Buffett lunch gets $1.5 million bid, auction ending | Reuters

Buffett lunch gets $1.5 million bid, auction ending | Reuters: "A bidder is offering to pay $1,500,100 for a steak lunch with the billionaire investor Warren Buffett, driving the top bid more than $500,000 higher in seven minutes as the annual charity auction on eBay Inc's (EBAY.O) website heads into the homestretch."

Young professionals urged to join philanthropic cause | pnj.com | Pensacola News Journal

Young professionals urged to join philanthropic cause | pnj.com | Pensacola News Journal: "The key message at the second annual Board Works was that any young professional can get involved in philanthropy in the Pensacola area. Specifically, the event aimed at developing young professionals' interest in serving as a board member for a nonprofit organization."

Portland Museum of Art Receives Major Gift | ConteArt.com-Fine art News

Portland Museum of Art Receives Major Gift | ConteArt.com-Fine art News: "PORTLAND, ME.- The Portland Museum of Art announced that it has received a major gift of approximately $3 million from the family of Emily Eaton Moore, a trustee and longtime supporter of the Museum, who passed away in March."

7 Dallas-area nonprofits pitch ideas to 200 potential donors | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Dallas Business News

7 Dallas-area nonprofits pitch ideas to 200 potential donors | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Dallas Business News: "They were three of the seven North Texas nonprofit leaders who each had 10 minutes to pitch their group to about 200 potential donors, including foundations and corporate philanthropists. It was part of Dallas Social Venture Partners' social innovation forum Thursday at Union Station.

Such 'elevator pitches' usually are reserved for the for-profit venture capital world. Entrepreneurs typically get a couple of minutes to pitc"

Ledger-Dispatch.com | United Way rolls out annual toilet paper drive to help nonprofits offset costs

Ledger-Dispatch.com | United Way rolls out annual toilet paper drive to help nonprofits offset costs: "United Way California Capital Region is asking the community to participate in its second annual Live United Toilet Paper Drive, sponsored by AT&T, on June 18, to help offset this cost. Last year's drive raised 35,000 rolls of toilet paper, and this year's goal is 50,000."

The Nonprofit Quarterly | The Nonprofit Quarterly | Unraveling Development: How’s Your Organization’s Culture of Philanthropy?

The Nonprofit Quarterly | The Nonprofit Quarterly | Unraveling Development: How’s Your Organization’s Culture of Philanthropy?: "esearch shows that the culture inside an organization dramatically impacts its effectiveness. “Culture” means the attitudes, beliefs, customs, practices, and social behaviors that characterize a group of people. So your organizational culture means all that.

Organizational culture can be good or bad—or just mediocre. Probably, we’ve all worked in a toxic organization at one time or another. Or watched a toxic organizational culture from afar, as far away as possible!"

Philanthropy’s Double Dip: Giving Numbers Tumble for Second Straight Year | onPhilanthropy

Philanthropy’s Double Dip: Giving Numbers Tumble for Second Straight Year | onPhilanthropy: "Giving in the U.S. dropped for the second straight year in 2009, reflecting the depth of the American recession, and a slight drop in individual giving but a steep decline in foundation philanthropy. The annual numbers from the Giving USA Foundation, which has measured U.S. philanthropy since 1956, revealed on the second two-year decline in giving since the statistics have been gathered and the second largest single year drop since the oil embargo of the mid-1970s."

Roper St. Francis Foundation recipient of largest philanthropic donation to date | TheDigitel Charleston

Roper St. Francis Foundation recipient of largest philanthropic donation to date | TheDigitel Charleston: "The gift is the single largest philanthropic donation in the non-profit healthcare system’s history. The money will be put toward enhancing patient care, acquiring state of the art medical technology and supporting facility enhancements and improvements at Roper Hospital. Here's more from the press release:"

Guest Voices: Tax the wealthy and hurt charities - On Faith at washingtonpost.com

Guest Voices: Tax the wealthy and hurt charities - On Faith at washingtonpost.com: "this comes on the heels of two years of decreased charitable donations. According to the Center on Philanthropy, donations decreased by 2.7 percent in 2008 and 2.3 percent in 2009 ... a slide in donations of nearly $12 billion. What's worse, a more recent study by Boston College's Center on Wealth and Philanthropy estimated that giving dropped in 2009 alone by as much as 4.9 percent, or around $10 billion."

Watertown Daily Times | Charitable giving

Watertown Daily Times | Charitable giving: "Recession-hit Americans are finding it hard to support their favorite charity. The Giving USA Foundation in its annual report said that donations fell by 3.6 percent last year, the largest drop in 26 years."

John Kelly - 6,244 address labels and counting for woman wooed by charities

John Kelly - 6,244 address labels and counting for woman wooed by charities: "But her most interesting record is something Carol jots down every day soon after her letter carrier has visited. It is a painstaking accounting of all the free stuff she gets in the mail. The bounty she receives from charities is a way to guilt her into donating to their cause. Carol started keeping track of it in 1998 and now possesses a meticulously catalogued record of the excesses of the U.S. direct mail industry."

Exempt Magazine

Exempt Magazine: "What's The CEO Job Worth To The Organization?

There might be a hidden source of high value in your organization. This source offers a generous return on relatively little investment. It requires little oversight to deliver this value, just a sufficient amount of support. The source is an ordinary human being who at the moment might be sitting in a comfortable black chair that swivels and tilts as desired. A telephone is nearby, as is a packed calendar. The source is well known in the organization, and it has a common title. It might even be you.

The value is your CEO Premium."

Eyes on the prize: The state of prize philanthropy in Canada

Eyes on the prize: The state of prize philanthropy in Canada: "Who doesn't love winning a prize? Think of a time you went to a carnival or event where prizes were abundant and all you had to do was outsmart or out-skill the challenge before you to get the coveted item being offered.

The same principle applies to the emerging phenomenon of Prize Philanthropy, with one major exception: the prize being offered — usually in the form of a huge monetary payout — is not there solely as its own reward. Rather, it's there to stimulate participants to invent or discover new tools, medicines, technology, and theories on how to better society at large."

Red Cross and URDB Break Record for Most SMS Donations in One Room

Red Cross and URDB Break Record for Most SMS Donations in One Room: "The Universal Record Database — a rad online resource that allows the Average Joe to make and break a myriad of records online — succeeded in breaking the record for most online donations made by text message in one room today — all with the help of the attendees of the Mashable Media Summit."

Direct Mail in a Digital World - Resource Center - AFP

Direct Mail in a Digital World - Resource Center - AFP: "By Jonathon Grapsas

(June 8, 2010) It's easy to get caught up in the digital hype. We're now used to hearing terms like click through's and impressions as frequently as response rates and average gifts.

Surely there's enough data now to finally forego four page letters and move across completely to the online space. Perhaps it's time to acknowledge the direct mail doomsayers are right after all."

massnonprofit.org ::

massnonprofit.org ::: "The rules governing the charitable income tax deduction of donations, ticket sales, and auction purchases at charity events are surprisingly complex. Following are answers to questions often asked by donors and charitable organizations."

Six Views of Project-Management Software

While we are working with Blogger to get our Nonprofit Blog reinstated we will be posting a few Nonprofit Tech stories here in Recent News.

Six Views of Project-Management Software: "Six Views of Project-Management Software
What applications – and kinds of applications – can help you manage projects?



By: Laura S. Quinn

May 21, 2010
Idealware logo

This article is courtesy of Idealware, which provides candid information to help nonprofits choose effective software. For more articles and reviews, go to www.idealware.org.

So you need software to help with project management. Great! But wait... What do you mean by project management? Do you need to map out project plans and schedules? Collaborate on documents? Track tasks? Time? Documents? Issues?"

The NonProfit Times - The Leading Business Publication For Nonprofit Management

The NonProfit Times - The Leading Business Publication For Nonprofit Management: "Camera Phone Fundraising Taps Younger Donors

By Kate Rogers

Understanding the nature of generational differences is what will open the doors for new methods of fundraising. According to John Baguley, CEO of the International Fundraising Consultancy in London, for Gen Y, technology is just a part of life -- as natural and necessary as eating and sleeping.

“Gen Y was born with a cell phone attached to their ear and mouth,” Baguley said. “But we have to wait for Gen X and Gen Y to have the wealth to give enough to make a difference.”"

Summer series focuses on civil society and nonprofits (June 7, 2010)

Summer series focuses on civil society and nonprofits (June 7, 2010): "The University of Wisconsin Center for Nonprofits will present 'Building Civil Society Through the Nonprofit Sector,' a four-week 'Communiversity — Summer Forum' of eight sessions between Tuesday, June 15 through Thursday, July 8."

Wine and Dine With Warren Buffett For a Cool $25K | NBC New York

Wine and Dine With Warren Buffett For a Cool $25K | NBC New York: "From June 6th to 11th, interested parties can bid online to have a meal with the legendary investor. The lunch will be held, as it has for the past few years, at the Smith and Wollensky steakhouse on 49th and 3rd. The lucky winner gets to bring seven friends to pow-wow with the third-richest man in the world. Before you fork over your cash, don't expect the meat to be cheap -- the minimum asking bid on eBay is $25,000. Plus, all bidders must be pre-qualified."

Tabby Biddle: Women and Philanthropy

Tabby Biddle: Women and Philanthropy: "Here's a myth for you: men donate more money to charity than women. Perhaps this myth stays alive because most people don't think of women as high-activity donors. But that's not true. Certainly women give of their time and skills to help worthy causes, but now they are bringing money too."

Latino Gala Brings San Juan to New Haven | New Haven Independent

Latino Gala Brings San Juan to New Haven | New Haven Independent: "t was billed as “Noche Bohemia,” a step back in time to the romantic San Juan, Puerto Rico of the 1950s. It was also a philanthropic step forward for John and Frances Padilla (pictured above) and their friends at the Progresso Latino Fund."

Stalled state budget crunching local nonprofits - NYPOST.com

Stalled state budget crunching local nonprofits - NYPOST.com: "The budget stalemate in Albany is causing a crisis locally for nonprofits already scrambling to stay afloat.

Take Queens Community House. With the foreclosure crisis putting more people out on the street, the Forest Hills-based nonprofit is busier than ever helping vulnerable tenants and indebted homeowners."

St. Louis universities raise nearly $300 million despite down economy - St. Louis Business Journal

St. Louis universities raise nearly $300 million despite down economy - St. Louis Business Journal

New donors keep Dallas' 'I Have a Dream' Foundation alive | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Latest News

New donors keep Dallas' 'I Have a Dream' Foundation alive | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Latest News: "The 'I Have a Dream' Foundation almost died in February when its chief benefactor pulled his financial support for the after-school program at the massive Cedar Springs Place public housing complex.

But a new roster of donors, large and small, stepped forward to make sure the 50-plus 'dreamers' still have a safe place to go after school and during the summer break."

The NonProfit Times - "Nonprofit Salary Caps Sought By NJ

The NonProfit Times - The Leading Business Publication For Nonprofit Management: "Nonprofit Salary Caps Sought By NJ

By Kate Rogers

In a controversial attempt to cut corners, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has proposed a cap on how much the state is willing to pay toward CEO salaries and employee benefits for nonprofit social service agencies with which the state contracts."

Gordon Campbell: Responding to the Challenge of Strengthening Nonprofit Boards

Gordon Campbell: Responding to the Challenge of Strengthening Nonprofit Boards: "A nonprofit board of directors can make or break an organization, particularly in times of economic stress or at organizational transition points. Even during 'normal' periods, the board is ultimately responsible for an organization's financial stewardship, level of transparency, accountability and risk management, overall mission, strategic direction, and performance."