TGL Features
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead There is a magic to volunteering, an enlargement of purpose and a re-balancing of energy, that is eerily similar to how it feels to exercise. Endorphins are released; time stands still; and one’s sense of agency and possibility blossoms. It’s actually called “helper’s high,” that euphoric feeling people can experience after engaging in acts of kindness or helping others. Increasingly backed by science, this social high has been linked to other benefits like improved mood, [...more...]
In 2000, Judy Koch learned something surprising about many of the workers in her sheet metal factory in Fremont, California: They didn’t read books with their kids. As a former junior high English teacher now on a second career as a manufacturing CEO, Koch wanted to instill a love of reading in her employees. Her idea? Give away high-quality storybooks for free. This simple act created a tidal wave of expanded family literacy among the mostly Latino men who worked on the factory floor. Sterling Speirn, who was looking for innovative ideas as executive director of the Peninsula Community Foundation [...more...]
Great ideas always start with someone. In the case of Community Foundations, which now hold more than 10% of all philanthropic funds in America, it was a Cleveland man named Frederick Harris Goff. Having worked as a litigator for John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil in the early 1900s, and as president of the Cleveland Trust Company, Goff was no stranger to wealth. He also advised families on estate planning and became increasingly concerned about what happened to those estates when the causes they were dedicated to no longer matched the needs of the community. “How fine it would be,” [...more...]
The Buzz in the Bay was a total success! It was a night of connection and great conversation with nonprofit, […more…]
Ohlhoff Recovery Programs Executive Director Arlene Stanich-Prince has witnessed the barriers her clients face in accessing treatment in the Bay […more…]
We love our animals. As pets, our cats, dogs, birds, rodents, and lizards are our most loyal companions and best […more…]
Artists, storytellers, teachers, and community leaders have long understood the power of art and story to transform individual lives, as […more…]
Within the Bay Area, running parallel to the city’s sprawling landscape of ecological, cultural, and racial diversity, are increasing disparities […more…]
Homelessness is an endemic issue across America, but especially in California where the state’s eight largest cities are each settings […more…]
For some, the concept of sustainability, defined by the U.N. in 1987 as, “meeting the needs of the present without […more…]
It’s a cold, unfortunate fact that while growing into adulthood, a teenager’s success can be highly dependent on their financial […more…]
At the start of the 2023 school year, San Francisco public schools received $1.28 billion to spend on 48,000 students […more…]
Pedro Arista, senior director at San Francisco’s Hirsch Philanthropy Partners, has a saying: “Collaboration moves at the speed of trust.” […more…]
It all starts with trust. In the spring of 2022, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) – the largest community […more…]
For the last 75 years, the San Francisco Foundation (SFF) has laid the foundation for countless community initiatives in the […more…]
Founded in 1928, East Bay Community Foundation (EBCF) partners with an active network of donors, local government funds, institutions, and […more…]
While the Golden State Warriors’ dominance on the court has global reach, the franchise and its foundation are deeply rooted […more…]
Dwayne S. Marsh, who recently joined Northern California Grantmakers (NCG) as President and CEO, doesn’t have time for business as […more…]
Pandemic. Political and economic instability. A generational reckoning with racism. In the wake of the double blow of COVID-19 and […more…]