Charities Team Up to Bring Time-Bank Project to Ravaged Gulf Coast
The hurricanes that ripped through the Gulf Coast region in August and September brought catastrophe to that region — but ALSO SEE:Trading Favors for Charity‘Time Bank’ Concept of Swapping Services Gains Ground Internationally they have also created an opportunity to see whether the idea of…
By HEATHER JOSLYN
Contributor
‘Time dollar’ programs let participants give and receiveRoberta House shops with fake money she earned by helping her neighbors. Her fake money buys very real items — clothes, dishes, bleach, toothbrushes, ALSO SEE:Charities Team Up to Bring Time-Bank Project to Ravaged Gulf Coast‘Time Bank’…
By Sara Anne Donnelly
Contributor
Former Chrysler executive vows to eliminate diabetes Los Angeles After almost five decades working in the automobile industry, Lee A. Iacocca earned a reputation for taking business risks that paid big dividends. In philanthropy, he hopes to do the same. Since 1984, Mr. Iacocca, the former chief…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Running an independent event creates a whole separate set of challenges, including tax deductibility of contributions, expenses, and restricted gifts.
By Rebecca Gardyn
Contributor
Taking Disaster Response Seriously
Foundations are expected to provide rationality and solutions to the major challenges of our time, but they have failed when it comes to dealing with natural disasters and humanitarian emergencies. It is not that they have failed to invest, though perhaps they have not invested enough. The real…
By Terrence R. Meersman
Contributor
Gates Foundation Executive to Become President of CARE
After five years fighting HIV and AIDS in Africa and India as a top executive of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Helene D. Gayle will soon be working to defeat global social ills in a very different role. Last month Dr. Gayle was appointed president of CARE, an international aid charity in…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Tax Agency Blocks Improper Vehicle Deductions
After discovering that some charities are providing donors of automobiles and other vehicles with incorrect receipts that allow contributors to claim overly generous charitable deductions, the IRS has taken steps to block the practice. Under a law that took effect last year, a donor’s income-tax…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
IRS Uncovers Problems with Charity Pay, Benefits
Many charities have violated federal tax law by providing improper benefits or excessive pay to top officials, according to a review of nonprofit organizations by the Internal Revenue Service. In the review of more than 1,800 charities, the IRS uncovered substantial loans to charity executives and…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Lawmakers Delay Action on Tax Legislation
Congress has put off for several weeks a final decision on key tax legislation that many nonprofit organizations have sought to cut down on abuses of charity tax laws and encourage charitable giving. A conference committee of members of the Senate and House of Representatives is expected to meet in…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor
Ending Bad Blood Between United Ways and Community Foundations
Convergence & Competition: United Ways & Community Foundations, A National Inquiry, by Nancy Ragey, discusses how these two types of organization, which sometimes compete for donors and projects, can benefit from greater collaboration. Based on a survey of more than 300 United Ways and community…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
‘Vanity Fair’: Brouhaha at Private School
Ahost of scandals have plagued St. Paul’s School, the elite boarding school in Concord, N.H. In an article for Vanity Fair, Alex Shoumatoff (Class of ’64) returns to his alma mater to examine how the allegations have affected the “idyllic campus” and its students, teachers, administration, and…
By Marty Michaels
Contributor
‘Time’: A Trio of ‘Good Samaritans’
At first glance, there would seem to be little ground for mutual admiration between Bono, the flamboyant rock superstar and global activist, and Bill and Melinda Gates, co-founders of the world’s wealthiest foundation, who largely shun the public spotlight. Yet Time magazine not only names the…
By Marty Michaels
Contributor
Nature Conservancy Rates Highest of Trusted Groups
The AARP and the National Rifle Association are better known than 11 other advocacy groups that focus on influencing federal policy, a new poll has found. The poll also found that the Nature Conservancy, an environmental charity in Arlington, Va., ranked as the most-trusted organization, with the…
By Leah Kerkman
Contributor
Grant-Maker Group Puts Getty Fund on Probation
The Council on Foundations has placed the J. Paul Getty Trust on probation while it seeks more information from the trust regarding charges of fiscal misconduct — marking the first time the council has taken such action against one of its members. The trust will remain on probation through February…
By Harvy Lipman
Contributor
Bits: Innovation Funders Network Holds “Networks, Innovation, and Social Change” Meeting
Randal D. Pinkett, a consultant in Newark, N.J., who serves as a board member of the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network and is a frequent speaker at nonprofit technology conferences, was the winner on the NBC reality television show The Apprentice. Mr. Pinkett chose to work on the construction…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Eight Youth Programs Win Multimedia Grants
A network of more than 1,000 local technology organizations has awarded grants of $20,000 each to eight charities for their after-school programs. The Community Technology Centers’ Network, in Washington, awarded the money as part of its Youth Visions for Stronger Neighborhoods project, which…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor