The Foraker Group

The Foraker Group is actively working with the National Council of Nonprofits to save the charitable giving incentive, which is at risk as part of the budget negotiations going on right now in Washington D.C. Federal tax law currently provides an itemized deduction to encourage individuals to give to charitable organizations whose missions they support. The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (the Super Committee) is looking for ways to reduce the federal budget deficit through spending cuts, entitlement reforms, and changes to the tax code. Politicians from across the political spectrum have put forward plans to address these issues, and most propose changing the charitable deduction in one way or another. Yet no one knows the true impact that any of these proposals will have on the ability of… Read more »

Today I am in Kansas City, MO at the Midwestern Youth Summit sponsored by the US Department of Education. It is designed to hear the voices of youth throughout the country on what is needed to improve education in America. The summit is held in partnership with the National Leadership Conference for Camp Fire USA, where I am proud to serve as a trustee on the national board. The youth at the summit developed nine action plans to enhance the experience of high school students and encourage them to finish school and attend college. The Kaufman Foundation and Sprint Foundation were the lead sponsors for the event, which was attended by over 150 youth from the surrounding area. The smidgen of insight today is that while many organizations work with… Read more »

You’ll never guess where I am tonight – the Philippines! Well sorta. Tonight was the 31st year of Maharlika, a celebration of the Filipino community in Anchorage. Money is raised to support scholarships and other worthy causes. The sell out crowd was dazzled by great music and dancing that rivaled Vegas! And WOW, everyone was decked out in their finest. Foraker’s own Malu Antonio from Shared Financial Services was not only involved in planning and implementing this event, she and her family and friends entertained us with their great dance moves. Tonight’s smidgen of insight is that we live in a state full of opportunity to experience culture from around the world. Let’s celebrate this diversity while we acknowledge our common humanity through such exposure. Dennis… Read more »

Organizations participating in the 2012 Pick.Click.Give. campaign can take advantage of free training sessions scheduled between now and early next year. One group of classes will help you get started. Click here to learn more about those and to register. The other sessions will provide current information on the process of the campaign and how you can better promote your involvement with it. Click here to learn more about those and to register. All classes will be held via teleconference or webinars. Come prepared with your questions. We also encourage you to share your challenges and successes as the campaign progresses…. Read more »

NOTICE: There was an error in the calculation of this year’s Permanent Fund Dividend charitable contributions. The Department of Revenue says this will affect Pick.Click.Give. totals by less than $100,000. Details are available in this press release…. Read more »

Flathead Lake Montana — October 9, 2011 While this may look like Alaska, today I am at Flathead Lake where the University of Montana conducts research on fisheries and climate change. The Montana Nonprofit Association asked us to assist them in a retreat with one of their most significant members. I was lucky enough to get to come to this beautiful part of our country, just outside of Kalispell about 65 miles south of the Canadian border. My smidgen of insight this time is how lucky we are in Alaska to live in an environment that so many people in the Lower 48 wish for. While Montana is truly beautiful and has many wilderness areas, it is still easier for people to invade their remote places than it is in… Read more »

This action alert was issued by the National Council of Nonprofits last week. Please consider if your organization should be involved…. Read more »

We are currently planning our educational program for 2012 and we want to be sure we’re offering the classes you want. We’ve prepared a very brief survey that will help us learn what classes you are interested in and when you would like to take them. As our thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, we will offer you a free two-hour class for participating in the survey. Please click here and you will go to the survey, which will take you less than five minutes to complete. Thanks…. Read more »

Nome — September 28, 2011 Locals complained that the summer of ’11 was not so nice. It was rainy and cold. But Mother Nature must have felt sorry for them since today had to be one of the nicest late September days on record here. I was in town to facilitate a Funder’s Forum for a group of grant writers from Nome and neighboring villages. These sessions are where the Denali Commission, Mental Health Trust, Alaska Housing, HUD, USDA, DCCED, and Rasmuson present their programs and connect with local communities so they will ask for funding for their priority projects. These sessions have been held for over a decade and have been presented in at least a dozen communities. They are useful for the communities and also a great way… Read more »

“Community Building for Alaska,” is a two-day workshop facilitated by Louise Van Rhyn, a passionate social entrepreneur from South Africa, on October 24-25th at the APU Campus in Anchorage. This experiential workshop will bring together community leaders, philanthropists, business leaders, and citizens from rural and urban Alaska. Share your knowledge and experience, become engaged, and participate in meaningful community building dialog. Space is limited. Click here for more information or to reserve your seat…. Read more »