It was a very good year.
And my giving circle, New Generation of African American Philanthropists, had the good fortune of serving up heaps of good stuff. See for yourself here.
Circle members at a monthly meeting (with requisite food in abundance). And while not the best photography, one of the greatest pictures ever!
Happy New Year! Make 2014 a good year, too.
Related stories
Year-end Message from New Generation of African American Philanthropists, Dec 2012 – valaida.com
With a roomful of 60 people to generate ideas and momentum, seven years ago today, 17 of us embarked on what was the founding of the giving circle New Generation of African American Philanthropists, also known as, NGAAP-Charlotte.
A great deal has occurred since our first gathering on June 8, 2006 at The Wadsworth Estate. The giving circle has ten additional members and we expect to add even more. Through grants, community service, civic engagement and leadership, NGAAP-Charlotte has invested close to $200,000 to nonprofits and the broader community to help create the change we wish to see. Our mission is: To promote philanthropy—the giving of time, talent and treasure—among African Americans in the Charlotte region, with the goal of enhancing the quality of life within our communities.
Below are members of NGAAP-Charlotte since 2006. The asterisks (*) indicate the 17 founding members.
Men Tchaas Ari*
Renee L. Bradford*
Heather Carty Ward*
Deborah Charles*
Rashad Davis*
Tonya Edwards
Dawn Fisher
Ed Franklin
Diatra Fullwood*
Valaida Fullwood*
Melandee Jones
Ohmar Land*
Eric Law*
Tameka Lester*
Clarence Lyons
Patricia Martelly*
Fontella McKyer*
Jennifer Miles
Vernetta Mitchell*
Cathy Peterson*
Meka Sales
Jenene Seymour*
Jehan Shamsid-Deen*
Idris Talib
Annette Taylor*
Charles W. Thomas, Jr.
Keysha Walker
Members of NGAAP-Charlotte | Photograph by Charles W. Thomas, Jr.
Here’s your invitation!
We’re Bringing ‘Giving Back’ at Poor Richard’s Book Shoppe is a free and family-friendly gathering, centered on Black Philanthropy. The evening of the 23rd will include:
Poor Richard’s, a family-operated business in uptown Charlotte, is a full-service, independent bookstore and multi-cultural venue.
New Generation of African American Philanthropists (NGAAP-Charlotte), a CIN giving circle, comprises member-donors who pursue a mission “to promote philanthropy—the giving of time, talent and treasure—among African Americans in the Charlotte region, with the goal of enhancing the quality of life within our communities.”
We’re aiming to do for philanthropy what Justin does for sexy. Well…we’re certainly trying.
— VF
In November 2011, right after the release of Giving Back and during filming for the book’s trailer [ philanthropy reframed ], we created this 3-minute piece….I call it my micro biopic.
After a year, we finally carved out time to complete this short film and just posted it to YouTube yesterday. Watch. Enjoy. Share.
Photo by Valaida Fullwood
A perfect gift book, Giving Back offers wells of inspiration for generous souls and lovers of photography, culture, and humanity. Every book purchased keeps giving, since proceeds benefit the philanthropic causes of NGAAP-Charlotte—and since the stories themselves inspire readers to give.
You can buy it here.
Today our book trailer [ philanthropy reframed ] reached 1000 views on YouTube!
Watch it (again) and share it to hear a new voice, to feel a new vibe, to experience a new video and to gain a new view on philanthropy. #getyourgiveon
Thankful 365: A Year-End Message from New Generation of African American Philanthropists
Members of NGAAP-Charlotte | Photograph by Charles W. Thomas, Jr.
Without people like you, this year’s accomplishments would simply not have been possible. So we have something to say. In fact, we believe it cannot be said enough.
T H A N K Y O U !
You’re part of an extended circle who shares our passion for giving back. By investing our social capital, financial capital and intellectual capital, collectively, we are igniting a movement of conscientious philanthropy by empowering a generation to recognize its power and responsibility to give back.
High points from New Generation of African American Philanthropists over the last 12 months include:
We’re excited about how our giving circle is growing and serving and how the Giving Back Project is unfolding. We look forward to deepening our impact and engaging givers in new ways. You are invited to be a part of this work in 2013.
Happy Holidays!
New Generation of African American Philanthropists
It’s a treat to engage in a Giving Back book talk in Charlotte, my home city. Generous support from Snyder’s-Lance, Inc. and its African American Associate Network as hosts of the event is appreciated.
“To whom much is given much is expected. This biblical passage from the Gospel of Luke conveys a belief that I and many of my African American family and friends hold dear. Many of us recall a defining moment or childhood lessons that influence our philanthropic giving.”
I’ve opened with these lines from Giving Back to say thanks to many of the people who gave their time, talent and treasure during the development of the book. The word cloud below is yet another way of giving props….as was done here too.
Charles W. Thomas Jr., photographer
New voices. New vibe. New video. New view on philanthropy.
Watch our new 2.5-minute video trailer for the Giving Back Project and its centerpiece publication, Giving Back. The project is a civic engagement campaign comprising artful stories and photography that reframe portraits of philanthropy.
For too long, philanthropy has been narrowly defined by great wealth and large monetary gifts. Prevailing stories about giving often exclude generous everyday people and feed false notions about who can give and make a difference. Changing the world requires us to rethink and reframe philanthropy.
The Giving Back Project brings new content and fresh approaches to include a wider slice of society in philanthropy. Through our publications, multimedia presentations and interactive community forums, we lift up inspiring stories of everyday givers.
No matter the medium, our stories promote the belief that we all can and should give back, no matter our age or our circumstances. We celebrate generous gifts of time, talent and treasure and venture to reclaim the root meaning of philanthropy, love of humanity.
The Giving Back Project aims to ignite a movement of conscientious philanthropy by empowering a generation to recognize its power and responsibility to give back.
Join us…and get your give on!
valaida 