Partnerships

Creative Philanthropy

Creative Philanthropy, a founding partner with NCGives, works to catalyze and inspire leadership, vision and opportunities for North Carolina women to transform their relationship with their time, talent and treasure. Women by nature are philanthropists, freely giving time, talent and resources to transform families and communities. In collaboration with NCGives, Creative Philanthropy's efforts concentrate on creating a new understanding and culture that recognizes, acknowledges and expands women's infinite capacity to give. Working with local community leadership, Creative Philanthropy and NCGives have been instrumental in helping create women's funds, convening forums, connecting these funds through the creation of the North Carolina Network of Women Givers and a new web page on Philanthropy Journal.

Celebrate, Connect, Inspire

Women are making transformational collective connections around North Carolina to improve the health of their communities by creating women's funds and giving circles. Combining their financial resources and working with committed community leaders, women make high-impact grants that improve the lives of women and girls in their community.

NCGives and Creative Philanthropy connect women givers across North Carolina:

  1. The North Carolina Network of Women Givers — The North Carolina Network of Women Givers celebrates the collective power of women. While not a membership organization, it is a rolling coalition to build capacity -- individually and collectively for women's giving across the state and learn about the statewide issues affecting women and children. The first North Carolina Network of Women Givers convening took place in Asheville in October 2006, the second in October 2007 at St. Augustine's College in Raleigh and the third in October 2008 at Winston Salem State University. Women connected, celebrated their successes, learned from one another, shared tools, resources, knowledge and inspiration.
     
  2. Women's Funding Network, Seattle, Washington — In 2007, NCGives and Creative Philanthropy hosted a contingency of fifteen women givers from across the state to participate in the Women's Funding Network Conference to learn about national and international trends of women givers. The women returned inspired and informed about advancing the work in North Carolina and served as a leadership core for the statewide network.
     
  3. Establishment of Women's Funds Across North Carolina — North Carolina is host to numerous women's funds and women's giving circles. NCGives and Creative Philanthropy have been instrumental in creating the following funds:

Bertie-Hertford Women's Fund (Bertie and Hertford Counties) - The Fund has established an endowment fund with a $10,000 gift from NCGives, established operating procedures and currently has 22 members who contribute a minimum of $300 annually. This year the Women’s Fund distributed grants of $4,000 to programs supporting women and children. Lead by Laura Beasley membership chair, they continue to push for new members. During their first grant cycle, the Bertie-Hertford Women’s Fund granted two gifts totaling $2,000 to the Food Bank of the Albemarle and the Pregnancy Center of Ahoskie to address the needs of teen pregnancy. Dr. Beverly Edwards is President of the Women’s Fund.

Contact:
Peggy Birkemeier, Northeast Region Associate
The Harbinger Center, Suite 4
8845 Caratoke Highway, Point Harbor, NC 27964
1-888-375-8115 (toll free)
252.491.8166 (local)

Women Givers of Northeast North Carolina (Camden, Gates, Pasquotank & Perquimans Counties) - Established in December 2006 with a $10,000 gift from NCGives, the fund continues to grow. Members contribute a minimum of $300 annually. The Northern Albemarle Women Givers make grants to programs that benefit women and children in the Northern Albemarle Community Foundation area. In 2008, they awarded $2,500 to local nonprofits; in 2007, $2,100 were awarded.

Contact:
Peggy Birkemeier, Northeast Region Associate
The Harbinger Center, Suite 4
8845 Caratoke Highway, Point Harbor, NC 27964
Toll free: (888) 375-8115
Local: (252) 491-8166

The Women's Network (Wake County, NC) - Established in 2007, The Women's Network members connect in meaningful and purposeful ways to learn about the critical needs facing women and children in Wake County. Since October 2007, The Women's Network has awarded over $165,000 with high-impact grants that will have a significant impact on Wake County nonprofits serving women and children. Members make an annual $1200 commitment for five consecutive years.

Contact:
Jeanne Lawson
The North Carolina Community Foundation
4601 Six Forks Road, Suite 524
Raleigh, North Carolina 27609
Toll free: (800) 201-9533
Local: (919) 256-6906
Fax: (919) 828-5495

Women Giving in Johnston County (Johnston County, NC) - Women Giving in Johnston County is currently seeking 25 founding members and will concentrate on recruitment efforts, education and a formal grant making process in its first year. Members connect in meaningful and purposeful ways to learn about the critical needs of Johnston County. Members make an annual $600 commitment for five consecutive years.

Contact:
Carrie Gray
The North Carolina Community Foundation
4601 Six Forks Road, Suite 524
Raleigh, North Carolina 27609
Toll free: (800) 201-9533
Local: (919) 256-6906
Fax: (919) 828-5495

The Women Givers of Nash-Rocky Mount (Nash and Edgecombe Counties) - The Women Givers of Nash-Rocky Mount are committed to leveraging the power of collective philanthropy and connecting women in meaningful and purposeful ways. Initiatives that benefit women and families are the current priority. All members commit to contribute $250.00 annually.

 NCGives launched the fund with a matching grant of $5,000. Currently they have 20 members and are conducting home parties in members’ homes and two major events to recruit additional members.

In their first year of operation, they made two grants totaling $10,000. The first gift of $6,000 went to My Sisters House a domestic violence program and $4,000 to the Bassett Center, a homeless shelter for women in the county.

Contact:
Kelly Lee
North Carolina Community Foundation
PO Box 7394
Rocky Mount, NC 27804
(252) 245-1794
 
The Fondue Fund of the Triad - The Fondue Fund is a giving circle of twenty- and thirty year olds who are committed to social change and living in the Triad area of North Carolina. Founded after two friends attended a NCGives statewide meeting of women in philanthropy and realized there was a staggering lack of young adult engagement, the Fondue Fund was created to engage younger women in donating, volunteering and the grantmaking process. Within its first year, the Fondue Fund raised about $15,000 and in the second year awarded grants totaling $10,000 to organizations such as a local women’s resource center. In the first year, eight members pledged $4000 in financial support for the initial grants. NCGives made an initial grant of $10,000.

Working with the Women's Resource Center of Greensboro, the fund awarded grants ranging from $250 to $5,000 to fund ideas that have the power to transform applicants' families and communities.

The group officially launched in January 2006 and boasts twenty members with an average of ten participating members at any given group activity. Currently there are 28 members of the fund.

The monthly meetings rotate among the three cities to allow members to easily remain connected. Already the value of the group's activities is apparent. Using the Network for Good's calculator for the value of volunteer time the group's members have spent volunteering in addition to financial contributions, the small group has given back an estimated $4,000 to their community.

The beehive collective - The beehive collective currently has over 45 members and contributed $9300 in 2008 to benefit a “green” affordable housing initiative that includes job training and placement program. The mission of the beehive collective is to pollinate community giving in Raleigh and inspire young women to lead. Membership dues are 0.5% of yearly income.

Composed of young Raleigh women, members pools their collective talents and resources to organize fun projects that raise meaningful amounts of money for the causes they care about. The beehive collective membership theme 2009 theme is financial literacy and economic security.

The young women volunteer to produce two successful performances of the Vagina Monologues, that raised roughly $2,500 for two local women's nonprofits, in the fall of 2007. A small group that had been involved in the production got together and decided to form a giving circle to expand their philanthropic reach beyond women’s issues and engage their community in giving. The beehive collective was born out of these meetings and now has a nine member Board and an aggressive plan for growing the membership.

Through membership dues, events, and other individual donors, the beehive collective will raise and give away significant grants to local nonprofits. NCGives provided initial support with strategic planning and consultation.
 

4. Collective Giving Forums — Designed to provide technical assistance for emerging and developing funds and giving circles, NCGives sponsors a series of forums in Raleigh, Elizabeth City, Rocky Mount, Hickory, Robeson County and Cornelius, NC. Participants demystify giving and learn leadership development, organizing skills, creating mission, vision and strategies for collective giving. The forums are led by Creative Philanthropy and two other NCGives partner organizations, Hindsight Consulting and Leading To Change.

5. Giving Circles — Creative Philanthropy provides technical assistance for emerging and established giving circles around the state through strategic planning, tools and consultation.

6. Women & Giving in The Philanthropy Journal — Women & Giving, a partnership with The Philanthropy Journal, NCGives and Creative Philanthropy, features news and information about women givers, effective giving, and causes women support. The site creates awareness of the role and unique value of women as donors; shares tools for giving and volunteering; helps women better understand the issues facing nonprofits that serve women and children; serves to inspire and further engage women in philanthropy and offers the opportunity to connect women givers of various background throughout the state.

About Creative Philanthropy

Creative Philanthropy's mission is to advance the understanding, practice and development of philanthropy in North Carolina. Beth Briggs founded Creative Philanthropy in 1995 to provide philanthropic consultation, grantmaking, strategic planning, emerging trends and issues identification to foundations, corporations and individuals. Creative Philanthropy enables donors to maximize the impact of their charitable giving on causes and initiatives that matter to them.

Briggs has been actively involved as a professional in the nonprofit sector for over thirty years. Her prior experience includes President of The North Carolina Public Television Foundation; President and Senior Counsel for Capital Consortium; Director of Development, US Olympic Festival -'87; Director of Development, North Carolina Center for Public Policy Research; Associate Director of the Asheville Community Foundation; and Assistant Director for the Public Welfare Foundation in Washington, DC. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a native of Charlotte.

The recipient of the National Association of Fund Raising Executives Triangle Chapter Fund Raiser of the Year, Briggs sits on a number of local and statewide boards including the North Carolina Network of Grantmakers, The A.J. Fletcher Foundation, North Carolina Amateur Sports and is a faculty member for the BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, Healthy Community Institute for Nonprofit Excellence.

Related Links