Etymologically, “philanthropy” means love of humankind.
According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, philanthropy means “the practice of giving time and money to help make life better for other people.”
However you define philanthropy or choose to practice it in your life, you can celebrate it this Saturday, Nov. 15 on National Philanthropy Day. This day is sponsored by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), which generates philanthropic support for a wide variety of charitable institutions.
The holiday is meant to recognize the great changes that philanthropy has brought to the world and to encourage people to work to better the lives of others. President Ronald Reagan officially proclaimed Nov. 15 as National Philanthropy Day in 1986.
Tips for Wise Giving (and How Make It Better Can Help):
According to the AFP, there are five Ps to wise giving: Passionate, Proactive, Prepare, Plan and Powerful.
Here is how Make It Better applies these five Ps to our philanthropic efforts. We would be honored to help your favorite nonprofit this way, too.
Passionate: At Make It Better, we support organizations run by people who are truly PASSIONATE about the work they do—whether they work to improve education, fight for social justice or save the environment. We believe the attitude behind an organization fuels its long-term success.
Proactive: Make It Better PROACTIVELY seeks organizations to partner with across the North Shore and the Greater Chicago Area that are working to grow their support network and spread their mission. We are always open to hearing from new nonprofits. You can connect with us through our website at makeitbetter.net or email our Philanthropy Editor, Maura Flaherty, at maura@makeitbetter.net.
Prepare: Once Make It Better decides to partner with your organization, we will PREPARE a contract called a media sponsorship agreement. This agreement allows us to learn as much information as we can about your organization’s history, mission and fundraising events and details your role as our partner.
Plan: Make It Better prefers to partner with an organization several months prior to important events or fundraisers so that we can PLAN the most effective editorial coverage around them.
Powerful: By planning which editorial coverage to use with your organization, such as placement on our Online Calendar of Events, Better Letter Sponsored Listing or in the Give Time, Things Support section of our magazine, Make It Better allows your organization to receive maximum impact and POWERFUL support from our readers and followers.
Follow Make It Better’s Annual National Philanthropy Day Celebration.
Make It Better plans to celebrate National Philanthropy Day with our 2014 Philanthropy Awards road show. We have partnered with hundreds of organizations over the last several years and helped to raise more than $3,653,706 for the nonprofits.
The best of these organizations deserve extra recognition. So our philanthropy awards will recognize eight outstanding nonprofits in the following categories: Athletics, Education-Local, Education-National, Environment, Human Services, Most Improved, Social Justice and Audience Choice.
Winners will receive editorial support, exclusive training in philanthropic best practices and a professional marketing video highlighting the organization’s mission and vision. In addition, through our new website launching next week, they will also receive cash proceeds from Shop For Good, a new section of our site where readers can purchase goods from local businesses and 10 percent of proceeds will be donated to nonprofits vetted by Make It Better.
Connect with us on social media and learn which deserving nonprofits receive our 2014 Philanthropy Awards: Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. To learn more, please contact our Philanthropy Editor, Maura Flaherty, at maura@makeitbetter.net.
