Allowance for Good
Living in the Present Tense
Living in the Present Tense

philanthropist

Creating Local Change through Community Foundations

By: Ben
Ben is participating in Allowance for Good's Spring 2016 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy class in the Elmhurst location.

"I am a Catalyst for Good
because...everyone deserves
to be treated with respect."
- Ben
What is a community foundation? What did you learn about the DuPage Foundation from Barb Szczepaniak? What did you learn about DuPage County that surprised you? How did the activity help you understand the grant making process? How can you help your community thrive? 

I learned from Barb Szczepaniak that a community foundation organizes and gives out grants to organizations aimed to help the less fortunate. Barb taught us many things about how her committee gets together and decides how much to donate to certain organizations who reached out for money, and how much of their demand they are willing to pay. I was very surprised to learn that the federal poverty level is 20,000 a year but a typical family needs a bare minimum of 63,000 a year to just get by. And I learned that that is where Barb aims to help out, the gap in between.

 The activity made me understand how difficult the grant making process could be for those deciding where the money goes to. I learned that by donating to the community foundation I can make a difference by giving the people in the grant process able to give more money to more organizations in need of financial support. By doing this I can focus on helping, and focusing on making change in my own community.

Lessons in Corporate Philanthropy

By: Tim
Tim is a participant in Allowance for Good's Fall 2015 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy class in the Elmhurst location. 
"I am a catalyst for good because...
I want to improve the world"
Tim, at the ELP Elmhurst class.
Corporate philanthropy is the giving of profits or resources from a corporation to a charitable cause. When asked about philanthropy, most people think about cash.  However, facilities, services, and time are also considered types of philanthropy.

Certain employers offer matching gifts programs.  With matching gifts, a company will match an employee’s cash donation to an eligible nonprofit organization at some set ratio. With grants, the company provides a nonprofit with money to accomplish an agreed-upon purpose.  The company can also provide volunteer grants, in which the time of the corporation’s employees is also donated.

Reasons for corporate philanthropy could come from a commitment to the common good, a sense that the company is making a community investment, or even that it is a good marketing tool. Whatever the reason, research has shown that corporations with sound corporate philanthropy perform better than those without it. Emily taught me that corporations should have a social responsibility toward philanthropy.  She taught me that employees of a corporation play a significant role in corporate philanthropy.  Using matching gifts, employees can make a larger donation to their charity.

Employees can also donate their time and expertise, which can be as valuable as money. If a corporation doesn’t currently have a philanthropy program, the employee can be instrumental in providing rationale as to why corporate philanthropy is important and then assisting the company in setting one up. When I am in the working world, I can see myself becoming involved in philanthropy by providing donations of both time and money. I enjoy working with other people towards a common goal, and employing our unique abilities to accomplish it.


Free and Equal: Working towards Equal Human Rights for All

By: Danny
Danny is a participant in Allowance for Good's Fall 2015 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy class in the Elmhurst location. 
"I am a Catalyst for Good because...
I want everyone to have a chance to follow their dreams"
Danny pictured at the ELP Elmhurst class.
During our discussion about human rights and the sustainable development goals, I was introduced to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that was written by the United Nations. I realized that many countries do not have the same rights as we are so fortunate to have in the United States, despite the fact that everyone is entitled to the rights. I feel these human rights are important because everyone should have the opportunity to be independent, to make decisions for themselves, and yet in numerous regions across the world, only a few or a small group of these rights are followed, which calls for a need for change. I feel that the most important right is the first right, which is: We Are All Born Free & Equal. It explains the reasoning, stating, “We are all born free. We all have our own thoughts and ideas. We should all be treated in the same way.” I feel that treating people equally has been the one of the most prevalent issues over time, which ties into the second right, which states: Don’t Discriminate. Throughout history, many issues have been caused by people not being treated equally. While many bad things have emerged from discrimination, such as the Holocaust and slavery, there are a few good things that have come from this. The good things stream from activists who have stood up to ensure equality, which is actually the root of our country, as the colonists stood up to England after unequal treatment.

 While Malala is passionate about the right of education for women, I am passionate about no unfair detainment. People have the right to move as they wish, and yet many countries do not allow their citizens to leave the country. Many people, for example in North Korea, are placed in labor camps for suspicion of being a rebel despite the fact that they have no direct evidence. This ties to the right to fair trial. I could raise awareness about this issue by exposing that North Korea and other countries have labor camps, because many people are unaware of this issue. The issue with North Korea is that they do not let anyone in or out of the country. Through a Global Awareness Project, I could send materials such as clothes, shoes, and food to Syrian refugees, which is another example of people who have nowhere to go. The Syrian refugees are living in very poor conditions, and they need help.

Understanding How We Spend Money

By: Charles
Charles is a participant in Allowance for Good's 2015 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy class in the Elmhurst location. 

"I am a Catalyst for Good because....I want to make a change"
Charles at AfG's ELP class in Elmhurst this week. 


I learned how every little thing I buy really adds up. Almost all the things I am spending my money on is something that is not necessary and I can live without. I was really surprised tracking my spending because I spent a lot more than I even realized. I will definitely spend my money differently now that I realize that I don't need to spend as much money and use it to donate because I know how much farther the money goes in third world countries than it does here. Financial literacy is very important to philanthropy because if everyone realized how unnecessary a lot of the things they are buying then we could use it to change the world.