Virginia Esposito, President, National Center for Family Philanthropy
Last week, the National Center for Family Philanthropy held its annual board retreat. We returned to The Pocantico Center of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund in Tarrytown, New York for the first time since our first board retreat more than 15 years ago. We spent most of our first retreat developing our values statement and refining our mission and program agenda, so it was a fitting location for the work we had to do: Re-visit issues of identity, value, communication, while making tough choices among so many wonderful opportunities. After seven months of working with a pro bono Taproot Foundation team on these very issues, the advisory group was ready to present concepts, language, and a decision-making framework to the full Board. Because I think there is value in some of our work for family giving programs, I want to share a little of the process and lessons learned.
In days of scarce resources and seemingly endless philanthropic choices, family foundations and funds can frequently feel overwhelmed by options and unsure where to best place their philanthropic bets. Many funders wisely choose a focus area for funding, and then proceed to investigate – or be approached by – any number of apparently worthy organizations to support within that field. Most frequently, the questions that are asked are ones of organizational strength and track record: which among many groups are the best?
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