News about gifts, grants
Brooklyn Community Foundation honored the top five social justice organizations of 2019 with its $100,000 Spark Prize at its annual Spark Breakfast. More than 325 guests attended the event, which was emceed comedienne and actress, Ana Gasteyer. The winning organizations are entirely woman-led: The Campaign Against Hunger, Cypress Hills Child Care Corporation, Girls for Gender Equity, Red Hook Community Justice Center, and VOCAL-NY.
AmerisourceBergen Foundation, a not-for-profit focused on supporting health-related causes that enrich the global community, committed $25,000 to support relief efforts in communities affected by the tornadoes that recently swept through the Southeast United States.
University of Houston System fundraising campaign, Here, We Go raised $1.003 billion, surpassing its goal of $1 billion. The campaign is designed to support student scholarships and fellowships, build state-of-the-art facilities, attract and retain top faculty, advance academic programs, workforce training and research that fuel a healthy Houston economy, and build a nationally relevant athletics program.
Miranda Lambert, a Nashville singer and songwriter, asked mutt-loving fans to donate to MuttNation Foundation on “Giving Tuesday” and commit to volunteering for a day at their local shelter. She randomly selected three shelters to receive a $1,000 donation on behalf of the volunteer. Nearly 400 volunteers signed up.
Steel Magnolias, a non-profit organization celebrating its 20th year in Long Beach, CA, raised nearly $250,000 in 2018 for children diagnosed with developmental delays, behavioral and learning challenges as well as other special needs.
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a RNAi therapeutics company, will support for seven patient advocacy groups through the Advocacy for Impact Grants program. The grants support projects that will benefit acute hepatic porphyria and ATTR amyloidosis patient communities in six countries across the Americas and Europe.
Thrive Causemetics, a Los Angeles-based vegan makeup company, announced a $25 million in kind donation—the largest in the company’s history—to celebrate its four-year anniversary. This gift will benefit over 50 non-profit organizations that empower women who are fighting cancer, surviving domestic abuse or emerging from homelessness.
The 9th annual Patrick Warburton Celebrity Golf Tournament raised $2,200,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
News about people, groups
Parkland Health & Hospital System’s Garland Health Center now feature parades of penguins, flotillas of jellyfish and other colorful sea creatures in pediatric clinic exam rooms. The artwork was crafted by Richardson-based Character Farms, a company that specializes in creating themed artwork for medical, dental and retail environments.
League of American Orchestras, in partnership with American Composers Orchestra and support from the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation awarded orchestral commissions of $15,000 to composers Courtney Bryan, Cindy Cox, and Fang Man.
United Methodist Retirement Communities and Porter Hills Presbyterian Village are joining together to create the third-largest nonprofit senior living organization in the state. The new affiliation employs more than 1,300 people and serves more than 6,700 older adults annually across 22 counties in Michigan.
Presbyterian Church in America Foundation elected Tim Townsend to serve as its next president. Townsend recently served as general counsel for the National Christian Foundation.
Cerebral Palsy Alliance Research Foundation produced a visual narrative of the disability through a new campaign, Faces of CP. The campaign showcases the personal side of cerebral palsy, including images and the stories behind them.
Ucross, a prestigious artist residency program and creative laboratory for the arts, named recipients of its Spring 2019 fellowships. Cheryl Strayed (Wild) and Hannah Gadsby (Nanette) are among the creatives visiting Ucross in the Spring 2019 season.
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation named John Palfrey as the sixth President of the foundation. Palfey has served as Head of School for Phillips Academy Andover since 2012.
The SXSW EDU Conference & Festival named Edmit and Waukee Innovation & Learning Center as winners of their Launch and Learn by Design competitions respectively. Edmit, which received the top prize last night, helps families make smarter decisions about the dollars and cents of college. Waukee Innovation & Learning Center in Waukee, Iowa, connects educational curriculum with business acumen.
Association of Fundraising Professionals presented Lizzie Allison with the 2019 CARTER Award for Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy. The award honors a young person with a proven record of exceptional generosity who demonstrates outstanding civic and charitable responsibility and whose philanthropy encourages others to engage on a community, national, and/or international level. Allison raised tens of thousands of dollars to help foster kids celebrate their birthdays.
Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities approved the state’s new three-year energy efficiency plan, which now includes behind-the-meter battery storage. This is the first state in the nation to make battery storage eligible for energy efficient incentives.
Pearl S. Buck International hosts Building on the Dream: From Africa to Bucks County, an exhibit in the Pearl S. Buck International Exhibit Gallery in Hilltown, PA. The exhibit was developed in collaboration with the African American Museum of Bucks County with support from Visit Bucks County.
Vice President Mike Pence accepted an invitation from Liberty University to deliver the university’s 2019 commencement address on Saturday, May 11th.
Association of Fundraising Professionals presented Lizzie Allison, a 17-year old young woman who has raised tens of thousands of dollars to help foster kids celebrate birthdays, with the 2019 CARTER Award for Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy. The award honors a young person with a proven record of exceptional generosity who demonstrates outstanding civic and charitable responsibility and whose philanthropy encourages others to engage on a community, national, and/or international level.
News about opportunities, initiatives
HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology is collaborating with Crestwood ALS Care Clinic, a National ALS Association Treatment Center of Excellence in Huntsville, Ala to help scientists conduct genomic sequencing and analysis of ALS patients to better understand the underlying cause of the disease.
Young People’s Chorus Annual Gala Benefit Concert takes place Tuesday, March 12th at 7:00 p.m. at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall. Tickets are available only through the JALC box office.
The Boston Women’s Fund, a nonprofit supporting community-based organizations and grassroots initiatives run by women, girls, and gender nonconforming people, will award $50,000 to Boston area organizations as part of its Spring Grant Cycle. Submission deadline is March 15th.
The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Wells Fargo have a new business accelerator capacity building program titled Avanzar. In partnership with the Albuquerque Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Latin American Chamber of Commerce of Charlotte, the year-long program is designed to help small scalable Hispanic-owned Business Enterprises take their business to the next level.
Rare, in collaboration with National Geographic Society, hosts BE.Hive: Climate Change Needs Behavior Change, a one-day summit to explore global climate change through the lens of human behavior, on Tuesday, March 19th from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at National Geographic, Washington, DC. Student rate: $99.00. Standard rate: $299.00. Registration.
The Carter Center’s Mental Health Program is accepting applications for eight, one-year journalism fellowships aimed at enhancing public understanding of mental health and substance use conditions Deadline for applications is Wednesday, April 10th. Learn more.
Time For Change Foundation hosts their 17th Annual Awards Gala: Oh, the Places She’ll Go! to honor community heroes making a positive impact in the community. The gala takes place on April 12th at the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel in Ontario, CA. Proceeds benefit homeless women and children. Tickets and sponsorship information.
W. Eugene Smith Fund increased its 2019 Smith Grant to $40,000. The Fund was created in honor of legendary documentary photographer Eugene Smith, who died in 1978. Photographers and industry professionals interested in submitting applications should submit applications by April 20th.
United HomeCare’s Annual Dinner and Claude Pepper Awards will be held Thursday, May 16th at Jungle Island, Florida. United HomeCare is celebrating its 45th Anniversary of improving the lives of elderly and disabled adults in Miami-Dade County.
Code for America Summit takes place May 29th to May 31st in Oakland, CA. The three-day event is an opportunity for public servants, advocates, entrepreneurs, technologists, and volunteers to get together in one room and tackle some of government’s biggest challenges in the digital age. Tickets range from $636 to $1,395.
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