Charitable giving is a part of many families’ holiday traditions, and there are many organizations that can use your support. Giving Tuesday is an initiative that aims to make generosity a trend each holiday season. This organization encourages individuals and organizations to make charitable donations each year on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving.
This year, it is more important than ever to use your voice and your power to make a positive change in the world. If you are able to make a donation to an organization or even volunteer your time or skills, there has never a better time to make an impact. Below are three organizations that Robert F. Smith has supported for a long time.. Smith’s philanthropic work includes sponsorship of the arts, educational institutions, community programs and several cancer research organizations, among many others.
Help Fund Music Education with the Sphinx Organization
The Sphinx Organization believes access to the arts can transform lives. Sphinx advocates for diversity in the arts and helps children from underprivileged backgrounds and minorities get access to classical music education and performance arts training. Many of Robert F. Smith’s philanthropic works involve improving access to music education in schools, through his work as founding director and President of the Fund II Foundation, which is helping to inspire big dreams, just like the Sphinx Organization. In the more than 20 years that Sphinx has been in existence, it has promoted the study of classical music to more than 100,000 children of color and now offers music education programs, performing arts opportunities and offers prizes and scholarships for musicians across 13 countries. The organization currently funds several scholarships for young musicians, including the Music Assistance Fund, which helps students attend music education programs offered during the summers and a “College Bound” program that provides students with undergraduate scholarships to further pursue their passion for music. Sphinx also funds an alumni instrument fund, which helps Sphinx Competition alumni afford new instruments.
To learn more about Sphinx, visit their website.
Create Opportunities for Children with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America
The Boys and Girls Clubs of America is a nationwide organization that provides after school, weekend and summer activities for children and teens that are offered in a safe, supervised environment. The organization’s mission is to give children access to opportunities that they may not have otherwise, and to “to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.” Smith has long been an advocate of educational opportunities and safe environments that support the bodies and minds of children. He serves as a Trustee of the Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco. Clubs offer the entire community access to swim lessons, summer camps, educational programs, after school care and the ability to socialize with other children and young adults in a positive environment.
The Boys and Girls Clubs have an ongoing partnership with Giving Tuesday. You can learn more about what they have planned for this year’s celebration of charitable giving and how you can help support their efforts online.
Get Closer to Curing Breast Cancer with the Susan G. Komen Foundation
The Susan G. Komen Foundation is an organization whose mission is to “save lives by meeting the most critical needs in our communities and investing in breakthrough research to prevent and cure breast cancer.” Because one out of every eight women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetimes, and African American women are 40 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than caucasian women, the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s work is critical for female health throughout women’s lifetimes. The foundation has worked to reduce the mortality rate of breast cancer by 40% in the years between 1989 and 2016, but its work is far from over. In 2016, Smith announced a $27 million grant via the Fund II Foundation to help create the African American Health Equity Initiative with the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The Initiative provides education and has also set a goal of reducing the disparities in breast cancer care and treatment in the African American community by 25% in the next 5 years. Komen plans to continue its research into the causes and cures of breast cancer, continue its educational outreach programs, and will soon surpass more than $1 billion in total donations since its inception in 1982.
Many local chapters of the Susan G. Komen Foundation have partnered with Giving Tuesday in the past. You can connect with your city or region’s chapter to get involved locally and get more information about supporting the foundation.
Learn about what your favorite charities are doing on Giving Tuesday which this year takes place on December 1, 2020.
