Giving Away 100k - 2020 Recap

[tacom]

Thanks for sharing.

Another person chiming in to say that you've helped inspire us to give more as well - probably over 500% last year's giving but I have to calculate it all today. We have more work to do, but it's a good start and I hope to continue to grow our donations each year.

I had (have) a hard time gifting any one large amount at once, and seeing you normalize gifts of much larger numbers has helped reframe my thinking. I have a tendency to hoard cash (which is rooted in anxiety from childhood experiences, but isn't relevant to our current situation - so thank you!)

[mrsd2006]

That is amazing! Thank you for sharing!

[bugandbibs]

I’ve really enjoyed being on this journey with you. It’s been exciting to see and spread the news about different ways to help.

My suggestion to look into for 2021: takingownershippdx.com/

[ohgillian]

Dec 20, 2020 9:15:02 GMT -5 konapoppy said:

Dec 19, 2020 21:04:52 GMT -5 minzy said:

My husband’s bonus hit last week, and my immediate question to him was, “how much will you “let” me give away?” We’re still in negotiations on the number, but I’m swinging for the fence. 🤣.

This is AWESOME! I am so impressed. And so glad to have been an inspiration.

Poppy , I am not sure. I was disappointed (for lack of a better word) to see that my net worth hadn’t changed at the end of this year. I basically gave away enough to stop a net accumulation. I did also move my investments to more “responsible” funds and reduced some capital gains by moving several stocks directly to my fidelity charitable account. A financial advisor recommend I commit X amount to an org over 5 years, say, so they can plan. But I get so much joy from giving individually that I don’t know if I will go that route.

So, it could be 5 years, it could be 10 years if the market does well or even longer if I receive an inheritance (my parents admire my giving and are incredibly generous themselves, but at this point still plan to have significant assets when they pass. I have inspired them though). If I was really bold I would take my money out of the market that gives me value for (generally) paying Black and brown employees terribly.

I've appreciated your posts along the way and am interested in the psychological aspects of the whole thing -- I don't think that's really the right phrase, but I mean, your thoughts about it all. I think I asked this at the outset, but I'm curious how you chose what amount to give. And if you feel it made a difference. And third, if you've struck up a relationship at all with the Major Gifts people from orgs who have reached out to you. All 3 of those are things I struggle with and wonder about when it comes to our giving. 

[konapoppy]

Jan 3, 2021 18:21:17 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

]I've appreciated your posts along the way and am interested in the psychological aspects of the whole thing -- I don't think that's really the right phrase, but I mean, your thoughts about it all. I think I asked this at the outset, but I'm curious how you chose what amount to give. And if you feel it made a difference. And third, if you've struck up a relationship at all with the Major Gifts people from orgs who have reached out to you. All 3 of those are things I struggle with and wonder about when it comes to our giving. 

Hmm, I am not sure quite how to answer, but I will try. Let me know if gib have more!

I chose $100,000 because it seemed like an objectively high amount, but also, when I looked at my whole net worth - and more so my “percentile” of wealth, it seemed like a feasible first step. And a decent portion of assets not tied up in home equity or 401k.For reference, I donated closer to 14k in 2019.

Yes, I absolutely think I made a difference for the individuals I gave money to. For many, I reduced their current or future debt. Or helped their business. For the nonprofits, which was a much smaller portion and much smaller gifts, probably not. But that wasn’t so much my focus.

And for your third question, no, no one reached out. Which doesn’t surprise me because I didn’t make any big gifts to nonprofits. I give over $1,000 annually to a few nonprofits (and have for years), so I forget invited to special things or get personalized notes from them. My parents work through an org that connects them to the major gifts contacts as desired. I can share more via PM if you are curious about that. The org will also research nonprofits for them.