FN&C Now

Volume 5, Number 48 – December 10, 2004 IN THIS ISSUE NEWS COVERAGE: September 11th Fund closes its doors; United States lags behind in private philanthropy as percent of GDP; State of Caring Index down for second straight year JUST PUBLISHED: Study finds giving is growing in Maryland; Family Giving News offers tips for creating family traditions NOW ONLINE: Community Foundations of Canada launches online bookstore AT THE COUNCIL: Council Columns covers the rules about raffles; sign up for Breaking News ON THE MOVE: Jerry Bisgrove (Arizona); William R. Brody (Baltimore); John M. Sobrato (Silicon Valley); Kenneth Wright (Council on Foundations) NEWS COVERAGE DOORS CLOSED: The September 11th Fund, the largest charity created to help victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks, closed its doors on December 8. Established by the New York Community Trust and the United Way of New York City just hours after the destruction of the World Trade Center, the fund raised $534 million from more than two million donors. The money helped more than 100,000 people in 41 states and 16 countries, through direct cash assistance, training programs, mental health services and other recovery efforts, according to The September 11th Fund Final Report. Read more or download the report: http://www.september11fund.org/index.php . PHILANTHROPY LAGS BEHIND: The United States ranks only seventh in the world in its level of private philanthropy as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP), according to a study from the Center for Civil Society Studies at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Policy Studies, led by Lester M. Salamon. Excluding giving to religious congregations (for which other countries' data are unavailable), U.S. giving accounted for only 2.47 percent of GDP, compared to 4.49 percent in the Netherlands, 4.41 percent in Sweden, 3.76 percent in Tanzania, 3.01 percent in Norway, 2.93 percent in France and 2.57 percent in the United Kingdom. Download the chart: http://www.jhu.edu/cnp/compdata.html . The study appears in the new book, Global Civil Society: Dimensions of the Nonprofit Sector, Volume Two. Order the book: http://www.jhu.edu/~ccss/pubs/books/index.html#volume2 . INDEX DOWN: The overall United Way State of Caring Index is down for the second consecutive year, dropping 4.8 percent since 2000 and 1.3 percent from last year's index. The annual quality of life barometer incorporates 36 indicators covering 1992 to 2002, including financial security, health, education, safety, charitable giving and the environment. Emerging issues highlighted in the report are: more children living with a single parent; decline in income; lack of steady employment; and continued lack of healthcare coverage. However, home ownership, children's reading scores, and maternal and infant health all improved, and the crime rate dropped. Find out more: http://national.unitedway.org/stateofcaring/howto.cfm . JUST PUBLISHED MARYLAND FOUNDATIONS: Although the assets of the 1,376 foundations in Maryland declined by 5.9 percent to $9.1 billion during 2002, giving rose by 3.6 percent to $646.8 million, according to State of Foundation Giving in Maryland. The report, the first in a series documenting charitable giving in the state, also found that foundations support human services more than any other issue, and more than one-third of their donations benefited Maryland-based groups. The study also noted tremendous growth in the number of foundations, as nearly half of Maryland's foundations are less than 10 years old. Download the report (PDF): http://www.abagmd.org/usr_doc/State_of_Giving_FINAL.pdf . FAMILY PHILANTHROPY: The December Family Giving News offers tips for starting a family charitable tradition, reflecting on your family's philanthropic year and engaging in end-of-the-year charity. The issue also profiles the McKnight Foundation in Minneapolis. Read the issue or subscribe: http://www.ncfp.org/Email_Alert.html . NOW ONLINE NEW BOOKSTORE: Community Foundations of Canada launched its online bookstore by unveiling six new resources designed to help grantmakers strengthen their relationships with key audiences. The books, made possible through a grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, are available in French and English and include Engaging Youth in Philanthropy, Strengthening Relationships with Professional Advisors, Community Outreach and Dialogue, Building Relationships with Local Media, Neighbourhood Grantmaking Toolkit and Policy Guidelines and Template Development Manual. Find out more: http://www.community-fdn.ca/bookstore/index.cfm . AT THE COUNCIL COUNCIL COLUMNS: The December 2004/January 2005 Council Columns provides key findings from the recently released International Grantmaking III: An Update on U.S. Foundation Trends and an update on activities at the upcoming 56th Annual Conference in San Diego, April 10–12. Also, Deputy General Counsel Andrew M. Schultz explains how grantmakers can legally support raffles. Council members may read the issue (PDF) at: http://www.cof.org/files/Documents/Newsletters/CouncilColumns/2004/ CCDec04Jan05.pdf . FREE NEWS SERVICE: Breaking News is a free, daily e-mail newsletter summarizing the top articles—mostly from national and regional newspapers—about philanthropy. Breaking News is available to Council members only. Subscribe by e-mailing your name, title and foundation name to media@cof.org. ON THE MOVE JERRY BISGROVE was elected chairman of the board of the Arizona Community Foundation. Read more: http://www.azfoundation.org/content/view_article.xpl?article_id=791 . The Baltimore Community Foundation elected WILLIAM R. BRODY to its board of trustees. Read more (PDF): http://www.bcf.org/newsreleases/pr120904.pdf . JOHN M. SOBRATO joined the board of Community Foundation Silicon Valley. KENNETH WRIGHT is now staff accountant at the Council on Foundations. SUBSCRIBE FN&C Now is published by the Council on Foundations to keep you in the loop by sharing news between bimonthly editions of Foundation News & Commentary magazine (FN&C Now Web archive: http://www.foundationnews.org/now/index.htm ). Please feel free to forward this message to your friends and colleagues who might enjoy it. To subscribe (it's free) to FN&C Now, send an e-mail to fncnow@cof.org . Questions or comments about FN&C Now? Contact Paula J. Kelly at 202/467-0261. To contribute a news item for consideration, please e-mail fncnow@cof.org . To unsubscribe, send a blank e-mail to leave-fncnow-4832R@int1.cof.org . To subscribe to Foundation News & Commentary, an award-winning magazine, please send an e-mail to fncsubs@cof.org , or visit our website at http://www.icnfull.com/cgi-bin/cobolscript.exe?cof/cofmain.cbl . Council on Foundations 1828 L Street, NW Washington, DC 20036 202/466-6512 webmaster@cof.org last update: 12.10.04