July 2008 enewsletter

Piper Staff Note

One of the joys of my job is grantee orientation, what we lovingly call Piper 201. The Piper 101 public information sessions cover general grantmaking. The 201 brings together Piper program directors with chief executives and board chairs of all nonprofits receiving grants after a grantmaking cycle. These meetings are a time to review the purpose and promise of each new grant. Piper evaluation, communication and finance staff join in to talk about what they can do to help grantees be as successful as possible. These meetings, as well as many other old and new strategies, are part of what Piper Trust is doing to address “Philanthropy’s Awareness Deficit.” Tell us what you think.

Philanthropy's Awareness Deficit

More than half of engaged Americans can't name foundations on first try
Americans don’t understand philanthropy and even adults engaged in social issues can’t necessarily name a foundation correctly. Philanthropy Awareness Initiative (PAI) recently released a study on “Philanthropy’s Awareness Deficit,” commissioned by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and conducted by Harris Interactive, which suggests America’s grantmaking foundations have a long way to go in helping leaders and the general public know about the work of philanthropy. Read more…

Download Report…

How is Piper Trust Responding to the Philanthropy Awareness Deficit?

A World of Possibilities
A World of Possibilities, an award-winning radio program from Mainstream Media, has launched a 10-part series on “The Challenge of Effective Grantmaking” funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. A new segment on Philanthropy and Health features Dr. Gillian Hamilton, medical education director at Hospice of the Valley, and Carol Kratz, Piper Trust program director. The radio story tells about a unique resident-training program that started after a hallway conversation.

"Philanthropy is..."
This short video provides the person-on-the-street look at philanthropy. It offers the true and, often, not so true meaning of philanthropy. The Minneapolis Foundation, The Saint Paul Foundation and Minnesota Council on Foundations co-sponsored the program.

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Piper Trust News

Touches of Greatness in Nonprofit Leadership and Organizational Sustainability
July's edition of Piper Notebook presents four exemplary nonprofits: Crisis Nursery, Girl Scouts – Arizona Cactus-Pine Council, Interfaith Community Care and Phoenix Art Museum. The issue also profiles Piper Fellows Lisa Glow, Theresa Leon, Milon Pitts and Ken Schutz.

Piper Bulletin is in the mail this week. If you are not on the Piper Trust mailing list and would like a copy, contact us at info@pipertrust.org.

Read Piper Notebook online…

Personalized Medicine Initiative featured on Phoenix Channel 11
Dr. Jeffrey Trent, president and scientific director of Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), and Dr. Judy Jolley Mohraz, president and CEO of Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, discussed the Partnership’s recent announcement in Luxembourg with Phoenix Councilman Greg Stanton on his TV show. The program also highlights the new Children's Museum of Phoenix which opened its doors on June 14.

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Grantee Highlights

Banner Health and Sun Health moving to complete merger by end of August
Sun Health, July 7, 2008
With the recent notification (Friday, June 27th) by the Federal Trade Commission that they have successfully concluded their review, Banner Health and Sun Health are working to complete this transaction by the end of August.
Read more…

High cost at the gas pump could have consequences down the line for TCH programs and employees.
The Centers for Habilitation, June 11, 2008
TCH has seen a 20% increase in fuel costs from April 2007 to April 2008. Buying fuel efficient vehicles is one way the 40 year old organization plans on tackling the issue. Other cost saving measures include… Read more…

Civic Ventures founder Mark Freedman speaks at Governor's Conference on Aging
Marc Freedman, founder and president of San Francisco-based Civic Ventures, visited the Valley in May to discuss trends in civic engagement and how older adults are finding purposeful paid and volunteer roles in encore careers. Arizona Community Foundation and Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust sponsored the program.

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In the Media

Archimedes said, “Give
me a lever long enough…
and I shall move the world.”

Pull the right levers for maximum effect
Financial Times, July 12, 2008
At a New York charity auction in May, the Robin Hood Foundation raised $56.5m for its mission of eradicating poverty in the city… Last year, however, the total was a record $71m.…
Read more…

Ruthless philanthropy
Forbes, June 23, 2008
Ask Bill Gates what advice he'd offer the next U.S. president to improve American competitiveness and innovation, and he gives a wry chuckle. "I tend to think more about improving the entire world… Read more…

Increase in charitable giving dampened by signs of belt-tightening
The New York Times, June 23, 2008
Despite a host of troubling economic signals, charitable giving rose slightly last year, according to estimates from the Giving USA Foundation. But there are signs that those trends could give way to a decline this year. Read more…

Philanthropy has seen better days
Business Week, June 13, 2008
U.S. charity has stumbled along with the economy. From food pantries on up, contributions have diminished, just when they're needed most. It's called a food pantry, but a scarcity of goods is taking over the shelves. Read more…

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