The Chain of Giving
¨The eighty-five richest businessmen in the world are as wealthy as the poorest three billion people combined.”Those millionaires and billionaires at the top of the world have more wealth than the bottom half of the human population combined. Philanthropists try to change that statistic to make the poor more wealthy by donating money to charities and organizations. That is why philanthropy is so important. Not every successful rich person sees the inequality in our world, but the people that are aware of it try to change that number. They try to help people to use their money for good instead of possessions and pride.
Georgia, a millionaire that wanted to give back, wrote an article about her life accomplishments, “A Philanthropic Life Choice”. She felt like she was not doing any good with her money, so she decided to consider philanthropy. When her mother passed away, she received some of her stock shares from her will. She became a very successful businesswoman when she started investing in real estate with her new stock shares from her mom. After a short while, she had already made ten million dollars. Georgia then realized that she wanted to be remembered for doing something good and honorable. She did not want to die rich. She started talking to a philanthropic advisor and researching about charities and organizations that she would want to donate to. She found organizations that she was passionate about and she joined the board of directors on some of them. As a forty-eight-year-old, Georgia is trying to help people and do something good with her money, unlike many rich people who have so much and are blind to people who have nothing. As Georgia said about her plans for life as a kid, “I have to admit, this is not necessarily the life I figured I’d be living…but to be honest, it feels pretty good to be connected to something bigger than I am”.
Strategic Philanthropy is a cooperation that help develop philanthropists. The organization was created in 2000 in Chicago, Illinois. In the organization, the staff work with millionaires and donors who want to focus his or her money to help. They help the donor research organizations and companies that he or she feel strongly about donating to. The organization makes sure not to get involved with financial aid, legal issues or counseling, because they only set out to find a place for businessmen and women to help fund and help him or her get there. The corporation strives to make a trusted partnership with every man and woman they meet up with. The staff does not reach out to people; they wait for people to come to them. They want the to-be-philanthropist to have the initiative. After the donor comes to them, the Strategic Philanthropy team has seven plans that they will try to accomplish with him or her. Their plan includes “Creating a mission and guidelines, Facilitating family meetings and retreats, Creating charitable legacy plans, Protecting your interests when you no longer can, Negotiating a one-time significant gift, Setting up a periodic assessment of your charitable giving, and Setting up comprehensive day-to-day management of charitable giving.¨ They hope to help lots of organizations and truly create a chain of giving.
In 2014, Americans alone gave more than 350 billion dollars to charities and organizations, and each household averaged almost $3000 donated. Despite all of the inequality of money in our world, there are many people who want to make a difference and give some of the money back. Instead of spending it on possessions and personal pleasures, they would rather it be used for saving lives. Philanthropy is crucial for many poor, homeless and disabled people in our world, and without people who are willing to donate, they would not have a chance to change the world for the better.
Works Cited
A Philanthropic Life Choice - Strategic Philanthropy. Strategic Philanthropy Ltd., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.stratphilanthropy.com/stories-from-philanthropists/a-philanthropic-life-choice>.
"Customized Support." Strategic Philanthropy. Strategic Philanthropy Ltd., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.stratphilanthropy.com/meet-strategic-philanthropy-ltd/customized-support>.
National Philanthropic Trust. "Charitable Giving Statistics." Charitable Giving Statistics. National Philanthropic
Trust, n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2016. <http://www.nptrust.org/philanthropic-resources/charitable-giving-statistics>.
Thompson, Derek. "The World's 85 Richest People Are as Wealthy as the Poorest 3Billion." The Atlantic. Atlantic
Media Company, 21 Jan. 2014. Web. 26 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/01/the-worlds-85-richest-people-are-as-wealthy-as-the-
poorest-3-billion/283206/>.