The Link

October 2020

Connections: Amplifying Our Impact

You have recently received an invitation to join us on October 20 for a special evening that will feature an accomplished group of women who will gather together to celebrate the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage. They will discuss the history and impact of the suffragist movement, including the opportunities afforded to women when the right to vote was extended, as well as the obstacles that still remain.

This event would not be possible if TPC grantee Project Citizenship (PC) had not reached out to Leslie Levenson, TPC’s Volunteer Coordinator. PC wanted to sponsor a panel to highlight this remarkable anniversary, but did not have the resources or connections to make it a reality. Enter Leslie, who put out the word to TPC members and very quickly was able to assemble a team which, in a short period of time, was able to secure the participation of a distinguished roster of presenters and panelists. Special thanks to members Barbara Elfman, Susan Friedman, Leslie Levenson, Sarah Rahman, Annemieke Rice, and Susan Sidel for planning what promises to be a wonderful evening. We hope you will register to attend and also feel free to invite others you believe would enjoy the evening. Please also read this month’s interview, which features Project Citizenship.

Finally, if you’d like to help with an immediate need, PC now has 200 new donors, and they’d like to thank them properly by sending each a handwritten thank you. Volunteers are needed to crowdsource this initiative. If you’re available, PC will mail you all the materials – stamps, notecards, names, addresses. Contact Irene Egan, Director of Development, with the number of cards you are willing to write along with your mailing address.

Upcoming Events

Oct 28, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm, join us as we discuss NYT best-selling author Brit Bennett’s book The Vanishing Half, a stunning novel about twin sisters, inseparable as children, who ultimately choose to live in two vastly different worlds – one black and one white.

Nov 5, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm, we hope you have “The Path Forward” on your calendar. This Zoom event will address TPC’s upcoming plans for 2021. You will hear from TPC President Barbara Gaskin and several committee heads who will discuss our strategic planning efforts, the exciting work being done by our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion team, our 2021 educational schedule, and what’s in store for grant teams. Guests are welcome. We encourage you to invite others to learn about TPC and join us so we are able to meet our goal of awarding $250,000 to grantees this coming spring.

Nov 17, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. Save the date for a Philanthropy Dialogue about “Power Dynamics that Lead to Oppression” with grantee RIA House, which supports women affected by the commercial sex trade and its associated exploitation, trafficking, and prostitution.

Grantee Impact: Project Citizenship
Liaisons: Kathleen McGinn and Annemieke Rice

Project Citizenship’s mission is to increase the citizenship rate in MA by providing free, high-quality legal services and application assistance to permanent residents. Project Citizenship works collaboratively with community-based partners in MA to provide a range of support services, civics instruction, application assistance, and ESOL classes. Citizenship transforms these families by empowering them to vote, to apply for educational scholarships, and to qualify to apply for federal jobs. (Read more…)

Member Impact: Volunteer Days with Science Club for Girls

Over a couple of days in early October, members Barbara Sheffels, Phieng Siliphaivanh, and Cheryl Wakeham gave some time to help Science Club for Girls put together 250 kits (pictured) for each of its K-12 fall club participants. That’s a lot of kits! Assembly lines were in full use…one such line featured Week 2 in which groups of young scientists will be asked to problem solve for a particular country’s need. Still not sure how 10 popsicle sticks, a couple 8.5” x 11” pieces of cardboard, a few sheets of tissue paper, and a tennis ball relate to the Great Wall of China, but I’m sure the girls will figure it out. Please be sure to visit Wish List items for each of our grantees to see if there is a way you may be able to help out.

DEI Spotlight
Diversity | Equity | Inclusion

On October 28 at 7:00 pm the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee is facilitating a book club. This discussion will center on Brit Bennett’s book, The Vanishing Half, a novel about twin sisters – one black and one white – who ultimately choose to live in two vastly different worlds. The discussion will provide a space to unpack many intersecting identities including race, gender, and class. Register for the event here!

If you can’t attend the book club, here are a few additional resources: 

• Article: RBG Lost Her Battle to Save Voting Rights. Here’s How We Can Take Up the Fight and Honor Her Legacy

• Podcast: How to Citizen with Baratunde – a podcast that reimagines “citizen” as a verb and helps reclaim our collective power.

• Book: See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love by Valarie Kaur. “Drawing from the wisdom of sages, scientists, and activists, Kaur reclaims love as an active, public, and revolutionary force that creates new possibilities for ourselves, our communities, and our world. See No Stranger helps us imagine new ways of being with each other – and with ourselves – so that together we can begin to build the world we want to see.”

As always, if you’d like to further engage in conversations about, or take action with us toward addressing racial equity, white supremacy, police brutality, or our personal and philanthropic roles in committing to anti-racism, please contact the DEI Committee directly at: Diversity@thephilanthropyconnection.org.

Your Dollars at Work…

TPC has always been an organization focused on impact and now more than ever we can feel and see our collective giving power take shape on the Boston landscape during this unprecedented and challenging year. As TPC embraced the virtual world, we made a concerted effort to increase and tailor our programming in order to educate members about a growing list of issues affecting the communities around us. In 2020, we granted $25,000 each to two organizations working in the most impacted city, Chelsea, that have been on the front lines of the crisis: Chelsea Collaborative and GreenRoots. We also funded Fathers’ Uplift, which uses a range of programs and clinical supports to work with fathers recently released from an often unjust criminal justice system to help reintegrate them into their families and society, thus reducing recidivism. While TPC has had cost savings with our pivot to virtual programming, we anticipate expenses down the road as we make additional investments in technology and also as we look to attract prominent speakers with topical expertise. Knowing that additional contributions give the Board flexibility in meeting various needs, including our grant pool, we hope you will consider a gift to TPC as we roll up our sleeves for one of the most critical, rewarding granting seasons yet. Thank you for your consideration.