Happy 4th of July!

We have so many new things to share within our Philanos Network:

• Philanos Board: July 1st begins the terms for both our 2024-2025 Board of Directors and members of our Governance Committee. We are so grateful for the skills, perspectives and deep commitment to collective giving that each of these women brings to Philanos. Take a moment and read more about our board in the bios on our website. See the links below.
• Philanos Programming: During the summer, the board is working hard on next year’s programming and resources for all members of Philanos Affiliates. Watch the August eNews for registration information for our first September webinar on September 12, 2024 at 12 PM ET.  
• Philanos Affinity Groups: A special thank you and appreciation to everyone who has participated in our past Affinity Groups: Comms Club, Membership Roundtable and Tech Talk. The interactive format has proven to be successful and supportive of members of all Philanos Affiliates. These will continue in full force for 2024-2025 with the addition of an Affinity Group focused on grantmaking and a cohort dedicated to increasing the representation of Young Philanthropists.
• Philanos "A Table For Chairs": Applications are now being accepted for our third “A Table for Chairs” cohort. Past cohorts have found camaraderie, support, fresh ideas, a sounding board and friendship with other leaders from across the country. If you are a Philanos Affiliate leader serving as President, Co-President, Chair or Co-Chair, please consider joining this group. Space is limited and there is a commitment for monthly meetings. An application link is below. 
• Philanos Partnering on CircleUP Events: As part of our Fidelity Charitable Catalyst Fund grant, we are partnering with Philanthropy Together, Grapevine and Community Investment Network to offer a schedule of CircleUP! Events across the country. The next events will be in Las Vegas on August 29 and Boise on September 12. Additional opportunities to connect, learn and share.

We wish each of you a celebration today and for the coming year. We are stronger and bolder together!

Sandy Cook, scook@philanos.org 
Clare O'Brien, cobrien@philanos.org
Ann Marie McGee, amcgee@philanos.org
Philanos Co-Chairs

Affiliates Celebrating Anniversaries 20 Years: Impact San Antonio, TX Many Hands, DC Roanoke Women's Foundation, VA Women's Impact Fund, NC 15 Years: Giving Together, Inc. DC Impact100 Philadelphia, PA Impact100 Sonoma, CA Impact Giving, CA Women's Giving Circle of Cumberland County, NC 10 Years: Allinbklyn, NY Impact100 Westchester, NY 5 Years: Project W  Email us and let us know if your circle is celebrating an anniversary!

Meet the Philanos 2024-2025 Board of Directors

View Bios Here Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz, Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County, MD Susan Benford, The Philanthropy Connection, MA Nina Cohen, Impact100 South Jersey, NJ Amy Conard, Spirit of St. Louis Women’s Fund, MO Sandy Cook, Impact100 Metro Denver, CO & Women’s Giving Alliance of Northeast Florida Stephanie Cook, San Diego Women’s Foundation, CA Alisa Evans Debnam, Women’s Giving Circle of Cumberland County, NC Maggie Glasgow, Greenville Women Giving, SC Renee Gordon, Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle, MD Michelle Hynes, ninety-nine girlfriends, OR Heather Jauregui, Idaho Women’s Charitable Foundation, ID Mary Kwak, Many Hands, DC Ann Marie McGee, Impact 100 Redwood Circle, CA Clare O’Brien, Impact 100 Cincinnati, OH Maureen Romito, Impact Las Vegas, NV Renuka Sastri, 100 Women Strong at Central Florida Foundation, FL Kirsten Stanley, Impact 100 Palm Beach County, FL Barb Van Winkle, Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County, MD Tyeshia “Ty” Wilson, HERitage Giving Fund, TX Sarah F Wimberley, Impact100 Philadelphia, PA Philanos Governance Committee: Maureen Romito, Impact Las Vegas, NV Renuka Sastri, 100 Women Strong at Central Florida Foundation, FL Nina Cohen, Impact100 South Jersey, NJ Celeste Campos, Impact 100 Garden State, NJ Margo Greenfield, Impact 100 Essex, NJ Kimberly Kirn, Impact100 Philadelphia, PA

Good Reads 

• Can Your Group Stay Neutral on Controversial Topics? 5 Things to Know - Tips for nonprofits considering whether to publicly take a stand on divisive issues
  
• What Nonprofit Leaders Are Reading This Summer - From post-apocalyptic fiction to lessons on democracy, here are six books to add to your summer reading list

"Learning what other organizations have done and what has made those initiatives successful or not. It's been most helpful to learn the why, how and results, rather than simply about an effort or change. It's difficult to assess whether it's something to consider for our organization without additional background."

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• Tech Talk Affinity Group Meeting 
• Philoblog: Thanking Philanos Volunteers! 
• June 2024 eNews 

Welcome New Affiliates Latino Giving Circle Network Social Venture Partners Denver, CO Chinook Fund, CO Return to the Heart Foundation, CA She Gave Women's Giving Circle, IL Women Inspiring Philanthropy, TX Women's IMPACT Network of New Hanover County, NC Aspen Giving Network, CO Santa Fe Hestia Fund, NM Women's Giving Circle at York County Community Fnd, PA GivHer Circle, MS 100+ Women Who Care East County, MS 100 Women of Central Mississippi  Impact100 DC

We had a terrific Philanos Webinar on Tuesday, May 14 entitled “Philanos and Collective Giving: Women’s Leadership and Recent Trends” - thanks to all who joined us!

Philanos Co-Chair Sandy Cook mentioned that Philanos is the leading national women’s giving circle network and our focus is to catalyze – marshal, mobilize, and accelerate – the women’s collective giving movement through connecting, learning, and peer-to-peer sharing.

She provided a snapshot of who and what we represent:

In short, we have more to give so we give twice as much!

Sandy highlighted how what we do affects YOU, our affiliates.

Philanos Co-Chair Maggie Glasgow then introduced our 2024-2025 Board of Directors and Governance Committee, and thanked our outgoing Board Members Ellan Bernstein and Deborah Majewski. 

She mentioned that our Board of Directors is composed of women from diverse backgrounds, lived experiences, collective giving groups, and come from different parts of the country.

And, she noted that the faces of this team represent the very essence of our focus on new initiatives here at Philanos and that we have recently expanded our board to engage more women from across the country, welcoming more diverse faces, voices and experiences in our movement and at our growing philanthropic leadership table.

Incoming Philanos Co-Chair Clare O’Brien shared the excitement and success to date for our work funded by Fidelity Charitable Catalyst Fund - a three-year, $405,000 operating grant that has been awarded to Philanos. Clare mentioned that we are thrilled at the opportunities this will provide to us, our affiliates and members, and that our partner organizations have also received funding: Philanthropy Together, the Community Investment Network, and Grapevine.

She said that this phenomenal grant will strengthen Philanos and enable us to continue advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in collective giving, work collaboratively with BIPOC communities and engage more younger people in philanthropy. Clare mentioned that we are honored to partner with Fidelity Charitable to increase the flow of philanthropic dollars to underserved populations. This includes both BIPOC communities nationwide and a regional focus on the Mountain West and the South Central regions of the US. These 16 states receive only 1/3rd of the philanthropic dollars per capita compared to the coasts and we aspire to reduce this inequity by expanding collective giving in those regions - important work!

And, Ilyasah N Shabazz of Philanthropy Together, a global initiative to grow the collective giving movement, joined us to discuss trends in Philanthropy that directly relate to you as a Philanos Affiliate and giving circle member from “In Abundance: An Analysis of the Thriving Landscape of Collective Giving in the U.S.”, the newly-released national research report from the Johnson Center, Colmena-Consulting, and Philanthropy Together.

All of our speakers elaborated on how all of this benefits YOU - our affiliates and individual members. We look forward to all that we will continue to do, together. Watch the recorded version.

Volunteers are the lifeblood of our giving circles, our communities and because of that, the wider world. 

The contributions of volunteers – the giving of time, treasure, talent, ties and testimony – is so valuable that the month of April is dedicated to honoring volunteers globally. Philanos decided to set aside June to honor our “local” Philanos volunteers - our board and committee members and the women of our Philanos Affiliates. 

The work of each and every volunteer in your circle is priceless. 

Whether it’s serving on the Board, heading or serving on a committee, planning events, or cheerfully greeting the members at functions. You have women who gladly give their treasure, women who give selflessly of their time and talents, women who will use their personal networks to find new members, or speakers, or sponsors; and women who will use their voice and their platforms to tell others about the work you are doing and the communities you are trying to serve. 

Through meaningful engagement, many of these same women will find ways to give more – to help nonprofits you’ve funded with extra dollars, offer extra time and talent, serve up additional ties and expand networks, and perhaps even board service for a nonprofit organization they have bonded with through your giving circle. 

Some affiliate leaders and members also go on to volunteer here on the Philanos board and in other ways.

So many women give their time, talent, and treasure to support Philanos. Whether serving on the Philanos Board or its committees, or helping the network host national conferences, offering educational and leadership resources, or foster connections and peer learning between and among our 90+ circles - the generosity and willingness to serve our organization is humbling. 

Two such leaders are Ellan Bernstein and Deborah Majewski.

Ellan (Impact100 Philadelphia and Giving Circle of Women's Connection Philadelphia Chapter) and Deborah (Women’s Impact Fund of Charlotte) are rolling off the Board at the end of this month, and we’d like to recognize their exceptional volunteer contributions to the network. 

Both Ellan and Deborah have been engaged and early leaders of their organizations, and both have been involved with hosting a national conference in their hometown. Both have done their Philanos board work while holding down full-time jobs in demanding careers – Ellan as a practicing attorney, and Deborah as a finance officer and, more recently, as Senior Program Officer at The Leon Levine Foundation. Ellan has served on our Executive Committee as Board Secretary, and she and Deborah have co-chaired the Education Committee. Their wisdom,  counsel, grace and good humor are treasures that will be missed.

And, we want to thank Maggie Glasgow, who has served as our co-Chair the last two years. We are so grateful Maggie will continue to share her wisdom on our Board of Directors!

Perhaps our ultimate volunteer role model in this network is Colleen S. Willoughby.

Colleen is one of the five founders of the Washington Women’s Foundation, as well as a founding member of the 8 giving circle leaders who formed the Women’s Collective Giving Grantmaking Network (WCGN), now Philanos. Our signature award for a visionary woman leader in philanthropy is named The Willoughby Award in her honor. Colleen believed in and brought women to the table to make decisions and a difference in the male-dominated world of philanthropy. This month Colleen will turn 90 on June 28th, and all of us at Philanos wish her a very happy birthday! We are indebted to her hard work and belief in women’s leadership in philanthropy.

Enjoy the summer days – and thank your lucky stars for volunteering!