Does this happen to you as well? A particular topic enters your thoughts and then you see it everywhere you turn?

Philanthropy came to my mind when I stopped at a small history museum in Southern Oregon that was established in the late 50s by an Oregon politician who wanted to help Oregonians remember their history. More on Pottsville in a moment – photographs today are from that site.

I was also wondering about the mechanisms of philanthropy last week when reading about Melinda Gates’ decision to pull out of the Gates Foundation and start moving her philanthropic investment in a different direction.

I was thinking about philanthropy when I heard that multiple Jewish organizations in Oregon cut off their charitable donations to the Oregon Food Bank when the latter called for cease fire in Gaza in a statement critical of Israeli military actions. Never mind that Hamas’ atrocities were condemned as well, and the statement had been discussed with Jewish allies prior to publication. It seems particularly poignant to think of locally increased hunger being the outcome of ideologically motivated decisions when forced starvation of a locked -in region at war has been criticized by many entities across the world.

Last but not least, a chance conversation with a woman a bit younger than myself, elegance personified and a legend in her professional field, raised a different notion of philanthropic involvement: rather than (or in addition to) writing the big checks, with or without strings attached, you quietly contribute by adding your insights and knowledge to help steer non-profits that you are passionate about in a direction that allows them to maximize their impact and develop their full potential. A true form of more or less anonymous giving back.

I had simplistic notions of charitable giving. It can be either ethically or religiously driven, in fact for us in the Jewish realm it is a mitzvah, a commandment, not a choice. (If you are interested in the religious roots of charity, here is a neat summary out of Harvard.)

Giving can be used to promote or preserve a name – think buildings across American or European campuses, sports arenas, concert halls.

It can be a means to erase shame – think of the many donors and board members who make astronomical contributions to cultural institutions like museums, who are eventually called out for where their money came from. I had written about a specific case not so long ago at the Whitney. Recently, the V&A Dundee, the National Gallery in London and the Louvre in Paris severed connections to the Sacklers, a dynasty indelibly linked to the global opioid epidemic, from which some members of the family profited via their company Purdue Pharma. The British National Portrait Gallery severed ties with BP in 2022, the end of a relationship that had lasted more than 30 years.

Consider the Tears

Reading up on the idea of philanthropy, I now learn that people categorize charity in more complex ways as well. (I’m summarizing, among others, from a source here.)

There is Philanthropic Investment  which aims to invest resources into nonprofit enterprises in order to increase their ability to deliver programmatic execution. The Philanthropic Investor, like a for-profit investor, is primarily focused on the longer term increase and improvement in programmatic execution relative to grant size. Basically, they are building the organization, rather than engaging in spontaneous charitable giving for whatever need arises in the moment.

Then there are two types of philanthropy that try to affect change systematically. One is Strategic Philanthropy  which buys up nonprofit goods and services in a way that aligns with a theory of change defined by the strategic philanthropist. This approach hopes to advance the solution that they believe is most likely to solve the problem they seek to address. The other is Social Entrepreneurism  which seeks to directly execute programs that align with a theory of change, defined by themselves. I had previously written about philanthropy that hopes to be a direct agent of change here.

Present or future need – which should be served?

Politics enter the arena of charitable giving of course not only from the side of individual donors with specific goals or groups of protesters who try to influence the flow and acceptance of charitable funds. There exist direct attempts to oversee what can be given to whom, assessing the legality of the donations. Case in point is ‘Not On Our Dime’, a recently (re)introduced bill by New York Assembly member Zohran Mamdani and endorsed by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.  The bill aims to sanction New York charities who send more than $ 60.000.000 a year towards Israeli settlement expansion, that the bill’s sponsors consider to occur in violation of international law.

Much to think about. Far easier to wander around a photographer’s candy store of agricultural machinery gently rusting itself into oblivion, among small buildings recreating villages of yore. The museum itself is only open by appointment, and the fairgrounds serve mostly locals for motorcycle swap meets, parades, fairs and the likes. We were the only living souls in the vicinity, mid-afternoon on a weekday, acres and acres to ourselves.

Pottsville’s founder, Eugene “Debbs” Potts (1909 – 2003) was by all reports quite a character, serving multiple roles, including decades as a state senator. Although named for the famous socialist Eugene W. Debs, his leanings were more centric, voting as a Democrat quite frequently with his Republican colleagues. He donated the land, gave seed money to the non-profit, and eventually contributed his gigantic collection of tools and machinery.

The highlight of my visit came when I saw a few murals by one Mark M. Jones on the sides of the buildings. Landscape scenery was lovingly depicting the wonders of our state,

a rodeo snippet was attributed to Olaf Wieghorst, a Danish-American painter who specialized in depictions of the American frontier in the vein of Frederic Remington and Charles Russell.

Then this.

My first thought was, “Is he familiar with Oskar Schlemmer?”

Then I read the signage and the referent painting was Farmers Planting Potatoes by van Gogh.

Oh, the surprises of Pottsville. Oh, the generous sharing of one’s means and/or skills for all of us to enjoy.

Long live giving.

Music today was written in 1915 to support charity for refugees. Polonia was first performed at London’s Queen’s Hall at a Polish Victims’ Relief Fund Concert in July 1915, with Elgar conducting. He dedicated the work to his friend Paderewski, a great pianist and later Prime Minister of Poland.