The Value of Family Philanthropy

By: Sam Davis In: 2010 Family Philanthropy Conference| Family Philanthropy

5 Feb 2010

Who but Ginny Esposito can accurately and appropriately quote Alexis de Tocqueville, engage an audience with humor and present facts based on primary research? Ginny did it again as she presented one of the final workshops (The Value of Family Philanthropy: For Family? For Democracy?) at the Family Philanthropy Conference and kept the audience spellbound.

I can tell you it was worth it! The workshop participants were treated to an advanced look at findings from the recently completed research about the value of family philanthropy conducted by Ginny and her National Center for Family Philanthropy (NCFP) colleagues. The rest of you will have to wait for the NCFP publication in early spring.

Like the rest of the workshop participants, I’m sworn to secrecy. However, I hope Ginny won’t mind if I share with you the nature of NCFP’s research and outline the categories the report covers.

Over the past two years, NCFP interviewed leaders of 60 family philanthropies, conducted 14 regional conversations and held a national symposium on the value of family philanthropy. When NCFP’s report is published, it will cover the following:

What philanthropy means to families
What families add to philanthropy
The challenges in giving together
The challenges in giving well
Family philanthropy’s value to our democracy

This report will be a major contribution to the field. Today, practitioners make statements about the value of family philanthropy based on their own assumptions. Thanks to NCFP, we’ll soon have the benefit of the insights from leading practitioners and data to support their conclusions.

Sometimes it pays to stick with conference workshops until the final bell; those who attended Tuesday’s presentation with Ginny, reaped huge dividends by doing so.

Sam Davis is the principal at The Davis Group.

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