Weekly News Recap: May 27, 2016
A unique dinosaur skull called 'Hellboy' is among the exhibits at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, which is now set to undergo a major expansion. (Credit: Royal Tyrrell Museum)
Philanthropic controversy
$30M donation brought NFL another crisis of credibility The NFL is just not having a good couple of years. Boneheaded, self-serving decisions like this are examples just where the problems lay. For an organization who, ultimately, is responsible for the health and care of the athletes in their league, this is really a sad tale. I hope they undergo some serious reform. Soon. (5/23/16)
Proposed national park is a multimillion-dollar gift wrapped up in distrust 88,000 acres and a $40 million endowment. A potentially new national park. Only one problem, the local residents don't want it. The wealthy co-founder of Burt's Bees is the donor. (5/22/16)
Lawyer’s greed holding up $40M charitable donation The Irene Diamond Fund, established by the late Irene and Aaron Diamond, wants to give $40 million to programs for the aging. The money is tied up in a Roosevelt Island property. Lawyer David Hirschhorn, who controls a significant stake in the real estate, is refusing to sign over his rights, which would allow the sale, without a 55 percent fee. (5/19/16)
Philanthropic personalities
Tycoon Jack Ma vows mega charity donation Alibaba (China's "Amazon.com") founder Jack Ma is pledging billions to charity. According to Forbes, Mr. Ma is the world's 33rd richest person. (5/26/16)
Multibillionaire Russian Mogul Pledges His Wealth to Charity Mikhail Fridman, a Russian investment mogul, has pledged his entire fortune, estimated at $13.2 billion, to philanthropy (5/24/16)
Opinion: Bloomberg's Giving Offers Lessons on Partnership Billionaire ex-New York Mayor, Michael Bloomberg, gave more than $510 million to more than 1,000 organizations last year and he has donated more than $4.3 billion in his lifetime. He also toyed with becoming a presidential hopeful for this fall's U.S. elections. Thanks to Scott Decksheimer for sharing this link with us. Fascinating guy. (5/23/16)
Businessman Joe Shannon first inductee into Philanthropy Hall of Fame Way to go Cape Breton! Joe Shannon, a well known philanthropist in Atlantic Canada will be the Cape Breton Philanthropy Hall of Fame's first inductee. CANADIAN STORY (5/20/16)
News
Fieldhouse advocates look to regroup with CalgaryNext in doubt Looks like the Fieldhouse folks are looking to decouple their project from CalgaryNext. (5/25/16)
As local attractions feel pinch of sluggish economy, Heritage Park freezes wages, hiring Heritage Park has suffered a 30% drop in food and beverage revenues in the last year. They cancelled wage increases, declined to fill staff vacancies, and reduced operating hours. (5/23/16)
Alberta's Royal Tyrrell Museum announces $9.3M expansion Congrats! Expanded learning spaces, a family rest room, improved washrooms and a hands-on "discovery room" are all part of this expansion. ViTrēo is proud to have worked with the Royal Tyrrell Museum on a number of their fund development initiatives. ALBERTA STORY (5/20/16)
Trends and shifts
- Beyond Belief: As Americans Warm to Atheism, Will Donors Follow? Despite Americans not wanting to vote for an avowed athiest as a president, there does appear be a tide of athiest sentiment growing in the U.S. In late April of this year, Louis J. Appignani, made a gift of $2.2 million to endow the nation’s first academic chair "for the study of atheism, humanism, and secular ethics." at the University of Miami (5/23/16)
Life and career hacks
The Power of Writing About the Things You Read This is such a powerful idea. If you can recreate what you have read, in writing, without referring to the original material, you have truly internalized that material. (5/7/16)
Why I Hire People, Not Skills Cultural fit. Scrappiness and drive. Intelligence and experience. In that order. I want to do more of this. Like this. (4/18/16)
Stats and facts
- Humanitarian Aid Reached Record $28 Billion in 2015 Governments and private donors around the world gave $28 billion in aid last year - philanthropy accounted for $6.2 billion (22%) of this. This is up 13 percent over the previous year. (5/20/16)
Large gifts
New charity to receive $1.2 million donation The Māia Health Foundation in New Zealand has received a $1.2 million commitment from the Rainbow Children’s Trust. The Māia Health Foundation is a new venture that allows, for the first time, New Zealand residents a channel to give charitably to their health trust. (5/26/16)
British Film Institute receives mystery £87m donation to build new HQ So...is this a donation or an investment? This showcases how the the language of philanthropy is often specific to the culture in which it resides - in this case, the British are using the word investor and donor interchangeably. (5/25/16)
New Holland Bloorview $2.3 Million Matching Campaign Doubles Donation Impact for Kids With Disabilities This matching campaign is made possible by a joint gift from the Coriat Family, the Slaight Family Foundation and La Fondation Emmanuelle Gattuso. CANADIAN STORY (5/24/16)
Anonymous $1M donation gives boost to VR program at Husson Husson University is located in Bangor, Maine. (5/24/16)
UWM lands $5M donation from Kellners' foundation for student scholarships, Lubar Center Lovely gift from the Kelben Foundation to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The Kelben Foundation was established by Mary and Ted Kellner. (5/23/16)
Houston couple supports social workers with $1 million donation to the University of Houston Houston entrepreneurs and philanthropists Victor and Barbara Samuels have long been supportive of the need for social workers and this gift is a another example of this commitment. (5/23/16)
Rory McIlroy donation ‘extraordinary’ says Jack and Jill Foundation CEO This is truly an extraordinary gift. Mr McIlroy has announced he will donate his €666,000 Irish Open winner’s prize to the Jack and Jill Foundation, as well as to Barretstown and the LauraLynn Children’s Hospice. (5/24/16)
New $35M donation expands Polsky Center at U of C The other UofC. The University of Chicago. The gift is from university Trustee Michael Polsky brings his total giving to $50 million. (5/23/16)
University of Windsor gets $1M donation to build stage, basketball court University of Windsor professor emeritus and Faculty of Business alumnus, David Wilson, made the gift. CANADIAN STORY (5/20/16)
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