Getting Comfortable with Caring
How do I say write this without sounding like an old fuddy duddy? With great difficulty and a low likelihood of success!
I think it is absolutely marvelous that the Red Cross has collected over $100 million from around the globe for the victims of the Haitian earthquake, predominantly through the texting of pledges. (Well, actually, I think it is marvelous that $100 million has been raised; I am a little dubious about the Red Cross receiving all of that money as their recent track record Read more
January 22nd, 2010 0 Comment Read Any Good Books Lately?
Ever since my son got his drivers’ license, anytime he and his best friend from high school want to have a serious conversation, they get in the car and drive. Long, long drives to no where. Doesn’t matter what time of day or night, a conversation becomes a road trip. Every once in a while, however, the road trip becomes the conversation.
I am not often privy to the content of these conversations, but every once in a while, I get lucky and get a text Read more
January 16th, 2010 0 Comment Crucial time for charities
With the economic downturn staring us in the face, it’s hard to feel charitable even during this season of giving. But this has been a grim year for charities, just as it has for individuals and businesses. So charities are hopefully and anxiously anticipating this crucial period of year-end giving, traditionally fueled by goodwill and the promise of tax deductions.
If you’re wondering how you can afford to give to charity, I would ask how you can afford not to. Nonprofits enrich us with a wide Read more
A Tough Hybrid to Swallow – the L3C
My intent was to write about L3Cs—low-profit limited liability companies. Five states already allow them, several more have legislation pending, and many are encouraging the congress to create such legislation. Ever heard of them?
So I went looking for a simple, yet clear, definition of just what an L3C is. In the process, I got sidetracked by a table comparing an LLC, an L3C and a nonprofit.
According to the design and intent of an L3C, it is a cross between a for-profit and nonprofit organization: it Read more
November 19th, 2009 14 Comments The Rude Sector
When I started blogging, I was told it was ok to be provocative and controversial and I was prepared for flak and feedback. But I am not going for controversy or provocation here; here, I’m venting. Numerous recent experiences have led me to conclude that the nonprofit sector that I truly love has become down-right rude. I’ve got a collection of experiences to whine about, but I’ll share two recent ones with you that painfully contrast our sector with the for-profit world.
I was Read more
Kids and EDs – What’s the Matter with Them?
I have had a song swirling in my head for a couple of days now. It is a song from “Bye Bye Birdie” which the parents, and one younger brother, sing when they believe their teenagers are off doing the kinds of nefarious things teenagers might have done in the days (1958) of “Bye, Bye Birdie.” It is titled “Kids!” and the lines in my head are (and be glad you can’t hear me singing): “Why can’t they be like we were, perfect in every way? What’s the matter with kids Read more
True Confessions: I Hate Being a Supervisor
During tough economic times, folks spend so much time worrying about money that all too frequently they forget to worry about people. And yet, truth be told, the most important resource any nonprofit has is its people. If we don’t worry about them, it doesn’t matter how much—or how little–money we have, we won’t be doing a good job of fulfilling our mission promises.
There is absolutely no question that the human resources at a nonprofit who suffer the most during financially Read more
There Really Are No Quick Fixes
Americans always seem to be looking for a quick fix: meals all in one box; the all-in-one dusting and polishing; matching services that find you the love of your life. Maybe these work; I honestly don’t know. But what I do know is that they take individual responsibility out of the equation.
Let’s look at what could be used as a quick fix in the nonprofit sector. With somewhere between 1.4 million to 1.8 million nonprofits in the United States, how do you Read more
It’s a Zoo Around Here
We go from the politician who seems to understand nonprofits (Dan Malloy, potential candidate for governor of Connecticut and the subject of my last blog) to those who seem pretty clueless about nonprofits. I’m speaking about the city of Tampa, which wants to reinvent the wheel. Late last year, a city audit revealed that the Lowry Park Zoo—recently rated the number one zoo in America by Parent’s Magazine—wasn’t the number one best managed nonprofit in America. Far from it.
The Read more
My Write-In Vote
I want to live in Connecticut. Well, not really. But I would like the Mayor of Stamford, Dan Malloy, who is assessing whether he will make a bid for the Governor’s seat, to run and I’d like to vote for him. And, even more importantly, I’d like him to win and carry out his tentative campaign promises—well, at least one of them.
But before I get into why I want to vote for Malloy, I need to make one thing clear: I am not a one Read more
