Well, the Interwebs are certainly all abuzz this week with talk of women’s philanthropy.  And the talk is good.

First, a Fidelity study shows that women are shaping the future of philanthropy.

Okay, we knew that.

But still, the report shows a number of positive, exciting new trends, such as that women are growing more comfortable giving with their name attached now, are being increasingly innovative in their philanthropic choices and are increasingly making decisions for how their households will give.

Additionally, Tactical Philanthropy featured a post, "Six Principles of Women’s High Engagement Philanthropy," which outlines the six principles (well worth a read) and offers the following introductory insight from Alice Eagly of Northwestern University, who says, "Women are transformational leaders while men are more likely to be transactional leaders."

Just like we’ve known at The Women’s Foundation for years: women are all about giving "beyond the check." 

Give and Take summarizes these discussions well here.

These pieces are exciting because they confirm what those of us practicing women’s philanthropy have long known to be true, as well as demonstrating that the movement is growing rapidly and with energy, despite the economic downturn and the many challenges it brings with it.

Indeed, as the song says that is so often heard at graduation ceremonies of our Grantee Partners’ job training and other programs, "Ain’t no stoppin’ us now."

Lisa Kays is The Women’s Foundation’s Director of Communications.

When I saw Becky’s inspiring post earlier this week about the first Rainmaker’s Giving Circle meeting, I couldn’t help but throw in my two cents as well.

Like Becky, I was also struck by that meeting because it was such an indication of hope to see so many women gathered around the table that we had to scramble for chairs and space to squeeze everyone in.

Given the recession, I had been concerned that we’d have the opposite problem.

Instead, not only was the room packed with women who had, as Becky said, given serious thought to their commitments and decided to reaffirm their investments in The Women’s Foundation, the Rainmakers and our region’s women and girls, but the group was seriously committed to thinking through how to best invest their funds so that they would be of the greatest impact.

As I sat and listened to the dialogue about how to best help nonprofits serving women and girls in this economic climate when increasing needs would make decision-making and prioritizing even tougher than in the past, I was struck not by the bad news that was at the core of the conversation, but by a sense of overwhelming hope.

For the conversation was not only an indication that women in our region are ready to continue to prioritize their investments in our region’s women and girls, but also that the wisdom, intelligence, thought and strategy that they put into how they invest will help ensure that funds invested in women and girls through women’s philanthropy, will, without a doubt, have a tremendous impact on our community.

Phyllis Caldwell is President of The Women’s Foundation.

I love this.  And I love my Google Reader for making sure I saw it.  Voila, a piece in USA Today not about the doom and gloom of the recession, or about job losses or the stock market.

Indeed, these things are important and concerning.  But for goodness sake, sometimes we need a break from it all.

So here comes USA Today with a great story about how the recession is also inspiring tremendous random acts of kindness out there, among businesses and individuals. 

In California, for instance, when a group started a prom dress drive for girls who couldn’t afford gowns, local businesses chipped in free hair styling and dry cleaning.  Meanwhile, the Elks Lodge started collecting shoes.

In Fulton, Missouri (Shout out to my home state!), a local florist is just randomly delivering bouquets of flowers to people nominated within the community just to help brighten up people’s days. 

In Alabama, the owner of a health care store gave out $16,000 split amongst its employees, asking them to give 15 percent to charity and spend the rest at local businesses.

Not only generous, but smart.

How can you not love this?  Proof that the recession, while awful, is also presenting opportunities for people and communities to come together to do the right thing.

That’s one of the ramifications of this tough period that we have to hope sticks around when it’s over.

Admittedly, these are not the best of times.  But that doesn’t mean that we can’t add a bit of levity and see our circumstances through an artistic or humorous perspective every once in a while.

I recently had that opportunity when I went to see Avenue Q at the Warner Theater. 

Not familiar with the musical?  Think Sesame Street, only the Muppets have grown up and become angsty 20 and 30-somethings and are teaching each other the lessons of growing up in the real world, instead of about looking both ways before crossing the street and when to make the Letter E silent.

But there are some lessons that transcend from Sesame Street to Avenue Q.  The art of friendship, for instance, and the need for resilience amid challenging circumstances, and the importance of giving and helping others in need.

I was struck by a particular song that I’ve been listening to for years on my iPod, which sounded a bit different when I saw it acted out on stage because it struck a chord, I thought, with what we’re all facing now: the seeming shrinking pool of resources amid an increasing need for help mixed with a climate of uncertainty, and our natural tendency as a result to hold on to what we have more and more tightly.

In the musical, two characters act out this dilemma perfectly, one a recently unemployed, homeless character, Nicky, begs for a quarter and some assistance from the better off Princeton.  Yes, Princeton.

Anyway, the "ask," as we say in development and fundraising, requires a lot of negotiation and persuasion, but eventually, when Princeton does come around, he learns that giving makes him feel far better than he had anticipated. 

And then finds he likes it so much that he’s inspired to turn the tables and fundraise for another cause…from Nicky.

Here’s a snippet of the song:

Nicky:
Give me a quarter! Here in my hat! Come on, Princeton! It’s as easy as that!…

Princeton:
I don’t have any change.

Nicky:
Hmmm….okay. Give me a dollar.

Princeton:
That’s not what I meant.

Nicky:
Give me a five.

Princeton:
Are you kidding?…

Nicky:
The more you give. The more you get. That’s being alive!…

Princeton:
All right, all right, here you go.

Nicky:
Ahh, thanks!

Princeton:
Take care. Whoa!…I feel generous! I feel compassionate!…I feel like a new person - a good person!  Helping other people out makes you feel fantastic!…All this time I’ve been running around thinking about me, me, me - and where has it gotten me! I’m gonna do something for someone else!…Give me your money!

Nicky:
What?…I need it to eat!

Princeton:
Come on, Nicky!…It’ll make you feel great!

Nicky:
So would a burger!…I’d like to, but I can’t…I’d like to, but I need it! I’d like to, but I’m homeless! I can’t! I need it! I’m homeless! Okay, here you go.

Princeton:
Thank you!

Nicky:
Suddenly, I am feeling closer to God. It’s time to stop begging. It’s time to start giving! What can I give to Rod?

Both:
When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself! When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself!…

All:
So give us your money!  Give us your money!  Give us your money! When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself!  When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself! Every time you do good deeds, you’re also serving your own needs. When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself! When you give to a worthy cause, you’ll feel as jolly as Santa Clause. When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself!

So much of this resonated with things I’ve heard at The Women’s Foundation or observed during this tough time: the potential for giving or of being the beneficiary of a gift to inspire greater giving back to the community; the fact that supporting our community is actually a means of improving our own lives; and, the idea that no matter who we are, we all have something to give.

A slightly more light-hearted look at where we are and what we do.  Because sometimes there is wisdom in finding humor in tough topics.

And who better to lend some perspective than a 20-something Muppet or two?

Lisa Kays is the director of communications at The Women’s Foundation. 

On Monday, I listened to the President’s first press conference.  I could see that the weight of his responsibilities rest heavy upon him. The enormity of the responsibility that he bears for moving the country through these challenges times is certainly not enviable.

His words that “inaction can turn this crisis into a catastrophe” hung heavy in the air.

But despite the weightiness of the message, I was heartened by his continual reinforcement that we are all in this together.  That the power of our collective efforts knows no bounds.

While very few of us can say that we have been untouched by the challenging economy, the reality is that we are not all affected in the same way. 

Women and girls continue to be the hardest hit in times of economic crisis, so while for some, the realities of this economy are a rude awakening - for others it is catastrophic.

Maintaining our perspective and continuing to believe in our power to make a difference is paramount.

More than ever, The Women’s Foundation’s belief in The Power of Giving Together holds true as an opportunity and a call to action.

For more than six years, The Women’s Foundation’s giving circles have allowed women to pool and leverage their resources to make change.  The outcome is that the whole truly is greater than the sum of its parts!  And the beauty of this model is that it enables a relatively small contribution to make a big difference.

We are now in the process of welcoming new members to both of The Women’s Foundation’s giving circles: the African American Women’s Giving Circle and the Rainmakers Giving Circle.  These circles continue to be dedicated to the power of collective giving and the empowerment of making the decision together about how to grant out their funds.

The Rainmakers Giving Circle will be hosting a reception for interested members on February 17, 2009 to learn more.  Please contact me if you’d like to join us and learn more about The Power of Giving Together and how you can make your investment in our community go further.

Now more than ever, we need people to come together to invest in our community and in the area’s women and girls.  We have our call to action from our President and from our community.

Please join us in working toward the solution.

Nicole Cozier is The Women’s Foundation’s philanthropic education officer.

I’m so thrilled to hear of Doreen being recognized as a 2008 Washingtonian of the Year!  This is so well-deserved.

I recall first meeting Doreen in an early round of the Rainmakers Giving Circle, and was so impressed by how thoughtful and engaged she was in the circle’s work, which was fairly demanding, time-wise.  Knowing how complicated her schedule was, her example motivated me to strengthen my commitment to The Women’s Foundation.

If she could make that meeting downtown, I had better get there!

Through the years, it has been delightful to witness her effect on others as well.

I remember how moved I was to see Grantee Partners beaming as they had picture after picture taken with her at a house event.

At a Washington 100 breakfast at her home, a Grantee Partner told our group how, after meeting Doreen at a previous event, she stopped watching her regular Spanish newscast and started watching Doreen’s. Not only did her English improve, but now her sons also watch Doreen.

And just last month at the board meeting, Covenant House’s Executive Director, Judith Dobbins, broke out with a huge smile as she recognized Doreen during our otherwise routine, round-the-table introductions.  We all had to laugh.

Because of Doreen’s personal graciousness and the respect she garners throughout our region, The Women’s Foundation’s good work is amplified every time she represents us.

But Doreen also has a tremendous fun side that I’ve had the pleasure to get to know as we’ve worked together as co-chairs of Washington 100.  Given how organized and poised she is, you probably would be surprised that half the time I feel like we’re Lucy and Ethel.  We spend a lot of time laughing, just scrambling to keep up and improvise with our latest version of a "plan", which is often a work in progress.

Thank goodness Doreen is a rare combination of extremely dependable and organized, mixed with go-with-the-flow and a really wry sense of humor.

I’m so proud of her earning this prestigious award.

Doreen, you make us all proud!  Congrats on this dazzling accomplishment.

Barb Strom Thompson is co-chair of The Women’s Foundation’s Washington 100 network and a board member. In her professional life, she is a child development specialist.

Last Friday, several District of Columbia students, myself included, filed onto the 8th floor of the Watergate building.  We were all interns with The Urban Alliance Foundation, and were there to get professional help from newspaper editors, lawyers, and other successful people, including my mentor Lisa Kays, on our college essays.

It is routine and mandatory that each Friday afternoon all interns attend a workshop class.  During this time, we are informed of events, discuss events that have happened during the work week, and are educated about key things to know when working in a professional environment and also that you will need throughout life–such as professional attire, how to use technology and managing money and bank accounts.

Since interns are seniors in high school, we have also been focusing a lot on college and making plans, setting goals and working to reach those goals.  We have been discussing applications and different scholarships that are available for us to receive.  Over the last few weeks, we have been drafting our college essay.

The dreadful college essay that most of us fear.  The one thing that is going to set you aside from hundreds of thousands of other applicants applying to the same school.

There have been several editors and writers who have come in and talked to the classes as a whole about writing our essays.  But on Friday, everyone received that one-on-one attention that they needed. 

We were paired up with a professional and then sat in a quiet area where we could focus and really think.

It was very helpful to get this sort of help. Little things that you might not catch, another person will, and it is those little things that can make a writing piece excellent. 

It was a very successful event.  No one was rude or judgmental towards anyone’s writing.  They were only helpful in as many ways possible.

In the end, every last intern walked away with a sense of confidence that they can write an excellent essay, and that it is going to get them into the college of their choosing.

Tia Felton is a senior at McKinley Tech High School and an intern at The Women’s Foundation through Urban Alliance–a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation.  When she graduates from high school this year, she hopes to go to college and eventually to become a lawyer.

To learn more about the Urban Alliance internship program, click here.

This is a cool Friday afternoon find.  Allison Fine and Marnie Webb have started an online project that is quickly catching on, asking people for ideas about how to give during this holiday season without spending a dime. 

The Give List already has tons of ideas posted, from Goodsearch (which is an easy online way you can even help The Women’s Foundation without spending a cent) to fun events that give back to helping a neighbor in need shovel their walk.

Check it out to post your idea or resource, or to find a way to give–what we call around here "beyond the check"–this holiday season.

As someone said to Allison and Marnie, “Just because I’m poor doesn’t mean that I have to be stingy!”

Well said.  Now, ready, set, give!

Lisa Kays is The Women’s Foundation’s Director of Communications.

This afternoon, I had the pleasure of attending the 2008 Catalogue for Philanthropy awards ceremony, where we got a chance to hear from a number of past awardees about what recognition in the Catalogue has meant for them.

The wisdom of the Catalogue is based on the same wisdom that governs grantmaking at The Women’s Foundation.  The Catalogue brings together a diverse committee of volunteers–all experts in philanthropy at some level–to vet and evaluate potential candidates for the Catalogue, so that once in hand, philanthropists know that every nonprofit featured is doing excellent work and having an impact.

Similarly, The Women’s Foundation uses the power of collective wisdom in its grantmaking, placing the responsibility for decisions about funding in the hands of community members–whether through the Leadership Awards, grantmaking committee or a giving circle–and asking them to pool not only their resources, but their experience, perspective and wisdom to choose the most effective organizations in which to invest.

So it was no surprise to me today when I saw so many of our former Leadership Awardees and other Grantee Partners featured in this year’s Catalogue, or being honored as those who had best leveraged their appearance in the past. 

Among them, Fair Fund and A Wider Circle–2007 Leadership Awardees of The Women’s Foundation–are featured in this year’s Catalogue.

The Washington Middle School for Girls, a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation and former Catalogue charity, was featured via film.

In addition, Ascensions Community Services and Friends of Guest House were honored for having taken full advantage of being featured in the 2007 Catalogue by leveraging various marketing, media and outreach strategies to increase their fundraising and build important partnerships throughout the community.

Looking through the Catalogue of the 2008 honorees and those of the past, there is a great deal more overlap between The Women’s Foundation’s Grantee Partner list and the Catalogue’s selected nonprofits than I can list here.

All, I think, testimony to the value and power of investing in mechanisms that vet and evaluate the organizations working in our community through the common wisdom and involvement of our community.

In tough economic times like we’re facing now, when the needs are greater than ever before and resources are decreasing, there has never been a more important time not only to give to our community, but to invest wisely in it.

As Sidney Harman said during his remarks today, now is the time to give even more, not less, than we ever have before.   

Lisa Kays is Director of Communications at The Women’s Foundation and was a reviewer for the 2008 Catalogue for Philanthropy.

I came to Washington Area Women’s Foundation thinking that, somewhat naively, it focused solely on service work.

What I discovered instead was an exemplary model of praxis indicating that service, advocacy, and philanthropy cannot be considered insularly. To borrow the words of Patricia Hill Collins, these entities embody a kind of "intersectionality."

While in Washington, I have taken part in a number of efforts that I first perceived to be a more purist form of advocacy work—protesting anti-choice groups, attending a Code Pink anti-war gathering, marching for equal marriage in the D.C. Pride Parade, and taking part in a political rally.

Through my participation in these efforts and interning at the Women’s Foundation, I have experientially learned that such political and activist endeavors are made possible in large part by the behind-the-scenes activist spenders.

That being said, here are three other things I’ve learned as an intern at Washington Area Women’s Foundation:

1. Philanthropy truly is for everyone. Even the poorest of graduate students (like me).
2. Giving is a form of civic activism.
3. Women need to break the glass ceiling of philanthropy by banding together, giving together, and strategizing together about how their money is spent.

On an equally serious note, I have also learned that purple, orange, red, and gold are pretty much the most amazing colors ever.

I’ve had a wonderful month interning at the Women’s Foundation and feel so fortunate to have met and gotten to know everyone in this community!

Nancy Thebaut is a summer intern with The Women’s Foundation. This fall she will be starting a master’s degree in art history at the Courtauld Institute of Art.  Today is, sadly, the last day of her internship with The Women’s Foundation.