Weekly News Recap: May 25, 2018

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Many people die with their music still in them. Why is this so? Too often it is because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out. -- Oliver Wendell Holmes

News

Books to read

Life and career hacks

Uncommon knowledge

  • The Amazing Psychology of Japanese Train Stations (City Lab) Nudge Theory at work. "Tokyo is home to the world’s busiest train stations, with the capital’s rail operators handling a combined 13 billion passenger trips annually. Ridership of that volume requires a deft blend of engineering, planning, and psychology." 5/22/18

  • British Royal Family Philanthropy: What Charities Do They Support? (Nonprofit Pro) "Every year, the Royal Family carries out more than 2,000 official engagements worldwide. The Royal Family also plays an important role in supporting and encouraging the public and charity sectors. About 3,000 worldwide organizations list a member of the Royal Family as patron or president. Some members of the Royal Family have established their own charities such as the Prince’s Trust, The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme and The Princess Royal Trust for Carers." 5/18/18

  • 6 Facts You Never Imagined About The Nearest Stars To Earth (Starts With a Bang) Stars are cool. Well, hot actually. 5/1/18

Philanthropic personalities

  • 10 Celebrities Using Their Platforms To Benefit The Culture Through Philanthropy (Madam Noire) "To be a celebrity these days means more than just being a singer or actor and collecting a hefty check. Being a celebrity also means being a public figure, and that title comes with a powerful platform. Luckily for us, many stars are using their platforms for good and not just for their own personal, self-promoting benefit." 5/10/18

Philanthropic controversy

  • Legal battle over mystery 90-year-old bank account's £400m for the national debt (Telegraph) "A bank account set up 90 years ago by a mystery donor to pay off the national debt is at the centre of a court battle, as the Government seeks permission to unlock its £400 million funds. Nearly a century on from the fund being set up, the identity of the donor remains unknown and the fund untouched by the Government because of a quirk in the terms governing the money's release. The terms of the bequest stipulated that it should be only used to pay off the entire national debt." 5/22/18

  • Oxfam chief steps down after charity's sexual abuse scandal (Guardian) "Oxfam’s chief executive is to stand down from his position with the charity at the end of the year. Mark Goldring, who took up the post in 2013, was at the head of the organisation when news broke of the sexual abuse of victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake by then members of the charity’s staff." 5/16/18

Trends and shifts

Advice to funders

  • 25 Powerful Ways Funders Can Support Social Movements (Inside Philanthropy) Good stuff. "#3 Be clear: Funders don’t start movements. They fund. They can connect. They may convene. They can facilitate (sometimes, if requested to do so). They can encourage. They back, but they don’t build. Building is the work of movement leadership." 5/10/18

Large gifts

  • Ashton Kutcher Announces Enormous Donation to Ellen DeGeneres' Wildlife Fund (Just Jared) "Ashton and Guy [Oseary] are investing in Ripple, an international cryptocurrency transfer app, and they teamed up to donate $4 million to help save the gorillas." 5/23/18

  • Mercy Hospital receives $2.8 million donation that honors ‘Dr. Harry’ (Press Herald) "At a ceremony [...] marking its centennial, Mercy Hospital in Portland announced a $2.8 million donation from the family of the late Dr. Harry Davis, Mercy’s first and longtime chief of pediatrics." 5/22/18

  • Simmons Bank's $2.5M donation is biggest ever for UAPB (Arkansas Online) "A $2.5 million gift from Simmons Bank will upgrade the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff's athletic facilities, paying to install artificial turf and a digital scoreboard at its football stadium and complete a baseball media box and concession pavilion [...]. The donation by Pine Bluff-based Simmons Bank is the largest donation ever to UAPB [...]." 5/22/18

  • Highland Park ISD receives $10 million donation (Fox News) "A former two-term Texas governor continues to have a lasting impact in North Texas. The legacy of Bill Clements lives on by supporting local teachers with a major contribution [...]. Clements' niece, Pauline Neuhoff, announced [...] that the Clements Foundation is gifting $10 million to meet the needs of the district's teachers. It’s the school district’s largest gift to date." 5/22/18

  • Pan-American Life makes $1M donation to National WWII Museum (Uptown Messenger) "New Orleans-based Pan-American Life Insurance Group recently announced its $1M donation to the National WWII Museum to support their newest virtual experience, 'Los Veteranos: Latinos in World War II.'" 5/22/18

  • $1 million donation to help fund UF psych research (Alligator) "Trish Ring recently donated $1 million to the UF Department of Psychology as a dissertation fellowship for students wanting to pursue their doctorate. The Trish Calvert Ring Dissertation Fellowship was created to allow top students to finish their research and write up a dissertation in a timely manner." 5/21/18

  • Paul Allen announces $1 million donation to initiative regulating assault-style weapons (Fox News) "Paul Allen said on Twitter [...] that he’s donated $1 million dollars to an initiative that will attempt to reduce assault-weapon violence in Washington. The Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trail Blazers owner came out in favor of I-1639, the so called safe schools, safe communities initiative." 5/21/18

  • $2M donation to study birds is largest in Science Museum history (Fox News) " An Illinois couple has donated $2 million to the Science Museum of Minnesota to bolster the museum’s study of birds. It is the largest endowment the museum has ever received. Barbara and Roger Brown of Highland Park, Illinois gave the museum $2 million to endow a new position, which will be called the Barbara Brown Chair of Ornithology [...]." 5/18/18

  • MLB donates $1M, vehicles for PR recovery (MLB.com) "One of the goals of Major League Baseball for the Puerto Rico Series between the Indians and Twins this week was to continue to assist in the relief efforts after Hurricane Maria. A considerable step was taken on that front [recently]." 5/17/18

  • Cal Poly PAC receives largest donation in history, renames Harman Hall (New Times) "The Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust donated $1.5 million to Cal Poly's Foundation for the Performing Arts Center, the largest cash gift in the center's history [...]." 5/17/18

  • Million dollar donation (Trentonian.ca) TRENTON STORY "There were million-dollar smiles [...] as Shirley and Michael Wade announced an unprecedented donation to the Trenton Memorial Hospital Foundation. The local couple donated $1 million – the foundation’s largest-ever single donation by a living private citizen." 5/16/18

  • Lanier Tech gets $1 million donation from Kubota (Gainsville Times) "Lanier Technical College is getting a $1 million boost to pay for equipment and other needs at the new campus off Ga. 365 at Howard Road. Kubota Manufacturing of America Corp. and Kubota Industrial Equipment Corp. donated the amount to the Lanier Technical College Foundation [...]." 5/16/18

  • Alcor Receives $5 Million Donation (Fight Aging) "[Alcor] Life Extension Foundation, one of the two oldest US cryonics providers, has received a $5 million donation." 5/16/18

  • Wichita State University announces $12M donation (Hastings Tribute) "Wichita State University says a Wichita couple is donating $12 million, representing [...] the single largest cash gift to the school. The university said in a news release [...] that oil producer Wayne Woolsey and his wife, Kay, committed to a lead gift of $10 million to build a new home for the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State." 5/16/18

  • Moved by their son's journey, this family gave $1M to foster care kids (Courier Journal) "Inspired by his own family's experience, a local business owner is donating $1 million to Uspiritus, a local children's agency, for a program to help foster children get ready to live on their own once they become adults." 5/16/18

  • CHEST simulation center awarded $3 million in equipment donation (PRNewsWire) "The American College of Chest Physicians® (CHEST) received a $3 million charitable grant from the Olympus Corporation's Grants Committee. This equipment grant, which includes the latest ultrasound processors and radial probe driving units will support expanded hands-on learning experiences using the most up-to-date equipment at CHEST's Innovation, Simulation, and Training Center in Glenview, Illinois." 5/17/18

  • UP State Fair Authority receives $1M donation from Besse Foundation (NBC) "The Delta County Chamber of Commerce announced [...] that the U.P. State Fair Authority has received a $1,000,000 donation from the John and Melissa Besse Foundation." 5/17/18

  • $2 million donation is largest in Science Museum of Minnesota’s history (TwinCities.com) "An Illinois couple has donated $2 million to the Science Museum of Minnesota, the largest gift in the St. Paul museum’s history. The donation, from Barbara and Roger Brown of Highland Park, Ill., will endow a new position at the museum and fund its study of birds, according to a Science Museum news release." 5/17/18

  • Local philanthropist's donation to benefit all Sask. children (PA Now) PRINCE ALBERT STORY "A donation from a well-known figure in Prince Albert will help support the province's children. Malcolm Jenkins put $1 million towards the Jim Pattison Children's Hospital Foundation at a special event on May 15, hosted by Gord and Barb Broda. Jenkins said he made the donation to honour his mother, Lilian Jane Jenkins." 5/16/18

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