Katrina forces charity officials around the country to rethink what it means to be truly prepared Charities operating in the Gulf Coast region are not strangers to the threat of hurricanes. Many have long had disaster plans in place to help them protect their operations and continue their missions…
By Brennen Jensen
Contributor
Abilene Christian U. (Tex.): Appointed Kevin Christian, former executive director of the West Texas Office of Economic Development and Tourism (El Paso), to be associate general counsel. After-School All-Stars (Los Angeles): Appointed Ben Paul, chief operating officer, to be president and chief…
Following are summaries of recent reports by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. This private group reports on whether charities meet standards for fund raising, governance, financial management, and public information. The alliance does not approve or disapprove of charities, and urges potential donors…
A Civic Leader Works to Protect the Nation’s Constitution
NEW ON THE JOB The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia didn’t look very far when it searched for a chief executive to succeed Richard Stengel. The center, a nonprofit organization that works to increase public understanding of the U.S. Constitution, instead approached Joseph M. Torsella —…
By PETER PANEPENTO
Contributor
Housing Group Founder Sues Tax Agency
TAX WATCH A financial deal involving a Sacramento housing charity has led to battles at the Internal Revenue Service and in the California courts. Don F. Harris, who founded Nehemiah Corporation, a nonprofit provider of down-payment assistance, said in a petition to the U.S. Tax Court that he had…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Court Rules Against IRS in Health-Charity Case
TAX WATCH A federal appeals court has dealt a significant blow to the Internal Revenue Service in its efforts to crack down on charity officials and companies that receive improper financial benefits from their connections to a tax-exempt organization. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Charitable Deductions Rose in 2004, IRS Says
TAX WATCH New statistics released by the Internal Revenue Service show that deductions claimed for charitable contributions rose 7.2 percent to ALSO SEE: TABLE: Charitable Deductions Claimed on Tax Returns $156.2-billion in 2004. The IRS will revise the statistics in coming months before making…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
The following awards have been presented for work in advocacy, fund raising, nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, and other areas. American Indians. Ecotrust (Portland, Ore.) has presented its 2006 Buffett Award for Indigenous Leadership to Guujaaw (Haida), an artist, traditional-medicine…
Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund Roiled by Disputes Over Aid to Religious Groups
The head of the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund resigned under pressure last month, shortly after seven prominent religious leaders stepped down from one of the charity’s advisory committees in anger over the nonprofit group’s activities. The religious leaders said that the fund’s staff had ignored their…
By Harvy Lipman
Contributor
Charities That Work in Russia Worry About Impact of New Law
Nonprofit organizations had hoped the world’s richest and most democratic nations would use last month’s Group of Eight summit in St. Petersburg as a forum to speak out against a law that imposes new restrictions on charities and foundations that work in Russia. But that did not happen. Western…
By Bryon MacWilliams
Contributor
A Former Jail Guard Helps Ex-Prisoners Move Back Into Society
A DAY IN THE LIFE It is just before 4 on a Monday morning, and the 2700 block of Baltimore’s East Madison Street is dark and forbidding, dotted with boarded-up houses. Homes that remain occupied sport “no loitering” signs, adding to the scene’s desolation. But in a matter of minutes, the street…
By Mary E. Medland
Contributor
Family funds face hurdles as trustees move away Last year, Amy Bishop, 22, joined the board of the A. Lindsay and Olive B. O’Connor Foundation, part of the fourth generation of her family to help guide the institution. But as the foundation — started by her great-great-uncle, a state Supreme Court…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Israel-Lebanon War Sparks Gifts to Relief Groups
Amid growing fears of a humanitarian catastrophe in the Middle East, aid organizations, religious groups, and other charities are raising money to help victims of the fighting in Lebanon, Israel, and Gaza. While some nonprofit organizations have received strong financial support from Jewish donors…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
Hip-Hop Philanthropy: Street-Smart Altruism
The Atlanta foundation started by the performer Ludacris brings art, music, and education to children When Christopher Brian Bridges thinks about the reasons he started his foundation five years ago, he recalls the virtues he learned during his middle-class childhood in Oak Park, Ill. “I followed…
By Michael Anft
Contributor
The country-music star Dolly Parton is putting books into the hands of children nationwideThe magicians of the Big Cats & Magic Show onstage at the Dollywood theme ALSO SEE:ARTICLE: Voicing Support for CharityARTICLE: Citizen WyntonARTICLE: From Raising Cain to Raising MoneyARTICLE: Performers Use…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor