believe social entrepreneurship means using entrepreneurial techniques to address social issues. I met a Ashoka Fellow on the trip who described social entrepreneurs as, individuals with innovative solutions to society’s most pressing social problems. Another definition offered, suggested that social entrepreneurship meant addressing social issues with resources the entrepreneur did not own or control.

While the debate on the definition of social entrepreneurship will continue, one thing I do know today is that social entrepreneurship is on the rise and may be one of the best hopes to solve many of today's vexing social issues.

Social Enterprise

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 03:25:00 +0000

I am on my way to London tomorrow for a global social enterprise conference. Wikipedia defines social enterprises as - social mission driven organizations which trade in goods or services for a social purpose. Their choice to deliver on financial, social and environmental performance targets is often referred to as having a triple bottom line.

I am look forward to this small conference which will include representatives from every continent. As I wrote Friday "social" has become the modifier of choice for everything from innovation to responsibility. I am keen to learn about how social enterprise is being thought of in different parts of the world and the lessons of success/failure that will be shared. I hope to be able to report in while I'm traveling, assuming technology will cooperate.

Paying for Philanthropic Advice

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 14:56:00 +0000

There is an interesting debate taking place on the Tactical Philanthropy Blog regarding paying for philanthropic advice. Sean Stannard-Stockton says, "Sooner or later, donors are going to start being willing to pay for advice on how to give. This will transform philanthropy." I very much agree. The question of course is who will pay and how soon will this transformation take place?

Large foundation and high net worth individuals are already paying for philanthropic advice; from consultants, by purchasing research or just hiring philanthropic staff. This trend is broadening and increasing, due to the popular media's publicizing of the need to achieve measurable results with philanthropic giving. The media may be doing more to benefit philanthropy and the philanthropy advisor than any other group, event or action today.

The fact though remains, that most giving is of a size that makes paying for advice uneconomical. If the size of gifts make paying for advice uneconomical, advice will have to be paid for by someone other than the giver or giving will need to be aggregated to a level that paying for advice is economical. The first changes in this area are already taking place. Large financial institutions are beginning to view philanthropic advice as a service they need to offer to their clients to be competitive, and are willing to pay or subsidize the delivery of this advice. This is just one example of aggregation that will bring the effective cost of philanthropic advice down to an acceptable level.

This trend is likely to continue via aggregation, by institutions, like minded givers - through self created groups, and other innovative means.

Social Innovation

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:03:00 +0000

It seems like the word social has become the modifier of choice for everything from entrepreneurship to being responsible. I recently read an article on social innovation, which defines it as such, "A novel solution to a social problem that is more effective, efficient, sustainable, or just than existing solutions and for which value created accrues primarily to society as whole rather than private individuals."

With this in mind yesterday Eli Broad announced a $400m gift to the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, in Cambridge, Mass., a biomedical-research center that is jointly run by Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. Its goal is to bring researchers together from a wide range of disciplines to fight disease and focus on other topics. There early successes are indeed impressive.

Also announced yesterday was that ebay has started a web site (http://www.worldofgood.com/) to sell goods produced with social and environmental goals in mind.

These can both be considered social innovations, but should they and are they of equal value to society?

Donor Intent Debate

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:44:00 +0000

The Chronicle on Philanthropy will be holding a debate on Friday September 5th on the topic of Donor Intent. I encourage you to participate.

The Chronicle reports — Pablo Eisenberg and Leslie Lenkowsky — will debate the issue in person on Friday, Sept. 5, at noon Eastern time, along with other experts, at a lunch session sponsored by the Hudson Institute’s Bradley Center for Philanthropy and Civic Renewal.
Joining them will be Ray D. Madoff, a professor at Boston College, and Judge Robert H. Bork.

This debate is caused by stories like that of Leona M. Helmsley who left most of her fortune, worth at least $4-billion, to benefit the care of dogs. This has touched off much controversy about philanthropy and public policy. As I commented yesterday donor intent is the only guidance we have to operate private foundations. Some might find dogs unworthy, others cancer reseach or funding the arts, but is this really for us to second guess? I don't believe so but I look forward to this spirited debate.

Donor Intent

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:25:00 +0000

While at a gathering this past week the subject or donor intent vs. societal need was raised. The question was in the face of a compelling societal need, could/should a foundation address that need, even if it isn't consistent with the donors intent. Part of the argument being made was that the tax benefits provided to private foundations are in essence a subsidy, and therefore make their endowments public funds for the public's benefit. This of course is not the case anymore than your 401k is public funds because it involves tax-exempt contributions.

Private foundations have no constituents nor are they subject to normal market forces. This leaves them only with the guidance of donor intent. It is for this reason that donor intent should be respected and strenuously adhered to. Even in the case where donor intent is not clearly articulated or is totally absent, foundation trustees must seek guidance in the spirit of the donor. For example the W.M. Keck Foundation ,where I spent twelve years as the senior executive, is guided by the risk-taking entrepreneurial spirit of the founder, an oil and gas wildcatter. It was that spirit that led us to take risks and partner with many of the world brightest minds in the areas of Medical Research, Science, and Engineering as they explored the new frontiers of these areas.

Gustav: Over 100 Domain Names Registered

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 03:58:00 +0000

In the past 24 hours over 100 domain names were registered with the name Gustav as part of them. Most of these sites are parked domains and many of them are for sale. They will be worth monitoring, particularly if they are used to solicit donations for relief efforts. Please make sure that you verify any site that asks for donations to ensure that it is legitimate. If you have any doubts, please visit the Better Business Bureau site.

Effective Giving

jdj@springbanc.com (Jonathan D. Jaffrey) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 19:13:00 +0000

It’s almost three years to the day since Hurricane Katrina slammed into the gulf coast. As we brace for Hurricane Gustav we are reminded of the successes and failures of the response to that tragedy. The effectiveness of our philanthropic donations effect lives. Before donating to a disaster relief organization make sure to do your homework. The BBB Wise Giving Alliance lists tips on its website for researching the effectiveness of disaster relief charities before giving. You can also look to reputable organizations like The Chronicle of Philanthropy who have begun to issue updates on charities preparedness for Gustav including the response of the Red Cross. The Red Cross website contains valuable information about disaster relief and emergency preparedness. While we all hope that Gustav will lose strength and spare our family and friends, in the event that it doesn’t, it’s important to think before you respond and if necessary ask for help. Reaching out to some of the organizations listed above or others to insure your dollars will have the impact and benefit that you desire.