Creating a podcast to share my message that everyone can be a philanthropist–even without millions–has been a dream of mine. And, here it is. The first episode.
In this introductory episode, I explain why I am creating this podcast and what my vision is for our world. Philanthropy is evidence that we share visions of a better world. Our giving proves we work together to improve the lives of others–and even our best comes out in the worst of times, like it did in 2020. Let’s be encouraged and inspired to grow our capacity to change the world.
Who is one of my greatest philanthropic influences? Listen to learn more.
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Host Info
Jenn Klein, CFRE is the Founder of You Are A Philanthropist. She has spent the last 15 years fundraising for charities as a consultant, volunteer, and employee. She has traveled all over the world for personal, educational, and business purposes. Jenn hosts the You Are A Philanthropist podcast.
She is currently enrolled at Northeastern University to obtain a masters degree in nonprofit management with a concentration in social innovation. Her professional fundraising accomplishments include obtaining at $750,000 Kresge Challenge Grant, traveling multiple times to Asia, starting a nonprofit from scratch, and creating uniquely-designed merchandise to celebrate philanthropy.
Jenn lives outside of Boston on a lake with her husband, two young boys, and an English Bulldog named Charlie.
Connect with Jenn: LinkedIn, Instagram
Show Notes
Additional reading: Call Merriam: Redefinining “Philanthropist”
Transcript
IMPHILANTHROPIC, LLC, owns the copyright in and to all content in and transcripts of the You Are A Philanthropist podcast, with all rights reserved, including right of publicity.
Jenn Klein: Hello and welcome to You Are A Philanthropist podcast. This is Episode one and today I’m going to talk about what this podcast is all about and how I got here.
JK: I’ve been in fundraising for 15 years. I’ve worked in a variety of nonprofits, including education, poverty alleviation, and community organizing. This year, I became a certified fundraising executive. I have volunteered for many organizations, especially every other month at my food pantry, also in the arts and education, and I like to donate to my church, international poverty alleviation, and mental health. Today, I am a mom of two boys and I am a self-proclaimed philanthropist.
JK: Philanthropy means that we are lovers of mankind. I don’t believe you need to have millions of dollars to be a lover of mankind. Do you? I don’t believe that I need to give billions of dollars in order to be called a philanthropist. I think that I’m a philanthropist by giving back, in small and big ways, to individuals as well as to non-profits. I believe my volunteer work matters, I believe my donations matter, and I believe my consulting work as well as my non-profit career matter.
JK: And I know that we’re all a team. These things can’t be done alone. We need each other. And we need to help each other. One of the best parts about giving is that we feel good about giving. That’s such a blessing because it boomerangs back to us. We give and we get. And when we get, we give. It’s a cycle.
JK: I’m really proud of you and me in this year of 2020. I saw my community come together in ways I hadn’t seen them before. I saw a woman leave face masks on the steps of her door for anybody who wanted to take some. I saw somebody fundraise for a friend who had lost her job. And collectively, Americans were the most generous we’ve ever been in the history of the world in 2020. We saw a 7.6% growth in the first nine months of the year, according to the Association of Fundraising Professionals Growth and Giving Database. Importantly, 19% growth was seen in dollars raised beneath the $250 level. That means that people like you and me gave at higher rates than ever before. I’m also really proud of businesses who have joined with nonprofits in donating some of their profits. As well as having triple bottom lines, which means they include people and the planet over profit.
JK: This podcast is about empowerment. It’s about empowering you to make a difference in your community. I want you to be inspired by the people that are being interviewed as guests on this show. Some of them have founded nonprofits. Some of them have family giving goals. Some of them are nurses and teachers and nonprofit leaders. All of them are making a difference in their communities and in at least one life. Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed 100 people then feed just one.” Mother Teresa, the biggest philanthropist of all time had no money and yet made such a tremendous impact on the world. We can look to her as inspiration. We can also look to each other.
JK: I created merchandise on my website at youarephilanthropist.com/shop to empower you to feel good about where you give to your community. I want to thank you for joining me here today. I hope you’ll continue to tune in. I can’t wait to talk with you more about philanthropy. And over time, I’m hoping I’ll convince you that you can be called a philanthropist and that you have the power to change the world. Let’s do this together.
IMPHILANTHROPIC, LLC, owns the copyright in and to all content in and transcripts of the You Are A Philanthropist podcast, with all rights reserved, including right of publicity.