The best way to empower the children you love is to help them embrace their ability to make a difference and help others. This gift will give them self-esteem, will build their character and will also create the next generation of givers!
Teaching children the importance of helping others and taking care of the world around them is an essential part of building character. It is also important to encourage children to think about what they want to do to make the world a better place so they can truly understand the power of their actions.
In this episode, Susan and I discuss when to start engaging little ones in giving, family volunteering, role modeling, helping children find their philanthropic voice and much more!
Our family foundation would like to work with the local community foundation to set up a program that will help train younger philanthropists – both those in our family as well as other youth in the community. Do you have suggestions for models that others have used?
Indeed we do!...
At the 2017 National Forum on Family Philanthropy, Ellie Frey Zagel described herself as “the next gen of your nightmares: one who said she’d never return to live in the community where her family’s foundation was based.”
"As a father and a trustee, it is important to me that I understand the millennial perspective. I spend a lot of time following the latest research on millennial beliefs and behaviors because I want to understand how specifically those beliefs impact their philanthropy, investments, and approach to being good citizens."
As we continue to navigate the generational differences that face our society, I encourage you to explore a few insights from a millennial embracing her family’s wealth through philanthropy.
In 2015, Foundant partnered with Youth Philanthropy Connect on their trip across the United States as they hosted gatherings of youth philanthropists. This trip opened their eyes to the potential for success a program like this could have in their own community in Bozeman, Montana.
Family foundations are legally organized entities with specific rules, requirements and obligations. They have a board of directors commonly made up of family members. They are most often established in perpetuity, creating the eventual challenge of when and how to involve the next generation.
