Hello fellow Giving Institute members!
As we enter into August and our 2025-26 Giving Institute year, it is my joy and privilege to step into the GI Chair role for the coming year. It was such an honour to celebrate Brenda Asare in July for her committed, inspiring leadership as Chair over the past two years, and we once again express our huge thanks to Brenda for all she has done. (Brenda, I hope you are finding an opportunity to wear your new custom hockey jersey around Chicago this summer!)
I know we are all still basking in the (figurative and actual) glow we felt from being together in sunny San Diego for our 2025 Summer Symposium last month. It was an incredible few days together of networking, learning, camaraderie…and flight simulator rides for some. It takes the significant effort of many to pull this off, and I want to once again thank Symposium co-chairs Richard Tollefson, Kate Hughes, Tim Sarrantonio and their committee for their great work! I was very pleased to see the overall evaluation rating of 4.4, right between ‘very good’ and ‘excellent’. Of course, in true Giving Institute fashion where we are always focused on continual improvement, we were equally appreciative of the thoughtful feedback provided by members for how to make future Symposiums even better. Planning will begin soon for the 2026 Symposium, stay tuned for opportunities to be involved! Meanwhile, materials from the Symposium are currently being added to our members only page at https://members.givinginstitute.org/page/PastSummerSymposium.
As we look ahead, our theme for the coming year is captured by two words: Momentum. Together. It is exciting to see the incredible momentum we have as a Giving Institute across so many areas: thoughtful education programming, record new member numbers, fresh GI positioning via our new website, enhanced internal processes with MCI, strongest-ever GUSA sales, inspiring plans around GI’s role in helping to restore generosity…the list goes on. And all of this is possible because of our collaboration together as members. It has always been true that ‘the more you put in, the more you get out’ of being part of the Giving Institute, and our success is due to so many members embracing this approach together.
Along with our incoming GI Executive – Deb Taft (1st Vice Chair), Lee Ernst (2nd Vice Chair), Allison Gannon (Treasurer) and Leya Simmons (Secretary) – our Committee Chairs, and our nearly 80 member firms, I look forward to maintaining (accelerating!) our momentum together over the coming year. Onwards and upwards!
Regards,
PK
