"Helping Those Who Help Others"
If you want to start a foundation or you manage a Charity or Association and want to drive revenue and benefits to the organization, this model will work for you.
Today, technological advances have made it easier than ever before to record information about an organization's donors and keep in touch with them.
Building and maintaining a comprehensive donor database is essential for fundraising and passing on information to donors, but an organization must make big choices along the way, including choosing the right software and deciding whether to hire an outside developer or have a staff person do the work.
Foundations - Many prominent foundations were formed at the turn of the 20th Century by the business and industrial giants of that famed era. Andrew Carnegie's foundation was formed in 1911, more than five years before the enactment of the Federal Income Tax Law. During his lifetime, Carnegie bestowed $350 million to the foundation, which today would be worth more than $3 billion.
John D. Rockefeller formed his foundation in 1913, contributing $540 million, which in today's dollars would exceed $6 billion.
By the year 2000, there were more than 56,000 foundations qualified with the IRS, with assets totaling about $450 billion and grants to public charities totaling about $23 billion.
The last decade has witnessed the most rapid growth in the number and size of foundations in history. There are many reasons for this phenomenon. Foundations are formed to:
- Support and perpetuate the founder's core values;
- Teach the principles of philanthropy, compassion and commitment to future generations of family and community;
- Maintain family control over its wealth; and
- Minimize tax exposure and erosion of the estate.
What is driving this phenomenon? What motivates a wealthy individual to establish a foundation? The most compelling reason is an inherent recognition that wealth creates responsibility; in this case, social responsibility.
Also, there is a growing awareness of the potentially adverse affect of excessive inherited wealth on children, grandchildren and future generations. Warren Buffet reportedly once said, when asked what he intended to leave his children, I want to leave them enough to do anything they want, but not enough to do nothing.
Therefore, in growing numbers, affluent individuals are responsibly and effectively transferring their wealth to their own charity, the family foundation.
A Foundation can be funded from the revenues created by economic development!