As her nieces Lauren and Sara Lubetsky explain, their aunt has always dedicated herself to helping others. “Sheila has been extremely philanthropic for her entire life and career,” says Lauren. “She was incredibly honored when she was appointed by Attorney General Eric Holder to serve as Special Master of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. She designed the Fund and distributed nearly $2 billion to claimants.” It was always a given that Sheila would establish a charitable vehicle, but she originally planned to have it established as part of her estate plan. “She knew for a long time that she wanted to have her own foundation, and Lauren and I were really excited about it,” says Sara. “But we encouraged her to start it sooner rather than later.”

Because both nieces shared Sheila’s passion for giving and had valuable skills to contribute (Sara’s work for the Mount Sinai Health System involves grants management, and Lauren’s work at Deloitte includes strategy consulting in the social sector), Sheila decided to endow a private foundation and make giving a family endeavor. Founded in 2019, the Lubetsky Family Foundation reflects the passion and commitment of all three women. Its mission, a fitting tribute to Sheila, is to help the underserved children and young adults of New York City unlock their full potential by supporting educational opportunity and career readiness programs.

“The driving force behind all of her success and action is the idea that she was born underserved,” says Lauren. “She believes it is important to give back to the underserved residents of New York City. She wants to give them the same opportunity to realize their full potential, which enabled her to pursue her career at a time in which female lawyers, judges, and professors were few and not treated equitably.”

With the foundation established and the mission defined, Sheila and her nieces began to develop a plan of action. “We knew we wanted to do grantmaking in the education space,” says Sara. “We’ve now expanded our definition of education to also include career readiness. And we knew that there were certain groups that we wanted to focus on. For example, Sheila is very active in supporting women’s education, and we wanted to include refugees, immigrants, and communities of color.” Lauren adds, “We wanted to keep it broad enough that we could identify an array of groups and organizations where we can move the needle, but we focus it enough that we could actually realize impact in our community.”

The Lubetsky Family Foundation recently identified an organization that could put their philanthropy in motion. “Avenues for Justice is a small organization in New York that offers an alternative to incarceration for kids in the criminal justice system,” explains Lauren. “They keep youth out of prison in a program that provides court advocacy, tutoring, mentorship, and provides treatment, job training, and other services to help youth thrive. And over 90% of the kids who graduate from their programs never commit another crime.”

Of course, like every other fledgling enterprise, the Foundation had to reassess its strategy in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. But, unlike every other entity, Lauren and Sara had the skillset to quickly adapt. In fact, Lauren regularly consults around how organizations should respond to the challenges imposed by COVID and how to seek out potential opportunities. For the Foundation, mounting an effective response meant taking a second look at their first-ever grant decision.

“Interestingly, in the case of Avenues for Justice, what we found is that in the new, remote environment, they were actually able to have a broader reach because they weren’t limited to their geographical footprint,” Lauren reports. “That being said, COVID definitely did affect the programming that we’re working on with them. Digital literacy suddenly becomes an even more critical foundational element because, without a computer, kids can’t participate in classes, career readiness programming, or get certifications. And what they were finding is that a lot of kids in the program didn’t even know the basics about how to use a computer. So we decided to start there.”

Although the Foundation is just getting started, the three women are learning how they can best work together: “Sheila is the person with the most high-level oversight of the foundation,” explains Sara, “I’ve become our director of grant programs, and Lauren’s become our director of outreach.” It’s a winning combination of talent and expertise. “You have a strong female lawyer, a woman with grant experience, and a woman with business consulting and strategy expertise,” says Lauren. “I think down the line, this will certainly shape up into a really powerful expression of all of our skills.”

“In the past, we all individually had our own volunteer work or causes that we gave money to,” Lauren says, “but the power of bringing three very different women with unique skills together to drive change multiplies the difference we can make. And working on the Foundation has been a really meaningful way for us to all be connected in a time where we’re not together physically.” And how does Sheila feel about helming the Lubetsky Family Foundation? “Working with two generations of women to help others in need reach their potential and making philanthropic decisions as a family is as good as it gets.”

The post The Queen of Torts and Her Nieces Found a Philanthropic Dynasty appeared first on Foundation Source.

“When our foundation decided to go deeper rather than wider in our philanthropy, one of the areas upon which we decided to concentrate was restorative justice and criminal justice reform,” explains Sandak. “I am an attorney and one of the board members is a state judge; so, we are familiar with the general topic of the criminal justice system when we wear our professional, non-philanthropic hats. It’s clear that there has historically been a disparity in the way that people have been treated by the criminal justice system in the context of their economic, social, or racial status.”

So, what is restorative justice? “The restorative justice concept, basically, places more focus on the individual defendant and what is giving rise to the antisocial behavior that generated his or her criminal activities.” Sandak explains. “If we can understand and address the underlying social concerns, there’s more likelihood that we’ll have a better result for the individual and for society as a whole. This will allow us to address the challenging topic of recidivism, the revolving door that has these people going in and out of the system.”

Because Herbert and Nell Singer, the founders of the Singer Foundation, had been very active in Israel during their lifetime, the foundation’s first foray into restorative justice took the form of supporting a community court pilot program in that country. Unlike a traditional criminal court where the primary purpose is to determine guilt or innocence of the defendants and mete out the appropriate punishment for the offenses, Sandak explains, the structure and process of a community court focuses on restorative justice. “The idea is to recognize that criminal behavior affects not only the defendant and the victim but often the entire community. The process affords an opportunity to view the entire landscape and make everybody appreciate the reasons for and consequences of the criminal behavior. In particular, a defendant is encouraged to confront the consequences of his actions and how they have affected others.” The community court pilot program in Israel was an enormous success, expanding from a single demonstration court to community courts in four of Israel’s six judicial districts. “The expectation is that there’ll eventually be one in each of the six districts,” Sandak reports. “The Israeli government has indicated its support of this effort going forward, so private philanthropy will no longer be essential.”

When the Singer Foundation decided to take its restorative justice work to its home state of Connecticut, rather than trying to replicate the community court program that it helped pioneer in Israel, it took another approach. “One of the things we saw in Connecticut, which is not unlike anywhere else in the country, the vast majority of criminal cases are run-of-the-mill, non- violent, low-level crimes,” Sandak explains. “Prosecutors would look at the file, decide whether to prosecute, and then the case moves along over multiple court dates until, ultimately, there’s either a plea bargain or a trial. At the time of sentencing, everybody takes a time out to consider the individual in the context of sentencing. What’s his employment and marital status? Does he have roots in the community? Is he mentally stable? Is there an addiction issue, etc.?”

Not only was the process unjust, with the consideration of crime’s contextual factors coming only at the time of sentencing, but it was also costly. “Defendants were coming back to court three, four, or five times,” Sandak explains, “and every time they have a court appearance, they have to miss work or maybe get daycare, which means that they’re potentially losing their jobs or spending scarce resources because of this process.” And with tax payers footing the bill for all those prosecutorial hours, the cost to the state was also high.

“I met with the leaders of the criminal justice system in Connecticut, and we decided that the system seemed a little bit upside down,” Sandak says. “The review of the individual should happen at the beginning of the process, so that smarter and expeditious decisions can be made by the prosecutors.” The Singer Foundation partnered with a New York-based nonprofit, the Center for Court Innovation, which focuses on approaches to the administration of criminal justice. “They helped us create the system, and we funded a pilot program in two locations, Waterbury and Bridgeport, where we had a designated prosecutor and a social worker screening all of the cases in order to determine whether they should be prosecuted, how they should be prosecuted, and what kind of social services the defendant might need.” The state called it Early Screening Intervention (ESI). After hearing about the pilot, the state legislature decided to expand ESI to four more locations: Hartford, New Haven, Norwich, and New London. The Singer Foundation funded this expansion.

Recently, as the end of the pilot was approaching, Connecticut’s division of criminal justice issued its report to the Connecticut legislature. The outcomes were nothing short of astonishing: The statistics showed that, in comparison to control sites, the locations where the pilot was in effect saw a drastic reduction in the number of defendant court appearances. “At the control sites, the average was about 4.7 court appearances before there could be a resolution of the case,” Sandak reports. “At our pilot sites, it was just a bit over one appearance. With the early screening, many cases were resolved in the first appearance!”

Moreover, the report concluded that the fewer court appearances resulted in significant cost savings for both defendants and tax payers. “The report said that if the program were instituted statewide, it would free up about 4,500 hours of court time annually, which would mean 54,000 fewer appearances for these low-level offenders,” Sandak says. “The report projected that the program would save the state over $9,000,000 in its first year alone.” Currently, the chief state’s attorney is requesting that the legislature take the program statewide to realize these savings which, as Sandak notes, should not be expensive or prohibitively difficult to accomplish because it’s primarily just a refocused way of utilizing existing personnel and resources.

With impact of this magnitude, you might expect that Sandak would want to stay laser-focused on this program, which he believes has the potential to scale up nationally. However, although he remains committed to the program, he’s convinced that this handoff from private philanthropy to public government is key to sustainable change. “I believe that private philanthropy dollars need to be used to take risks and explore innovative ways to address tough issues,” Sandak explains. “It’s very hard to use public dollars to spearhead new and innovative approaches. By the same token, private philanthropists are often reluctant to provide long-term funding. Support for ongoing, proven, public projects should be the role of public dollars. In the most productive private-public partnerships, private money is used to test out and come up with innovative approaches to solving tough issues, and then successful projects are handed off to government entities to implement and scale up. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

Sandak notes that the Singer Foundation isn’t solely focused on restorative justice: “We have other areas of interest. For example, in the education space, we are digging pretty deeply to try to understand the issues relating to post-secondary school persistence issues for low-income and minority students. Nationally and in Connecticut, we’re making some progress in closing the achievement gap and increasing graduation rates for these students. However, when it comes to post- high school education, these kids are falling off a cliff!”

To understand the root causes, Sandak is immersing himself in the topic. “I’m doing a lot of reading. I’m talking to professionals who are interested and committed to this issue,” he says. “That’s what’s most satisfying to me personally. Digging deeply, understanding the nature of the problem, and then providing funding to search for a solution. It’s so much more than just writing a check!”

“More than writing a check,” in fact, is something of an understatement. Sandak has become so involved in his philanthropy that it has become another vocation. “For me personally, it’s a privilege to be in the philanthropic space,” Sandak says. “I’ve had a successful legal career, and this is kind of like the next chapter. I’m spending more and more of my time on this, and I find it very rewarding.”

The post Justice, Justice You Shall Pursue appeared first on Foundation Source.

“Our vision was helping vulnerable populations, specifically women, children, and immigrants,” Diana explains. “Our strategy was visual storytelling writ large, and our tactics were documentary films.” The Fledgling Fund selects films to support through a highly competitive process, choosing those that are well made, that tell a compelling story, and are timely. “We work with those filmmakers to connect them with activists and NGOs that are already working in that space, and we help them to find the right outreach producer (a term that didn’t exist ten years ago) to make sure that their film becomes an engine of change,” Diana says. “In 2016, continuing with this strategy, we added a new thread called the Rapid Development Fund. Here, we provide extremely quick turnaround for filmmakers who have a short story to tell about an extremely timely issue. Sometimes, they make the piece entirely; sometimes, they repurpose footage. This strand is also very competitive. In 2017, we received about 300 requests for funding and supported about 25.” Over the past 14 years, Fledgling has supported 450 projects to highlight and bring action to human rights, racism, and immigration.

Fledgling is productive from both a quantitative and qualitative standpoint. The film projects it has supported have won or been nominated for Emmy Awards and Academy Awards and have been exhibited at Sundance and other prestigious festivals. However, Diana is less interested in building a cineaste’s trophy cabinet than in getting traction on social issues. About eight years ago, Fledgling supported a film about domestic violence, Sin by Silence, which depicted the plight of women who’d been jailed for killing their abusers. The movie made such an impact that in its wake, three pieces of legislation were passed  in California called the “Sin by Silence Bills.” One statute of these bills permits many victims of domestic violence, including those featured in the film, to refile for a writ of habeas corpus and petition the court to reconsider their cases in light of the circumstances of their abuse. “I wish I could claim that kind of impact for every film,” Diana says, “but some of these projects have very long tails, and we won’t know for years whether they were impactful. You don’t know how long it will take until someone feels a sense of responsibility and acts.”

Despite Fledgling’s track record of achievement, Diana is a firm believer in regular and vigorous self-assessment. “Ten years after we started our outreach and community engagement strategy, we asked ourselves if we should revisit it,” she says. “We asked, what are we good at? What is our brand? How has the field changed?” She also asked a more personal question: “Is this making our key people happy? We’re certainly interested in impact, but I also want to wake up every morning feeling excited about what we do.”

The exercise prompted some valuable insights. “The field has changed a lot since we got started,” Diana says. “We helped to build the outreach and community engagement field. Now, there’s an entire ecosystem focused on it— ranging from individual impact producers that will work with filmmakers to larger companies that can manage specific components or a film’s entire campaign. When we first started, we gave $30,000-$40,000 grants, and that was enough to fund the project. Now, there are films getting $2-$3 million, just for outreach above and beyond the production costs.”

Instead of continuing to fund projects in the same manner, Fledgling looked for a longer lever to keep pushing forward. “We’re still focused on vulnerable populations, but we’re going to focus even more on the safety and health of women and girls because we think that’s the sweet spot in changing so many things that affect vulnerable populations,” Diana explains. “For example, imagine there’s a child in the South Bronx with asthma. If you’re focused only on the child’s disease, but you don’t help the child’s mother address the other issues that she has to deal with on a daily basis, often called the social determinants of health, such as adequate housing, lack  of food, inappropriate sexual behavior, drug use, etc., the asthma will never be dealt with. By focusing on the mother’s challenges, you can get to the root of these problems and make lasting change.”

The Fledgling Fund is also leveraging its connections on behalf of its current objectives. And Fledgling is very good at convening. Recently, they have been working closely with Double Exposure, a film festival in Washington, D.C. that works internationally to bring investigative journalism to global audiences. “Double Exposure is a great convening space, connecting journalists and filmmakers to feed investigative storytelling,” Diana explains. “At the moment, Fledgling is also working with PAI, an organization that advocates for universal access to  reproductive  health, and we saw an opportunity to partner with both of these organizations and worked to support nine Fledgling Fellows to attend the festival and convene around current issues in reproductive health. So, all of these people are in D.C. today—investigative journalists, photographers, filmmakers, and people who care about reproductive health. Our goal is to build an effective network of people who don’t often come together to develop stories, both visual and written, that will move the needle.”

Asked if she has any advice for other private foundations, Diana is blunt: “What you did five years ago may not make a difference today or be the right strategy,” she says. “You need to do a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis to determine where in the panoply of other activities you want to be. And, also think about what level of risk you want to take and how. I recently read about Barbara and Stephen Miller, Foundation Source clients who make micro grants to help people avoid becoming homeless. They’re doing great work, and they are clearly comfortable in that space, but who are you? Is this what you want to do?” For Diana, the answer to that question is the key to both philanthropic impact and personal fulfillment.

The post Un-Silent Movies—Diana Barrett Uses Visual Storytelling to Give Voice to the Vulnerable appeared first on Foundation Source.

Impact investing, harnessing the foundation’s endowment capital to drive its goals and mission, is having a moment. Hailed as “the next generation of innovation in philanthropic impact” by The Ford Foundation, impact investing represents a brand new approach for some philanthropists. But for Kristin Hull, impact investing has been the warp and woof of her foundation right from the start.

In 2007, Kristin’s family had just set up a family foundation to strive for social justice and environmental sustainability, when she decided to attend a Global Philanthropy Forum session. “It was called ‘Two Percent,’ and going in, I had no idea what it was about,” Kristin admits, “but it turned out to be a discussion about using two percent of the funds in your endowment, not just your grant dollars, to advance your mission.”

The idea of impact investing made perfect, intuitive sense to Kristin. “Our family business was made by entrepreneurship,” she says. “And some of the proceeds from the sale of that business to Goldman Sachs became the basis of our family foundation.” However, one particular goal of the impacting investing advocates at the session rankled. “The Ford Foundation and others were arguing about whether you could get two percent of your foundation’s endowment aligned with mission, and I had this lightbulb moment. I asked, ‘Why two percent? Why not 100%?’”

Kristin immediately took action on behalf of her family’s foundation: “I began by working with advisors, identifying and investing with seven community banks that made loans to small businesses, women, and people of color.” Kristin’s own foundation, Nia Community Foundation, in Oakland, California also made program-related investments (loans, loan guarantees, and equity investments) to help advance her philanthropic objectives while returning earnings to the foundation.

“We helped a charter school in Oakland by making a loan guarantee, so they could buy a building,” Kristin explains. “It worked out perfectly. We received 4% interest on another part of the loan when interest rates were below 1%, so it was financially savvy as well. The funds get recycled for charitable use, so we can do even more. To be an effective philanthropist, it’s important to have your endowment work for you and your goals.”

Today, The Nia Community Foundation is 100% impact invested, with all of its funds in service of its mission (“even our phone service and credit cards, and everything I own personally,” Kristin says), and Kristin has made impact investing her profession as well as her calling. She serves as the founder and Chief Investment Officer of Nia Impact Capital, a firm that creates impact investing solutions with an emphasis on women and gender equality. Its flagship portfolio product, Nia Global Solutions Equity Portfolio, delivers a competitive rate of return while creating positive impact for investors. In 2017, the portfolio delivered a 37.59% return, outperforming the S&P 500 by 15.77%.

Naturally, we asked Kristin to share her advice for foundations that want to reap the financial and social benefits of impact investing. Here’s what she had to say:

Open the Envelopes

For foundations that want to get started with impact investing, Kristin has some very specific advice: “I call it ‘opening the envelopes.’ You want to get all the foundation investments out on the table and really look at them. What’s in the index fund? What’s hiding behind the index stock symbol? Impact investing begins with knowing what you own and determining whether it aligns with your goals and mission.”

If you open the envelopes and don’t like what you see, you might assume that the next move would be to remove the “bad apples” from your index. But Kristin cautions that a so-called negative screen may not be your best option. “Screens can help you remove tobacco, alcohol, gun manufacturers, and other objectionable businesses,” Kristin says, “but that can leave you with mediocre companies.”

Seek Excellence

According to Kristin, a better solution is to build a portfolio around your goals and actively seek out “good apples” by applying ESG (environmental, social, and governance) screens. “Look at where you’re granting and back up,” she suggests. “If your foundation is involved in global water issues, look for an investment that also deals with global water issues. Then, choose companies with products and management teams that exemplify your values and further your goals—that’s really where we want to be.”

By seeking out companies that make positive contributions to the world and are well run, Kristin claims, you eliminate both bad actors and financial underperformers. “When you add ESG, you’re doing a deeper level of due diligence, and that plays in your favor,” Kristin says. “Because you’re seeking excellence, you end up with a portfolio of innovative, forward-thinking companies.”

Move Your Money

Another good starting point is the foundation’s cash. “Is it in a bank making no interest? Move it to a community bank, CNote, or RSF Social Finance,” Kristin suggests. “They can often increase your impact in the world while providing better interest rates and financial returns.”

Prioritize Profits

“It’s a myth that you get lower returns with impact investing,” Kristin says. “In fact, I’d prefer to call impact investing ‘smart investing’ because, if you do it right, you hit all of your goals, including the financial ones.” As Kristin sees it, profits are an important metric of success because they demonstrate the efficacy of your overall strategy. “If an investment doesn’t work out financially, you may not be achieving your social or environmental goals either,” Kristin explains.

Get Creative

“I love to work with foundations because they have so many entry points to impact investing, and there are so few limitations,” Kristin says. “Individuals have to worry about the tax implications of capital gains, but private foundations can change strategy at any time without that worry. Private foundations hide behind fiduciary duty sometimes, but they are ideally positioned to lead the way with impact investing. They need to be the ones to innovate.”

Go Deeper

If your foundation is ready to take impact investing to the next level, Kristin recommends looking at the people behind your investments. “Who are your financial managers and fund managers? If you value diversity, which can lead to innovation, choose companies with diverse teams and managers who are women and people of color. There are only 14% of fund managers who are women, so it’s a harder ask, but it’s incredibly impactful.”

As a shareholder, you can also work to improve companies from the inside out. “Sign on to different organizations like As You Sow in Oakland that promote corporate responsibility to learn how to you can hold corporations accountable,” Kristin suggests. You can use your leverage in publicly traded companies to advocate for everything from introducing paid family leave for employees to eliminating ocean-polluting plastic straws.

“Using your foundation to offer program-related loans and loan guarantees are other great ways to go deeper,” Kristin says. “Grants are one way to provide support, but they’re not always appropriate for every situation. Sometimes, a small business that could benefit the community needs a loan and isn’t organized as a nonprofit. Sometimes, it’s a favorite nonprofit that could receive a grant, but what they need is a loan or a loan guarantee to buy a building.”

Finally, consider making impact investing your personal as well as foundation strategy, and spreading the gospel. “The next step is to expand the impact investing movement by democratizing it,” Kristin says. “Private foundations have access because of their endowment size, and yet the way we will really change things is by empowering everyday investors.” While separately managed accounts start at $100,000, Nia Financial currently has products for individuals with a minimum investment of $10,000, and a lower-priced mutual fund may be available soon. Kristin also notes that there are other options available for individual investors. “You can open an account at RFS with as little as $1,000, and CNote has no minimum whatsoever. Everyone can become an impact investor.”

The post A Conversation with Kristin Hull appeared first on Foundation Source.

It isn’t easy to get Carrie Morgridge on the phone for more than a few minutes at a time because the Denver-based philanthropist is rarely in one place for very long. Carrie and her husband John recently biked from Canada to Mexico in 46 days, a life-altering journey they documented in a new book, The Spirit of the Trail (available through Amazon). But compared to the miles she logs in pursuit of her philanthropy, that 2,774 mile-long bike ride seems like a brief pedal around the block. Because the vice president and “chief disruptor” of The Morgridge Family Foundation is committed to connecting like-minded nonprofits, funders, and other stakeholders, she spends a lot of her time on the road.

“Great programs aren’t just happening in Denver, but all over the United States,” Carrie explains. “I often times bring nonprofit leaders with me to meet the best and the brightest in other cities, and they, in turn, collaborate and amplify each other’s work. That’s why I travel so much!” For Carrie, this collaboration is essential because the Morgridge Family Foundation invests in transformative gifts and is laser-focused on scalability.

“To scale our impact, we try not to touch a project unless it can impact at least a million people, either directly or indirectly,” she explains. “We don’t give money and walk away. Not only do you get a grant from our foundation, but we also roll up our sleeves and connect people in our network, from great nonprofits to great philanthropists. Because we’ve done so many grants and come across so many wonderful people, we’ve put together an amazing group, and we’ve organized them into sector categories in which they work. They’re sharing ideas and amplifying their capabilities just by connecting.”

Another way The Morgridge Family Foundation has leveraged the power of collaboration is through the creation of mindSpark Learning, a nonprofit that provides professional development for all educators across the country. “For the STEM schools that mindSpark Learning works with, the ‘E’ in STEM stands not just for engineering, but also for entrepreneurialism,” Carrie explains. “Another program we are working on is linking industry with teachers for summer internships. If educators are going to teach STEM, it is vital to expose them to an industry experience. There is a huge ripple effect that is occurring when the educators present authentic and real problems to their students for them to solve. The result is that students benefit from having real-world experience, like launching a company or solving a complex problem, as a major focus of their learning. We are seeing these skills also pass directly to their families and their communities.“

Carrie is also investing in another scalable project, Impact 100, a growing network of women’s giving
circles founded by Wendy Steele in 2001 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Every Impact 100 is unique to its own city and consists of 100 women who give $1,000 each. Collectively, they give a $100,000 transformational grant in their own city. “When I met Wendy, the first thing I asked her was how was she planning to scale globally? That led to a great conversation where the foundation gave the Impact 100 Global Council a gift to scale,” Carrie says. “Impact groups are starting each year across the country, and combined, they have given millions of dollars to transform their own communities. What I love about Impact 100 is that all the women in the group are equal and have equal power over the decisions. Every woman can decide how much or how little she wants to be involved, but every vote is equal. From ladies who are lifelong philanthropists to young girls, we are all equal, and that is really powerful.”

Because Carrie looks for ways to touch as many lives as possible through philanthropy, she’s increasingly interested in policy. “If you want to touch a million people, the best way to have impact is through policy,” she explains. “We’ve been funding Morgridge Fellows in Poverty Alleviation, Medical, Human Dignity, and Education. They are helping shape policy, and we are starting to see a profound change and impact.”

If Carrie sounds like a woman with a lot on her plate, that’s because she is. “We tried to cut back to 100 projects a year, but at six months we were already at 100,” she admits. “There are just a lot of amazing ideas out there.” One source of these ideas comes from Carrie’s stints as a “shark” at a philanthropy-themed forum based on the popular TV show, Shark Tank. Whereas the TV show features entrepreneurs pitching their business plans to investors who are successful entrepreneurs themselves (the “sharks”), the philanthropy version gives grant-seekers an opportunity to pitch their programs to funders. “I’m a shark!” Carrie enthuses. “You have to have a minimum of $25,000 to play, and I can put in as much as $100,000. I have found the most amazing projects by participating in ‘Shark Tank,’ and we’re starting to host these events at our foundation.”

From funding a new wing at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science that hosts 1.6 million people a year to constructing girls’ bathrooms in India (“The girls actually have to hold their pee all day, so their attendance and health suffered”), Carrie gives new meaning to the word “ambitious.” What keeps her motivated? “I think about the experience of biking from Banff, Canada to Antelope Wells, New Mexico on the Mexican border,” she said. “It really taught me a lot about grit and determination. I know it sounds silly, but on the bike ride, I’d celebrate every 100 miles that I and my husband logged by ringing my bike bell. Philanthropy is like that. Whether it’s a new museum wing or a bathroom, you need to celebrate the wins, keep on pushing, and don’t forget to ‘ring your bell’ in celebration of milestones.”

The post A Conversation with Carrie Morgridge appeared first on Foundation Source.

When Robert L. Edwards died in 2001, the foundation expanded. “My father left all his resources to the foundation at the time of his death and that meant a big influx of resources and assets with just my brother and me on the board,” says Baker. An invitation was issued to the family at large and five family members (generation three) joined the foundation.

The new board didn’t function like the proverbial well-oiled machine. “The early years were spent figuring out where to spend the money,” Sonia says. It was a job made more complex by the family’s dispersed geography and busy lives. And the foundation’s broad mission statement wasn’t exactly facilitating philanthropic or family cohesion. Board members began by funding pet projects in their own communities, which led eventually to disagreements and friction. “Things got to a point where we needed outside help,” Sonia remembers. “We were introduced to Foundation Source, and that’s made all the difference.”

In 2004, EMEF outsourced its back-office administration to Foundation Source, and in 2005, Chief Philanthropic Officer Page Snow facilitated a strategic planning retreat to help the board fine-tune its mission and achieve greater impact with their giving. “Page was wonderful,” says Sonia. “She brought her expertise and without telling people what to do, she opened up possibilities so we could make better decisions.” The board identified three areas of common interest: sustainable building practices, biodiversity, and environmental justice.

For the next two years, the family divided itself into three teams dedicated to these three issues. During that time, they grew to appreciate the efficacy of a more focused mission. They also deepened their appreciation for each other. “The value to the family has been not only in making a difference, but also in deepening familial relationships,” says Sonia.

In February 2007, the day after scientists confirmed that humans were contributing to global climate change, EMEF held a special meeting. They voted to narrow their mission to a single focus and grant $1 million annually for five years on a response to climate change. But what could they do to make a measurable impact on such an enormous issue? They didn’t want to squander their capital on a scattershot approach. Before committing their resources, EMEF wanted to confer with the most knowledgeable experts in the field.

Drawing on Foundation Source’s extensive network of specialists and experts, Snow introduced the possibility of hiring David Gardiner, former Executive Director of the White House Climate Change Task Force under President Clinton, as an EMEF consultant. “We were so lucky to get David!” Baker says. “I think his decision to work with us might have had to do with family. David also has a large family and a piece of property in Maine that they run like a family foundation. I think the family situation appealed to him.” After several months of research, David Gardiner & Associates (DGA) and the board began to identify areas where EMEF might make the most measureable impact. They reached some surprising conclusions.

“We decided that the cheapest, cleanest, fastest way to make a difference would be to implement energy efficiency policy change within states,” Baker says. “Getting more use out of the power we already generate means we don’t have to build as many new coal-fired power plants—the biggest source of greenhouse gases.” In addition, the cost of delivering energy efficiency is only 25% of the cost of building a new power plant. EMEF had found their leverage point!

The challenge would be to change state rules that govern electricity markets. Traditionally, under those rules, utility companies only make money by selling more power—hence the constant push for more power plants. “We wanted public utilities and utility commissions to start making regulations where energy efficiency is considered a source of alternative energy, just like wind power or solar. We wanted to show that these utilities didn’t have to build more plants to produce more energy—that they could save what they needed through efficiency.”

To begin their efforts, DGA identified several states where electric utilities, advocates, political leaders, or other actors might be receptive to a push for increased energy efficiency. In dialogue, the board decided on Ohio, Illinois, Colorado, Arizona, and Idaho. (Additional states were added subsequently.) The EMEF Board then divided into state teams and, together with DGA consultants, met with state leaders and local environmental, legal, and grassroots organizations that might be interested in joining the effort and enlisting additional regional support. Organizations that passed the vetting process received grants to advance energy efficiency in their home state.

At first, some foundation members were a little slow to embrace their mission. “Energy efficiency isn’t something you cuddle up to,” Baker explains. “It’s difficult. Those of us on the board have varying levels of ‘wonkiness!’” However, once the results data started to come in following year three, the foundation’s dramatic success turned those who may have been doubters into enthusiastic proponents.

From 2008 through 2010, EMEF contributed to meaningful successes and significant improvements in energy efficiency, including helping to:

Increase utility efficiency investment by more than $160 million—57 times the foundation’s investment.
Save at least 3,579,365 Megawatt Hours of energy (the equivalent of shutting down one 500 MW coal plant.)
Avoid at least 5,599,361 tons of CO2 emissions (the equivalent of removing over 1 million cars from the road).
Save consumers at least $395,489,467 in energy bills.
EMEF has also seen their cause gain political traction. In 2000, only two states had energy efficiency standards. Since 2007, more than 19 states have adopted them. By 2012, according to DGA, at least 26 states accounting for 65% of the United States’ electricity demand had adopted energy efficiency standards. And if there is continued support for energy efficiency programs in the seven EMEF states, the results will be even more dramatic. In those states, EMEF anticipates that by the year 2020, energy efficiency will save 40,548,000 Megawatt Hours of energy, the equivalent of shutting down 7 coal-fired power plants, and will avoid almost 28 million tons of CO2 emissions (the equivalent of removing 5.5 million cars from the road). “Our success has been a real emotional boost for the board,” Baker attests.

The foundation has derived great satisfaction not only from its results, but also from interacting with its grantees. “Another thing we’ve done is we’ve brought representatives from our grantees to several forum retreats. It’s a way for these people to network and work together. It also is helpful to the grantees and the board to see where we’re going. What are the hurdles? What do they see coming down the pike? What solutions might we try? It’s a way of grounding each other in our relationships and it’s a great learning experience for the board.”

In addition to becoming an engine for environmental change, the foundation has also become a training ground for future generations of family leaders. Three second-generation family members recently left the board and were replaced by new members from generations three and four. “We do keep focusing on wanting this foundation to be made up of family as long as we have sufficient interested family members to do it,” Baker reports. “We’ve had great input from board members on the policy and operations handbook. We want new members to know our history and how we got here. Where we go from here is their job and it will be their leadership that has to carry it on.”

The post Warming Family Dynamics While Cooling the Climate: A Small Foundation Makes a Major Impact appeared first on Foundation Source.

If a traditional foundation is an orchestra, then The EACH Foundation of San Francisco, California is the Kronos Quartet—a boldly experimental group where traditional rules simply don’t apply.

Like Kronos, which happily bounces from classical music to pop, world music, jazz, and other genres, The EACH Foundation doesn’t limit itself to one particular cause. Its name is an acronym for the verticals in which it takes an active interest: Education, Environment, Arts, Animals, Children, Community, Health, and Homelessness. It’s a broad scope, but the Foundation has a unique organizational model that enables it to be as effective as it is ambitious.

“We call ourselves social entrepreneurs,” says EACH founder, Lionel Shaw. “Instead of program advisors, we rely on 25 members of the community who serve as our Philanthropic Advisors and drive our decision making. These are people from every ethnicity, background, and socioeconomic strata. We really wanted a rainbow coalition involving members of the community, influencers, and anyone else who was civic-minded and willing to roll up their sleeves.”

These Philanthropic Advisors (PAs), who each serve a two-year term and appoint their successors, are responsible for making grant recommendations to the foundation, and their role is to represent the concerns of their communities. “For example, there are four or five members whose giving has an African-American focus, and they spearhead our giving in that area. Then, there’s an LGBT group and that’s their giving orientation. There’s a women’s contingent, etc.,” Shaw explains. “I’d compare their functionality to cells within a larger corpus.”

This grand experiment in what Shaw calls “radical egalitarianism” had modest beginnings. “I started with a donor-advised fund (DAF) at the San Francisco Foundation Fund of perhaps $150,000,” Shaw recalls. “But even though the restrictions and limitations of a DAF weren’t flexible enough for what I wanted to achieve, the experience helped me to get to know more people in the community. It was like having training wheels before starting the foundation.”

Together with five core board members that included childhood friends, Shaw then formed EACH as an open architecture foundation that would empower individuals from all walks of life to make a positive impact. “EACH started with $1 million in assets, but after we proved ourselves, The Wallace A. Gerbode Foundation saw that we’d come up with a good, scalable idea, so they gave us the green light along with a $10.3 million bequest, and we were off to the races!“

Today, the 25 PAs are each charged with disbursing $30,000-$35,000 per year to dozens of different nonprofits. “We gave $800,000 last year to 120 entities—we don’t like the baseline of the
IRS minimum distribution requirement, and we try to at least double that,” Shaw says. And Shaw says he’d like to add five additional Philanthropic Advisors next year to distribute even more. “In fact, we might go to spending down the foundation because we believe that a dollar today in the hands of the needy is worth more than two dollars tomorrow.”

Asked if having so many grantmakers working independently makes it difficult to coordinate efforts or measure impact, Shaw says, “The Foundation Source website helps us keep track of everything, but there are different thrusts to our grantmaking, and the bottom line is that they’re not going to be congruent.” As far as tracking impact, Shaw observes, “It’s not a scientific process. We measure success through conversation, letters of appreciation, and photos of what results we have achieved.”

Although the philosophy of The EACH Foundation is certainly radical, Shaw explains that its approach is also a model of efficiency. “We believe in leveraging free human capital and being 100% volunteer,” Shaw says. “We keep expenses low and use Foundation Source, which has been wonderful administratively and offers good economy of scale with reasonable fees. We also work to decrease the burden on grantees. Most foundations expect nonprofits to come to them, but we don’t accept outside proposals because we don’t want them to put together PowerPoints to pitch us. Instead, we take work off the table and let them do what they do best—run their organizations. To fundraise is important, but we want that off their hands. We want to save them time and money.”

And speaking of fundraising, The EACH Foundation is unusual in that way, too. Although most private foundations don’t engage in fundraising, The EACH Foundation hosts an annual Four Charities Fundraiser on behalf of its grantee organizations. “All of the funds raised go directly to the organizations (they don’t return to the foundation), and we don’t reimburse ourselves for any of the event costs,” Shaw says. “We treat it as an irrecoverable cost and pay for the event from our operating funds.” Last year’s event raised $117,450. Fittingly, it featured entertainment by the Kronos Quartet.

The post Lionel Shaw, Founder, The EACH Foundation of San Francisco, California appeared first on Foundation Source.

As the video opens, we see a handwritten note. In reverse action, bullet-shattered household items, including a teddy bear, dishes, and a glass case of medals, recompose themselves into their undamaged forms. A loved one unfolds a paper and begins to read a note from a veteran. But in “The Other Note,” a public service announcement directed by award-winning director Scott McCullough, the note isn’t the one you might expect: It’s a note of gratitude, a thank-you note for saving a life by preventing suicide.

In the closing moments of the video, Martin Sheen faces the camera and says, “The worst part of war should not be coming home.” It’s a sentiment that few would dispute. Yet, as Tim Wolf, a Foundation Source client who helped finance the announcement discovered, suicides by Veterans of America’s armed forces have reached epidemic proportions. And although Americans “support our troops” on bumper stickers and t-shirts, that sentiment isn’t translating into tangible action.

“Long story short, suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the U.S.” Wolf says, rattling off the alarming statistics. “Of the approximately 41,000 suicides a year, 8,000 are Vets. And a disproportionate number of them are women. Female Veterans are 6.5 times more likely to commit suicide than their civilian counterparts; men are 2.5 times more likely. Meanwhile, the Veterans Administration is a dysfunctional bureaucracy, and there’s no one in the president’s office or subcabinet who wakes up every day and says, ‘We need to reduce Veteran suicide. Let’s get on it!’”

Initially, Wolf decided to help finance “The Other Note” through The Wolf Family Foundation because it promotes the work of The National Veterans Foundation, an organization with the first nationwide Vet-to-Vet hotline for suicide prevention. He also thought it would make a fitting tribute to his uncle, a World War II Vet who had been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for saving his crew over Japan. Soon, however, Wolf learned that he had a personal connection to the suffering behind the suicide statistics. “I was talking to a friend. Her daughter’s fiancé was a Marine who had done two tours. He killed himself one Easter Sunday. When I heard that, that’s when this stuff got real.”

“This terrible epidemic, her daughter’s experience, and my desire to honor my uncle converged in a wonderful way,” Wolf recalls. “We decided to make this video. Our plan was that she would raise money, I would raise money, and what we couldn’t raise, I’d fund.” Despite the first-rate production values, the PSA was a bargain by Hollywood standards because they were able to make it very quickly and efficiently. (“We still had to rent the soundstage in Culver City, hire the grips, prop people, and everything else that goes into shooting a commercial,” Wolf explains.)

“The success of this PSA is really a testament to the speed and mobility of a private foundation,” Wolf says. “We had a tight budget and people committed for tight windows of time. Martin Sheen, who is a lovely, gracious man, was only available for a brief period of time. Because private foundations are nimble, and I’m the only bureaucracy in my foundation, I felt like I could be instrumental in making it happen and happen fast. If we were working through a large charity, it would have taken weeks of writing grants and meetings with approval boards. We had a brief window of opportunity to make this happen, and if we had gone that route, the window of opportunity would have closed.”

Wolf also credits Foundation Source for its help behind the scenes. “They enabled me to pay production costs out of my foundation, moving the money and making sure that everyone got paid,” Wolf says. “I’m sure that if I had a donor-advised fund instead of a private foundation, there would have been wires, forms, and problems, but with Foundation Source, I was able to send the pitch package for ‘The Other Note,’ and it just happened! I can’t say enough about the dexterity and speed of Foundation Source. They were great!”

Although Wolf is justifiably proud of “The Other Note,” he’s hoping other funders will join the effort to end the epidemic of Veteran suicides. “I want other private foundations to promote awareness of this issue, engage in research on suicide prevention, and help us get Veterans the support they need. Of course I would love it if this PSA went viral, but although awareness is nice, it’s useless unless it translates into action.”

The post Tim Wolf, President, The Wolf Family Foundation appeared first on Foundation Source.

As Maria Silvestri, President of the Pittsburgh-based John & Helen Timo Foundation explains, “There are probably about 2 to 2.5 million Carpatho-Rusyns in the world. We have this very unique geopolitical space in Europe, which is our homeland, and this large community here in America. Pittsburgh has the largest community of Carpatho-Rusyns in the U.S., but there are others in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Ohio. Andy Warhol, who was born in Pittsburgh, is Carpatho-Rusyn, and Tom Ridge, the first Secretary of Homeland Security, is Carpatho-Rusyn on his mother’s side.”

As a self-described “cultural activist,” Maria says that her challenge, and the mission of the John & Helen Timo Foundation, is to promote and support Carpatho-Rusyn culture as a living, vibrant, and evolving entity. “When the word ‘preserving’ comes up, it drives me nuts,” Maria explains. “Our culture is alive and growing so we want to support current developments. We want to avoid a ‘museum’ approach because if we’re preserving instead of promoting our culture, we’ve failed both as a foundation and as a community.”

Although the challenge is great, and both Maria and the foundation are young, their work has already yielded some extraordinary successes. Thanks to her family’s roots in the Carpatho-Rusyn community, the unique capabilities of the private foundation, and operational support from Foundation Source, the John & Helen Timo Foundation has undertaken two direct charitable activities: The first, a concert tour of Carpatho-Rusyn folk music, brought international stars of the genre together for new interpretations and arrangements of traditional favorites. The second, a documentary produced for the Internet, will be seen and shared internationally, uniting communities across space and time.

In a recent conversation with Maria, we asked her to tell us more about her foundation’s work and how the foundation is working to keep the Carpatho-Rusyn community’s cultural identity not just alive, but thriving.

What cause or issue is most important to you and why?

It’s important to remember that we don’t have a country. We’re talking about an area on the map without borders. Its political history is complicated and characterized by lots of movement. We’re a small group, and because we’re so dispersed, we have to work to bridge the gaps. Music and cultural expression are critical to that work. Even though many of us have lost the language, when Rusyns gather, we can still sing together. The concert tour last year brought together two renowned singers, Maria Macoskova and Beata Begeniova-Fedoriouk, with musicians based here and in Europe who are all Carpatho-Rusyn. Together, they made unique arrangements of the songs. That’s one way culture moves forward.

I also believe that the Carpatho-Rusyns have a culture and a heritage worth sharing with the world. For example, 2014 was the anniversary of World War I. At the start of WWI, the Austrians confused Carpatho-Rusyns with Russians, and our intelligentsia and clergy were arrested and taken to Austrian concentration camps. We usually associate concentration camps with

World War II, but Carpatho-Rusyns were subjected to this form of cultural genocide many years earlier. This may have happened specifically to us, but its relevance to the rest of the world is clear. With the documentary that we’re currently working on, we hope to be able to make our history more widely known.

What inspired you to launch a private foundation?

After many years and different ideas, my grandfather decided to establish a foundation that would support what he cared about and what he and my grandmother supported, which was their community, the Carpatho-Rusyns. The foundation happened as a result of that desire, but our family had always been involved in the community.

How have you used your foundation to achieve your goals?

We’ve made extensive use of direct charitable activities (DCAs). The ability to do DCAs was always part of the discussion and one of the reasons why it was decided to establish a private foundation. We’ve always been active in the community, we care deeply about this cause, and we’re networked. Because we’re very hands-on, we didn’t have to find causes or organizations that were already working in our space. We knew what kinds of projects we wanted to do.

What is the most significant challenge you face in running a private foundation?

Because of all the international work we do, dealing with the IRS requirements is complicated. That’s why Foundation Source has been so important to us. Who has the time and expertise to read the U.S.-Slovakia tax treaty?

How has foundation source helped you?

Foundation Source has been indispensable to us because we’ve had these two quite complicated and involved ideas, and Foundation Source has never said no. Instead, they’ve said, “We’ll try to figure out how to make this work.” Foundation Source is critical to furthering our mission because even though we do write a few checks, the bulk of our work is DCA. We couldn’t have done the concert tour without Foundation Source and our Private Client Advisor. They figured out and handled all of the compliance questions. As a cultural activist, all I want to do is make it happen, but my concerns are not the IRS’s concerns. The lynchpin between our foundation and the IRS has been Foundation Source. And now that we’re working on the logistics of making a documentary, I’m having conversations with Foundation Source’s Tax and Legal department to make sure we handle the details of the project properly.

What do you get from giving?

I get the support and enjoyment of belonging to this community. It can mean so much! I grew up in the suburbs, and I didn’t have Rusyns living next door to me, but most of my friends are Rusyn. Four of the last five people who called me today are Rusyn. It’s wonderful to know that we’re giving people a way to be together in person to celebrate the best of Carpatho-Rusyn culture. And with the documentary, which will have a home on the Internet, we can share it with people all over the world, meeting them where they are.

Name one philanthropist, present or past, whom you would like to have coffee with, and why.

I grew up in Pittsburgh and Andrew Carnegie had an enormous impact here. He built many libraries and community centers in Pittsburgh, and we have a fantastic museum system. I know I’ve benefitted from that philanthropic legacy. However, I’m very conflicted about him. My great-grandparents came to the Pittsburgh area about 100 years ago to work in hard, very difficult conditions, and their hard work, along with others’, really enriched Andrew Carnegie—who was then able to spend some of his fortune on philanthropy. Would that money have been better spent providing a better living for his workers, people like my family, whose labor he exploited? If I had a cup of coffee with Andrew Carnegie, it would be an interesting conversation.

What is your favorite inspirational quotation (or poe, song, etc.)?

I often find myself repeating, “From those to whom much is given, much is expected.” I’ve been very lucky, and it would be unfortunate not to respond to the community in ways that the community has responded to me.

Name one individual or organization that has particularly impressed you?

I’m not sure I can—there are so many people doing so much valuable work. Because we’re working with a community that doesn’t have its own country, there’s no blueprint. As an international community, we’re not working with a traditional array of charities, and there’s no government from which to get funding.

If you could accomplish one thing with your philanthropy, what would it be?

It would be to cause cultural development. What we do is in response to our history and our culture, but we don’t live in a vacuum. There’s no place in the world where Carpatho-Rusyns have ever lived in isolation. We interact with and are influenced by our neighbors both here and in Europe. What I hope we’re doing is continuing to bridge the gaps between Carpatho-Rusyn communities throughout the world to foster the growth of our culture.

What question do you wish we had asked, and how would you answer it?

What makes your foundation different? The answer is that this community is what makes us different. We aren’t a large foundation, but I never compare ourselves to other foundations—only to our relationship with the Carpatho-Rusyn community. Compared to an organization like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, our endowment is nothing. But look at where we are and how we’re responding to the Carpatho-Rusyn community! That’s where we can really make an impact, and that’s the space where we need to evaluate our work. We can make a very significant contribution and for that opportunity, we are very grateful.

The post A Conversation with Maria Silvestri appeared first on Foundation Source.

Cindy has dedicated her foundation—and her life’s work—to saving animals and ending animal cruelty. Although she’s a resident of Colorado, her foundation is active across the country and around the globe. Whether she’s saving wild mustangs in Nevada or shelter dogs in Connecticut, she tackles ambitious goals with unflagging generosity and energy. Here’s what she had to say about her hands-on approach, her challenges, and her “spiritual obligation” to be the voice of animals everywhere:

What cause or issue is most important to you and why?

I’ve been through some difficult times, and animals have always been there for me. I am therefore dedicated to ending animal cruelty in all its forms, whether that’s providing medical treatment for sick animals, rescuing wild mustangs, or educating the next generation on kindness, compassion, respect, and responsibility for animals. The Wags and Menace Make a Difference Foundation provides medical treatment for sick animals in Colorado, the United States, and in five of seven continents. The foundation funds organizations and activities that benefit animals, and inspires, teaches, and motivates other individuals and organizations to achieve similar objectives.

What inspired you to launch a private foundation?

I lost my father when I was very young and it was devastating. I still deal with it every day. I was the youngest of three, and animals were there for me. They were my teachers. I feel that I have a spiritual obligation to be their voice.

What do you know now about being a Grantmaker that you wish you knew starting out?

I did not realize how much my volunteering impacted the growth of fundraising for sick and homeless animals. It’s not just about donating the money—it’s about showing up. And I showed up before I had the money. I try to build momentum with people; be infectious; be part of the solution. Volunteering is a spiritual, ethical component to being a human being. That’s why I was pulling horses out of mud during a flood in Northern Colorado. I want to be involved.

What is the most significant challenge you face in running a private foundation?

There are negatives and positives associated with being a private foundation instead of a public charity. The board of a public charity can be a challenge; but as a private foundation, there are a lot of compliance rules that can make it complicated to collaborate. When tax laws discourage collaboration, people tend to work in silos and that stunts growth for the entire sector.

What do you get from giving?

I did my 20 years of corporate penance, and now this is my calling and my passion. It’s the path I walk. I hear my father’s voice and feel that his spirit is in me, telling me to “stand your ground!” Working with animals helps me become a better human being. It’s why I’m here.

Name one philanthropist, present or past, whom you would like to have coffee with, and why?

Mother Theresa! I would love to embrace her whole way of life. She spoke for the poor, the sick, and for those who don’t have a voice. I am trying to be the voice for animals. I would ask her, “How do you embrace that spiritual vision?” Eight cups later, I’d still be listening!

What is your favorite inspirational saying?

“Not to hurt our humble brethren (the animals) is our first duty to them, but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission–to be of service to them whenever they require it… If you have men who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.”
— Saint Francis of Assisi

Name one individual or organization that has particularly impressed you. Why?

I work with a tremendous team of nonprofits, each of which has its own strengths and assets that have helped me make a difference in the lives of animals. Instead of organizations, I research worthy projects. I’ll watch over an organization’s social media presence for months to learn more about what they do.

If you can accomplish one thing with your philanthropy, what would it be?

I would love to eliminate animal abuse and embrace and heighten animal education in the world.

What question do you wish we had asked, and what is the answer?

I think you got the essence of what I do and what I’m about. I was raised as a tough Irish Catholic, and my passion and commitment is what drives me and helps me be the voice of animals.

The post A Conversation with Cindy Lee appeared first on Foundation Source.