13 microgrants awarded to connect and catalyze the field nationally
 
August 22, 2019
 
As part of its campaign to strengthen, expand and diversify the movement of North American giving circles, a group of giving circle networks and leaders, representing thousands of individual contributors, has made 13 microgrants to a diverse set of collective giving organizations. The grants will support the creation of new giving circles — especially among communities traditionally underrepresented in philanthropy — and help existing circles and networks create resources and build capacity to benefit the field at large.
 
The Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County has received a grant that will support efforts to undertake foundational internal work to operationalize our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. This work is part of the WGC’s new IMPACT 2024 Campaign.

“We are building on our core values to enhance our mission by implementing a diversity, equity and inclusion lens to and through our work - values that have always been important to us and that we are now prioritizing” says WGC Chair Barb Van Winkle.
 
The microgrants are part of a sustained effort, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Lodestar Foundation, Bank of America, and 17 other funders, to diversify and democratize the field of philanthropy by amplifying the power and reach of the giving circles. Hundreds of giving circle stakeholders have been engaged in a yearlong co-design process led by Amplifier, Asian Women’s Giving Circle, Catalist, Community Investment Network, and Latino Community Foundation that has identified four strategies to move the field forward: showcasing the giving circle model, building broad awareness of giving circles and their manifold benefits; helping the field scale by supporting a variety of efforts to start new circles; providing resources and capacity-building to strengthen existing circles and networks; and sustaining the field with collaborative initiatives, funding, and action-focused research.

This effort comes as giving circles are exploding in popularity in America. A recent report from the Lilly School of Philanthropy found that the number of giving circles tripled to 1,500 between 2007 and 2017, and that giving circles have given as much as $1.29 billion in that time. Another recent study, by the Collective Giving Research Group, found that they offer a way to meaningfully engage people in giving and in engaging in their communities. 
 
Giving circles are characterized by innovation and experimentation - circles are nimble, close to their communities, and strengthened by the diversity of opinions, identities, and experiences of their members. These microgrants, totaling $32,000 to 13 circles and networks, offer an opportunity to a wide variety of circles and networks to experiment with new models, create new resources, and form new partnerships. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $5,000. 
 
Paula Liang, a member of the core co-design team and Chair of Catalist, a network of 70 women’s funds, foundations and giving circles with 17,000+ individual members, noted that "those of us who have been in the giving circle world for a long time, often depending entirely on volunteer efforts, know how rare and important external funding can be - so we’re excited to see the impact that these new investments can produce!”

​Microgrants were awarded to:
 
Showcase the giving circle model

• New Generation of African American Philanthropists (NGAAP) will facilitate discussions about collective giving in African American communities across all 100 counties in North Carolina. NGAAP will partner with local organizations (e.g., nonprofits, faith-based orgs, colleges) across the state and hold a “table talk” in each county. These events, open to the public and broadcast on social media, will aim to expose, educate, and encourage African American communities to develop and duplicate collective giving models. (North Carolina)
• The 100 Who Care Alliance, Dining for Women, and Global Impact will coordinate across their networks for greater regional impact in the mid-Atlantic. The grantees, who each operate giving circles in the greater D.C. metro area, will harmonize their promotional efforts to garner more attention from local press. They will work together to recruit new members and refer potential members to the circle that best fits their needs and interests. (DC Metro-area)
• Radfund will develop and disseminate a toolkit to help create giving circles that use its unique “percentage” contribution model to address issues of racial and economic injustice. Radfund’s collective giving model cuts across class and economic lines by setting proportionate, rather than flat, personal annual giving targets: 1% of income, and 0.1% of wealth. This approach has already helped Radfund create a vibrant, diverse circle in NYC supporting racial and economic justice. The toolkit will help Radfund spread this model to other issue areas and geographies. (National)

 
Scale the model by creating more circles and networks

• The Hmong Impact Giving Circle (HIGC) will build awareness and start giving circles in Hmong communities in the US. Over 350,000 Hmong live in the US, most having arrived from Southeast Asia in the past 40 years. Collective giving within extended families and clans is an established practice in Hmong culture; giving circles can help bridge the gap between that giving and more formalized philanthropy. HIGC will use this microgrant to both raise awareness in Hmong communities and create new Hmong giving circles across the US. (National)
• The American Muslim Fund (AMF) will advance Muslim philanthropy by sharing best practices about giving circles and by starting new circles. With a nationwide footprint and a prominent voice in Muslim philanthropy, AMF is well positioned to raise awareness about collective giving and to connect disparate efforts. This microgrant will help support existing Muslim giving circles, reinvigorate some that have stalled, and capture best practices. (National)
• MakingChange will establish a gay men’s giving circle that will use Jewish values to guide its giving. This microgrant will assist in the infrastructure and operational costs of starting a circle in New York City with an initial membership focus on gay Jewish men and focused initially on giving to LGBTQ organizations. (New York City) 

 
Strengthen existing circles and networks 

• For Her: A Black Women Giving Movement for Black Girls, Cothinkk, and Circle of Joy Atlanta will collaborate to create an equity-centered toolkit for the giving circle field. This new partnership will develop a publicly-accessible guide for giving circle leaders that uses equity-centered design, a solution-focused and outcome-driven process that infuses history, research, and data; addresses power dynamics; and includes effective community engagement that builds power. (National)
• Dining for Women (DfW) will give organizational leadership anti-bias training to further diversity and inclusion in chapters nationwide. DfW has engaged over 30,000 Americans in collective giving since 2003 - 98% of whom are white women. Training provided by the Anti-Defamation League will build leadership capacity among staff and board members for an organization-wide effort to diversify DfW circles. (National)
• The Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County will undertake foundational internal work that operationalizes its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Specifically, the circle will form a committee focused on DEI; formulate and implement a DEI policy; and revise the circle’s core values to reflect this commitment. (Maryland)

 
Sustain the collective giving movement

• The 100 Who Care Alliance (100WCA) will strengthen its core financial infrastructure and survey its network. It will secure fiscal sponsorship for the network as a whole; and develop and implement a survey of its 450+ chapters, allowing 100WCA to better understand the needs and interests of its circles and their members. (National)
• Impact100 Greater Cincinnati will establish a vehicle for planned giving to sustain the circle and develop an “Equity Champion Certificate.” Impact 100 will leverage its Directors to develop a campaign for planned giving among its founding members and board, a significant opportunity to ensure the network’s  long term sustainability and a potentially useful template for the field.  (National)
• The Awesome Foundation will support development of enhanced functionality of the open-source platform that drives the Awesome Foundation grant-making process and website. The Awesome Foundation’s user-friendly platform has already helped 94 chapters in 13 countries give nearly $4 million; this microgrant will add in online discussion of applications into the platform. (Global)
• The Learning by Giving Foundation (LxG) will develop a platform to assess its impact on the thousands of individuals that have completed its programs. The microgrant will fund the development of a database to record and track participant surveys that address the impacts of collective giving over time. This will allow LxG to both contribute to field-wide research and hone its own curriculum, which will be shared across the field. (National)   

 
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Previous press coverage
The Chronicle of Philanthropy covered our project in November 2018 in “Giving Circles Grow in Diversity and Get an Assist from the Gates Foundation.”  That same month, The New York Times recognized the growing power of giving circles in “When It’s Time for Giving, Some People Circle Around.”    

Contact: Isis Krause, isis@kneadpartners.com

We just launched WGC’s new five-year, $500,000 fundraising effort and focus on diversity, equity and inclusion for women in Howard County called IMPACT 2024!

We are fundraising to build on our past and enhance our future by increasing our grantmaking to programs that benefit women and girls, as well as strengthening our infrastructure to grow the circle. And, we are enhancing our core values to better meet our mission by implementing a diversity, equity and inclusion lens to all of our work.
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We invite you to get involved by investing in IMPACT 2024 and making a pledge today!

​Learn more here: https://www.womensgivingcircle.org/impact2024.html

​The Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County has received the following request to help with an immediate need in the community through our Emergency Response Network (ERN) – can you lend a hand?

Our partners at Bridges to Housing Stability are requesting $1,000 to help a woman and her child in need.

"Karen" (not her real name) and her teenage daughter were living in a local motel prior to coming to Bridges to Housing Stability’s Housing Connections program in September of 2018. The vast majority of the income received from her full-time retail job was allocated to paying the motel bill. A second job was tabled as Karen was concerned with leaving her daughter unaccompanied at the motel for the duration of an additional work shift. 

Bridges’ Housing Connections program helped find a landlord that would work with the family, and assisted Karen with a security deposit to move into her apartment. Several weeks after securing housing through Bridges’ Housing Connections program, Karen was hired part-time at a local restaurant. Rent was paid on time and Karen was feeling stable for the first time in a long time. The household suffered another setback within months when she began experiencing excruciating pain which impacted her work schedule. A decrease in hours led to a delinquent rent payment. The Housing Connections program assisted Karen with rent for a month as she continued to struggle managing household expenses while dealing with the inexplicable pain. 

A diagnosis has since been received - degenerative spine disease. One thousand dollars is needed for Karen to address the delinquent household bills including utilities and July rent while she’s still experiencing a reduction in work hours as she navigates a series of medical appointments. She expects a full time return to the workforce as soon as measures are taken with her doctor to assist in managing her pain.  

On behalf of our partners at Bridges to Housing Stability we are asking for $1,000 from the Emergency Response Network to help support this woman in need.

Can you help? If so, please DONATE HERE.

WGC will pool your contributions and send the funds directly to the nonprofit. We will only accept enough funds to cover this request.

The WGC Emergency Response Network was created to provide an opportunity for WGC donors to directly help women in need. When our nonprofit partners are working with a woman or girl with an immediate need, they submit a request to the WGC. Thank you for your support of women and girls in our community through the WGC’s Emergency Response Network (ERN). We are making a bigger difference together than we might otherwise be able to alone – the reason for our giving circle!

If you have any questions about the WGC or our Emergency Response Network, please email wgcchair@womensgivingcircle.org.

Journey Camp for Girls, or “Journey” is a week-long camp for rising 7th, 8th, and 9th grade girls in Howard County, MD that is run by Maryland Leadership Workshops and conceived of and funded by the Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County.

The idea behind Journey is to bring girls, in their formative years together to learn about leadership, empowerment, and community. At Journey each student identifies her own leadership skills, strengths, and challenges in a supportive and fun environment that fosters self-esteem and confidence.

Journey 2019 will be held July 14-July 20:
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• Tuition for Journey is $895, including a $100 deposit with the application.
• Financial assistance is made available by the WGC.
• Journey applications and scholarship information can be found at mlw.org. Download the application here.
• Applications must be received asap, as of 6/10 we have 3 spots left – don’t delay, Journey sold out last year!

A week at Journey includes:
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• Workshops on topics such as empowerment and motivation, decision making, communication, self-awareness, goal setting, group dynamics, and conflict resolution.
• Group projects that challenge girls to apply new skills and exceed their own expectations.
• Team-building activities that strengthen interpersonal skills and build lasting memories.
• One-on-one mentoring with members of a dedicated and highly trained staff.

SCHOLARSHIPS IN MEMORY OF CINDY HANKIN

The WGC is honored to have begun a program this year to provide scholarships in memory of former WGC Advisory Board Member Cindy Hankin.
In 2018 the WGC provided $5,005 in scholarships.

Funded by Cindy’s family, friends, and WGC donors, these scholarships are provided in her memory in perpetuity to qualifying Journey Camp participants. Cindy was a staunch supporter of the Journey Camp for Girls. A former teacher, and school principal, Cindy was beloved by her family, friends, students, and community and served as mentor, and long-time advocate for women and girls. Cindy brought a bright and wonderful spirit to the world, enriching it for all who knew her.

“I am thrilled that we were able to increase our scholarships this year, which means we are achieving our goal of reaching girls from different demographic and socioeconomic groups across the county” says Barb Van Winkle, WGC Chair. “We are honored to be able to give so much in the first year that we began offering scholarships in memory of our friend Cindy Hankin.”

Support for Journey provided by the Women’s Giving Circle, a fund of the Community Foundation of Howard County.

Contact information for Maryland Leadership Workshops: 301-444-8623; office@mlw.org; mlw.org

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​The Women’s Giving Circle is building a community of philanthropists and creating a permanent legacy to address the needs of women and girls in Howard County, and we are proud to be a fund of the Community Foundation of Howard County as our partner in meeting our mission.

Great to see everyone promoting philanthropy in our community!
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The First Thursday Book Club of Howard County has come up with a uniquely appropriate way to memorialize the club’s beloved founder, Mary Margaret Kamerman, who died in 2008 after a stroke. 

On Mary Margaret’s birthday each year, the remaining members each contribute a dollar to the Women’s Giving Circle for every year since Mary Margaret’s birth. The money supports scholarships for girls who want to attend Journey, the camp founded by WGC.

Mary Margaret was an original donor of the Women’s Giving Circle and nominated two girls in her neighborhood to attend the first Journey camp in 2006. At Mary Margaret’s memorial service, one of the girls’ mothers tearfully recalled Mary Margaret’s generous encouragement of her young daughter.

The idea for the memorial contribution came from book club member Mary McGraw, who explained, “Mary Margaret had three daughters and believed strongly in opportunities for young girls to grow and find their true worth.” 

​Mary Margaret’s daughters include Columbia residents Jacki Deblasio and Jill Belk and Virginia resident Jeannie Kinn.  

A Columbia resident since 1971 and a counselor at Long Reach High School at the time of her death, Mary Margaret started the book club in 1992, and the remaining members have been meeting monthly since then. In addition to Mary McGraw, club members include Sandi Berman, Kathy Flanagan, Phyllis Greenbaum, Helen Mitchell, Jean Moon and Francine Sheppard.

For information about WGC, visit www.womensgivingcircle.org

As Popularity of Giving Circles has Tripled, Women's Giving Circle of Howard County Joins Historic Gathering of American Giving Circle Networks to Co-Design Vision for Scaling & Strengthening the Movement Further

Seattle, Washington (April 2019) – Supported by a lead grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 19 other funders, 82 participants from dozens of American giving circles and giving circle networks came together for a historic gathering in Seattle, Washington to connect with and learn from each other, and to build a vision for amplifying, strengthening and scaling giving circles across the United States.

Recent studies by the Collective Giving Research Group demonstrates that giving circles have exploded in popularity in America, and that they offer a way to meaningfully engage people in giving and in investing in their communities. A recent report from the Lilly School of Philanthropy found that giving circles tripled In number from 2007 to 2017, to 1,500, and have donated as much as $1.29 billion in that time.

“Giving circles are a major part of the future of American philanthropy,” said Marsha Morgan, chair of the Community Investment Network, one of the 5 networks co-leading the initiative.  “Neighbors, friends, family, church and synagogue members - these are all ‘everyday givers.’ People are coming together, pooling their money, networks, and expertise, and investing in the change they want to make in the world.  Giving circles are democratizing and diversifying philanthropy, and engaging tens of thousands of people in shaping their communities.”

The gathering marked a milestone within a year-long “co-design” process for the giving circle movement, shepherded by five Giving Circle Networks: Amplifier (a network of circles inspired by Jewish values), Asian Women Giving Circle, Catalist (formerly the Women’s Collective Giving Grantmakers Network), Community Investment Network (a network of African American circles), and the Latino Community Foundation (a network of Latinx circles). The co-design process is engaging dozens of giving circle leaders, networks, and stakeholders to collectively design ways to strengthen and expand the giving circle movement.  

The process itself reflects the collaborative spirit of giving circles: dozens of diverse stakeholders from across the giving circle movement, from different communities and affinity groups, with different funding areas and approaches, are joining forces to design the common strategy and tactics needed to support the growth and sustainability of giving circles nationwide. Together, participants represented thousands of people already in giving circles who believe in the power of collective giving and are changing the face and the future of philanthropy.  

“My favorite part of the gathering was hearing the stories of hope and impact that so many giving circle leaders shared about their communities,” said Paula Liang, Chair Elect of Catalist, a network of 68 women’s funding groups.  “There is a rich history of generosity and collective action in all of our communities and throughout American history, and this project can help us move that work forward while opening it up to so many more people. Joining a giving circle makes your giving more informed, more influential, and more impactful.”

Giving Circle membership also leads to greater civic engagement. Dr. Anthony C. Hood, a member of the Birmingham Change Fund giving circle and Director of Civic Innovation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, told the story of the current Mayor of the City of Birmingham, Alabama, Randall Woodfin who is the youngest mayor in the city in 100 years. Woodfin’s first step into civic involvement was as a member of the Birmingham Change Fund, which exposed him to the issues facing his community and the civic pathways to addressing them.  

Masha Chernyak, VP of Programs at the Latino Community Foundation, shared the story of Martin Vargas Vega, a child of farm-workers parents in Watsonville, California, who joined the Latinos in Tech Giving Circle with his first tech job. Vargas Vega is launching another giving circle with Latino leaders in his hometown.  “We are helping to reclaim philanthropy for the Latino immigrant community and grounding the work in love and justice,” said Chernyak.
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Over the two-day convening, leaders shared ideas and resources for a field-wide infrastructure that will help inspire more grassroots philanthropy, strengthen communities, and increase American giving overall.  The vision includes:

• Launching a major awareness campaign to make giving circles a household name within American communities
• Developing more resources and training programs to diversify and democratize philanthropy
• Creating an innovative incubator program to enable people to create and sustain new giving circles
• Supporting new technology to make it easier for circles to connect with one another and with grantees
• Hosting national and regional gatherings to bring the movement together.

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Participants Included:

Giving Circle Networks:

• 100 Who Care Alliance
• Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy
• American Muslim Fund
• Amplifier
• Awesome Foundation
• Catalist
• Community Investment Network
• Dining for Women
• Giving Project Learning Community
• Hmong Impact Giving Circle
• Inspired Women Paying It Forward Network
• Jewish Teen Funders Network
• Latino Giving Circle Network / Latino Community Foundation
• Social Venture Partners International
• Women’s Giving Circles International

Individual Giving Circles:

• The Arev Fund
• Asian American Impact Fund
• Asian Women Giving Circle
• Birmingham Change Fund
• Denver African American Philanthropists
• For Her: A Black Women Giving Movement for Black Girls
• Full Circle Fund
• Latino Giving Circle San Diego
• Latinos in Tech
• Natan
• Next Generation of African American Philanthropists
• Orchid Giving Circle
• Peninsula Latina Giving Circle
• The Philanthropy Connection
• RadFund
• The SAM Initiative
• Shared Nation
• Women’s Catalytic Fund
• Women's Giving Circle of Howard County
• Young and Dangerous Giving Circle Fund / Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Supporting Institutions & Thought Leaders:

• Bank of America
• California Community Foundation
• Civic Spirit
• Collective Giving Research Group / Johnson Center for Philanthropy
• Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• #GivingTuesday
• Global Impact
• Jewish Community Federation
• Justice Funders
• W.K. Kellogg Foundation
• Learning by Giving
• The Leighty Foundation
• LM Strategies Consulting
• The Lodestar Foundation
• The New York Women’s Foundation
• Oregon Jewish Community Foundation
• The Raikes Foundation
• Charles & Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation
• Schwab Charitable
• Seattle Foundation
• SKR Advisors
• Washington Women’s Foundation
• Women’s Philanthropy Institute

20 Funders Co-Invested in this Process:

Institutional Funders:

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Bank of America
• Global Impact
• W. K. Kellogg Foundation
• Lodestar Foundation
• Ms. Foundation
• Schwab Charitable
• Delores Barr Weaver

​Giving Circles, Networks, and Members:

• Asian Women Giving Circle
• Dianne Chipps Bailey
• Kris Barnes
• Virginia Bayer
• Catalist
• Community Investment Network
• Latino Community Foundation
• Paula Liang
• Julia Taylor
• Natan
• Teresa Radzinski
• SAM Initiative
• Courtenay Wilson

Contact: Isis Krause, isis@kneadpartners.com


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The Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County has received the following request to help with an immediate need in the community through our Emergency Response Network (ERN) – can you lend a hand?

Our partners at HopeWorks are requesting $1,000 in assistance for a woman who recently left a violent relationship — if she breathed wrong, he would punish her. On one occasion, he broke the television and injured her young son. She has five kids altogether; although two have passed away. Her mother and grandmother also passed away just two weeks after her son died leaving her with little to no support. She now resides in HopeWorks’ emergency shelter and hopes to find secure, safe housing to move forward with her remaining children. 

She and her children are in need of immediate financial support to help pay for a security deposit and part of the first month’s rent for a new and permanent safe home. 

On behalf of our partners at HopeWorks we are asking for $1,000 from the Emergency Response Network to help support this woman in need.

Can you help? If so, please DONATE HERE.

WGC will pool your contributions and send the funds directly to the nonprofit. We will only accept enough funds to cover this request.

Thank you!

The WGC Emergency Response Network was created to provide an opportunity for WGC donors to directly help women in need. When our nonprofit partners are working with a woman or girl with an immediate need, they submit a request to the WGC.

Emergency Response Network Requests:

• Come from one of our pre-determined nonprofit partners.
• Are for immediate needs up to $1,000.
• Provide assistance to women and girls in Howard County.

Thank you for your support of women and girls in our community through the WGC’s Emergency Response Network (ERN). We are making a bigger difference together than we might otherwise be able to alone – the reason for our giving circle!
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If you have any questions about the WGC or our Emergency Response Network, please email wgcchair@womensgivingcircle.org.

April 2, 2019

By Jean Chatzky, NBC News

As we reflect on Equal Pay Day today, let’s take a moment for a little bit of history: A little over 30 years ago, women earned 64 cents for every dollar a man earned — a pay gap of 36 cents. Today, we earn 80 cents, making the gap 20 cents — or about half of what it used to be. For women of color, the gap is even greater. Black women earn 63 cents for every dollar that men do, Native American women earn 58 cents and Hispanic women make just 54 cents.
Note: You may see slightly different numbers floating around out there, and that’s because of different data sets used. For example, The Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn’t count bonuses, while the Census Bureau does, and some calculations use hourly wages while others rely on salary. The important thing to note is that the gender pay gap is still here and it’s still big.

But there is good news — according a 2019 report from Glassdoor Economic Research, the gender pay gap is shrinking in the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany and four other countries — it’s nearly 3 percent narrower today than it was three years ago.

Read the full article ..

​Charlestown Retirement Community celebrated #InternationalWomensDay by welcoming Diana Bailey, Executive Director of the Maryland Women's Heritage Center, and WGC Advisory Board Member, as a guest speaker. Her enlightening presentation focused on the social, political and economic experiences and contributions of Maryland Women in history. #womenshistorymonth

Friends,

Today we received this lovely note from a woman we helped in partnership with Grassroots, through our Emergency Response Network. 

This is why we do this work, together!

Thank you all!

Sincerely,

Barb Van Winkle
WGC Chair

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