“Set aside a quiet time, a quiet place and perhaps some good music and just think — let your mind wander. Some of my best insights come from this far too infrequent habit.”

Over the past 25 years, Naomi Eisenberger has provided management guidance and support to hundreds of individuals and nonprofits, to help them grow their great work, successfully build their infrastructure and increase their donor base. As the Managing Director of the Ziv Tzedakah Fund for more than 10 years, she was instrumental in working closely with its founder to guide its expansion and growth. In 2008, she co-founded and now serves as the Executive Director of the Good People Fund where, in addition to providing financial support, she also mentors Good People who have found creative ways to help those in need. She identifies visionaries doing great work on a personal scale and connects them with donors seeking meaningful ways to help those in need, with gifts both large and small. In keeping with a philosophy that the majority of donor dollars should be allocated towards programs, the Good People Fund itself maintains a lean operating budget to ensure a large percentage of donations are directed to grantees. The Good People Fund has been a GuideStar Exchange Gold Participant for several years.

Where did the idea for Good People Fund come from?

Prior to 2008, I had been very involved in Danny Siegel’s Ziv Tzedakah Fund where I served as Managing Director for more than ten years. When he decided to retire and opted to close the Fund I, and several others felt that there was still a critical need for the type of giving opportunities and philosophy that that organization represented. The Good People Fund was founded to support small grassroots organizations (many volunteer-run) engaged in repairing the world. At the center of each program is a visionary or Good People who have chosen to dedicate themselves to fixing some societal issue. Each of them can be considered an entrepreneur in their own way. For nearly 5 years I was the Fund’s only full-time employee and my salary (and most of our other overhead) was and is still paid by designated gifts, thus ensuring that donors’ gifts are used to help people in need with very little diverted for administrative overhead.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

Because we do so much work in Israel, a seven hour time difference from the East Coast, my day starts very early. The telephone is both my best friend and my worst enemy. It is a time sucker, but I find that the numerous conversations I have with our grantees, mentoring and coaching them, is when my creativity really kicks in. Telling the stories of our Good People to prospective donors, writing in my blog or producing other written materials are energizing activities that make the day fly by.

How do you bring ideas to life?

I have a unique set of skills I’ve developed throughout my working life which I have brought to the 25 years of interaction with small non-profits. While I was professionally trained to be a high school U.S. history teacher, I spent only a few years in that role before becoming a mom. It was then that my entrepreneurial instincts kicked in as I remained at home to raise two kids. To earn money and also satisfy that creative streak I worked as a plant doctor, used my love of cooking as a caterer, my needlework skills to build a needlepoint business during the height of that particular craze and revived a tired family business selling men’s and boys’ clothing. The grantees I work with all have unique problems and situations that need to be resolved. My business experience coupled with my creativity and love of networking allows me to offer them concrete advice on how best they can develop their work and operate with efficiency and transparency. For most of the programs we work with there is a very strong personal relationship, and we’re with them through the good times and the rough days as well. Our wish is that every program we work with outgrows us and that they can flourish without our funds and support.

What’s one trend that really excites you?

Crowdfunding has introduced the concept of giving to a much wider audience; no longer is it only people of considerable wealth who can have an impact. Modest sums of money matter which happens to be a critical piece of our philosophy–small actions, huge impacts .

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

Connecting people is a practice I do regularly. I am always thinking how can Person A help Person B? How can they help each other?

What was the worst job you ever had and what did you learn from it?

At one point in my career I worked part-time for a large institutional non-profit. The bureaucracy, the politics, the inability to work creatively were stifling! I knew then that I would always have to “do my own thing” if I was to survive in the work world.

If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

I would not recommend launching any new organization that relies on fundraising, at the same time a national financial crisis erupts!. We were all stunned by the events that unfolded in 2008 with the implosion of Lehman Brothers and Bernie Madoff’s extraordinary fraud. The names still elicit thoughts of a really bad movie from years ago. Those were challenging days to try to solicit donations.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

Set aside a quiet time, a quiet place and perhaps some good music and just think — let your mind wander. Some of my best insights come from this far too infrequent habit.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

Please explain how. The single most effective way to bring donors to our work is to tell stories about the inspiring visionaries we work with. People can relate to that. When I can show a donor exactly how their gift will change a life I almost always succeed in gaining their support.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

If we consider starting a non-profit an actual business, I would suggest that others begin an organization similar to ours–one that actively seeks Good People doing great work and enlist donors to help them get going. There are untold social needs going unmet today, it doesn’t always have to be a large organization that tackles the problem. Follow your passion.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

Running a non-profit organization that helps people in various ways exposes me daily to critical needs that could change a person’s life but for the lack of funds. Recently, a case came to us regarding an elderly woman, living an isolated life in poor health, a sparsely furnished home and minimal income. Her days are spent on a couch watching TV, as getting out of her city apartment is difficult. When I heard that the prospect of having an “easy chair” in which to sit each day brought tears to her eyes I knew that my $100, along with help from others, was money well spent and reminded me once again how modest sums of money can change lives.

What software and web services do you use? What do you love about them?

While I often feel like cursing its very existence I would have to say that Salesforce is probably the most helpful tool I use. It allows me to record my conversations with grantees, donors and others and serves as a reminder of what was said/promised. With days as hectic as mine, this is an important tool.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

Though read years ago, I have never forgotten the messages transmitted by Tracy Kidder in the book, Mountains Beyond Mountains. Kidder focuses on the inspiring work of Dr. Paul Farmer who uses his medical expertise and humanity to help heal people in remote places and reminds me not only that one person can indeed change the world.but that we all have within us the talents and creativity to do the same in other ways.

What people have influenced your thinking and might be of interest to others?

I suspect that because I am at a certain age the writings of Dr. Atul Gwande, particularly Being Mortal, resonate deeply for me. I have learned through the very inspiring work that I do just how to have a good life. I believe that it is just as important for us to have a good “end” as well–to leave this earth in a humane, meaningful and thoughtful way. Dr. Bill Thomas has served as an inspiration to me as well. A Harvard-educated geriatrician, Bill has helped change society’s approach to how people live out their later years. And, the antidote to all of this focus on death and aging is no doubt the NY Times’ satirist, Gail Collins. She is the one I go to when I want to laugh about the craziness that we call politics in this country today; she puts it all in perspective and that is a blessing.

Connect:

http:// www.goodpeoplefund.org
Good People Fund on Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/TheGoodPeopleFund
Good People Fund on Twitter: @goodpeoplefund
Naomi Eisenberger on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/pub/naomi-eisenberger/8/721/a33

https://ideamensch.com/naomi-eisenberger/

Providing dignity one bar of soap at a time _ www.thejewishadvocate

When it comes to helping underprivileged people, food and clothing are the items that usually come to mind. Hygiene products like toothpaste, soap, and shampoo, are almost as important, but often are forgotten in charitable giving.

Jeff Feingold, a Weston resident, set out to address this unmet need with his nonprofit Hope and Comfort, Inc. Feingold, who is Jewish, came up with the idea in 2010, when his daughter Grace turned two, and he and his wife Loren decided to ask for donations to the children’s charity, Cradles to Crayons, in lieu of gifts. Feingold and his family are members of Temple Shir Tikva in Wayland. He said the Jewish value of tzedakah (charity) helped shape who he is and his desire to help out those in need. “We are lucky, our kids are lucky; they have many things others may not have,” said Feingold, who also has a nine­year­old son, Kenny. “We thought, ‘How many more presents could they possibly need?’”

In addition to toys and clothing, guests turned up at Grace’s birthday party with soap, shampoo, baby wipes, and other toiletries. Soon after, Feingold got a call from a social worker, who thanked him for the contribution and told him about the great need for hygiene items in poor communities.

Children and teens with no access to hygiene products are at risk for bullying, are often too embarrassed to go to school and engage in social activities, and end up suffering in isolation. “Positive feelings towards oneself can be difficult to achieve without the ability to look or feel clean. Think about how you feel after a hot shower or after you brush your teeth,” Feingold wrote on his website, hopeandcomfort.org. The organization’s tagline is “Providing dignity one bar of soap at a time.”

Soon after the birthday party, Feingold began donating more toiletries to various organizations in Boston. His first big donation came later that same year, when he gave 250 tubes of toothpaste to Jewish Family & Children’s Service ( JF&CS). The following year, in 2011, Hope and Comfort received its 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. The organization has been growing steadily since, hitting a milestone of 70,000 donated items and moving from Feingold’s garage to a storage space in Newton at the end of last year.

For Feingold, his nonprofit is a family endeavor. Grace and Kenny help out with packing and sorting items at the storage facility. “As we’ve gotten bigger and began to help more people, I think they have an appreciation for what we’re trying to do,” Feingold said.

From his synagogue’s rabbi, Neal Gold, Feingold found out about the Good People Fund (GPF), a Jewish philanthropy which funds various organizations across the United States and Israel. In addition to a financial contribution, GPF also provides guidance and networking opportunities. Hope and Comfort received an opening grant of $7,500 from GPF, while relying on individual donations for the rest of its $100,000 annual budget. Feingold receives at least one request a day for toiletries through his online request form from individuals, shelters, schools, and charities. “Items like soap, shampoo, toothpaste, and deodorant are so basic and they’re often overlooked by the general public,” Feingold said. Personal care products are not covered by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), leaving many people who live below the poverty line having to choose between food and soap and toothpaste.

Hope and Comfort distributes toiletries through two programs: Stock the Shelves brings about 1000 of these items each month to seven food pantries in and around Boston, including JF&CS’ Family Table; while Soap for Hope, in partnership with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston, focuses exclusively on children’s organizations and schools. The hygiene kits given out by the Soap for Hope program are also used in health and wellness classes in Boston Public Schools to teach the importance of hygiene.

Feingold first began collecting toiletries by buying them himself and receiving donations from volunteers. Now that his nonprofit has gained momentum, most of the toiletries are donated by manufacturers and retailers, and with the help of charity drives in schools.

Feingold, who earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and works full time at Fidelity Investments, runs Hope and Comfort in his spare time. He hired his first full time employee, Julie Williams, a year ago. Williams has an MBA from Babson College and serves as the managing director of the nonprofit. Hope and Comfort is now getting ready to hire two part­time employees to write grants and manage marketing.

In addition to giving out toiletries to various organizations, Feingold conducts surveys to collect data from these organizations to understand why and where the need for toiletries exists and how these items are being used, in order to supply the right ones.

His goal is to give away 1 million products in the next five years. In order to achieve this goal, Feingold wants to expand deliveries to more food pantries and children’s organizations. He also hopes to partner with other organizations, like Dress for Success, which provides clothing for job interviews to low­income women. “The demand is farreaching and endless” he said.

Providing dignity one bar of soap at a time _ www.thejewishadvocate

The Interfaith Food Pantry of the Oranges (IFPO), a local organization providing supplemental and emergency food to low-income residents in Orange and East Orange, is the recent recipient of a challenge grant.  The grant was given by the Good People Fund, a township-based organization which offers financial support and mentorship to small, effective initiatives dedicated to repairing the world.

IFPO is a joint effort of four religious institutions: Christ Church and Congregation B’nai Jeshurun in the township, and Congregation Beth El and Temple Sharey Tefilo-Israel in South Orange. IFPO operates out of the Church of the Epiphany  in Orange.

“The IFPO is a great example of not only interfaith cooperation but also neighboring communities stepping up to offer help where it is needed,” says Naomi Eisenberger, executive director of the Good People Fund.

IFPO’s board members are active volunteers in the organization, arranging volunteer schedules, stocking the pantry, coordinating deliveries and anything else needed to insure that the operation runs smoothly.

“The IFPO has been helping families for nearly 20 years with food assistance in a dignified and respectful way,” explains Jodi Cooperman, a member of Congregation B’nai Jeshurun and treasurer of IFPO. “We are very happy to be connected with the Good People Fund and the network of grantees they have built.”

Supported by food drives and monetary donations from member congregations, businesses and private individuals as well as other organizations, IFPO exemplifies how an organization can use its creative vision to help meet basic human needs, while operating with very low overhead and generating inspiring results.

InterfaithFoodPantry.Item

There is only one, blinking traffic light in McRoberts, a small mining community in southeastern Kentucky.

The nearest supermarket is 25 miles away and the median income is $18,333. The once thriving 5.4 square-mile town, home to nearly 3,000 mining jobs, was devastated in 1998 when an energy company began blasting away mountaintops in the area.

Mining jobs disappeared and the small dot on Kentucky’s border shrunk even more.

Township resident Naomi Eisenberger first saw the poverty in the once vibrant community when she visited in 2010 with Rabbi Steven Bayer, of Congregation B’nai Israel, coming away filled with despair at what time and progress wrought.

The two will return to McRoberts for the fifth consecutive year from Sunday, June 7, through Friday, June 10.

“Urban poverty I know, but rural poverty is a very different thing,” said Eisenberger, the founding executive director of the Good People Fund (GPF). The nonprofit organization provides financial support, guidance and mentoring to charitable activities of modest proportions undertaken by people acting singly or in small groups, according to the GPF website.

“I’ve lived in suburbia all my life, so this was an environment I’d never been exposed to,” she added. “Here, there are resources all over the place, but McRoberts is so isolated.”

Eisenberger and Bayer will be joined by Millburn volunteers Henry and Roslyn Brendzel, and Lara and Jesse Moehlmanl. The group is partnering with the Redistribution Center of Colorado, which brings unused retail merchandise to struggling families in America.

Though GPF volunteers have returned annually to McRoberts for five years, Eisenberger said it took close to three years to establish a trusting relationship.

“I think there was a natural suspicion that we were sort of going to drop in and out,” Eisenberger said. “Over time, they saw we were really committed and the community itself came to understand we were serious about wanting to be part of their lives.”

The first GPF-sponsored program in McRoberts was implemented in 2010 through an organization called Family to Family, designed to help people living in poverty in rural communities.

GPF and Family to Family teamed up to create “Food for Backpacks,” after the principal of McRoberts’ elementary school reached out to Family to Family for help feeding her students on the weekends.

According to the census, more than 90 percent of McRoberts’ children qualify for free or reduced lunch, and because many students in the elementary school rely on the school’s breakfast and lunch program, Eisenberger said few children are properly nourished on weekends.

And so, every Friday afternoon, the children picked up a bag filled with food for the weekends. Eisenberger said the program provided the children with a year’s-worth of supplies and once the year was up, the principal again reached out to Family to Family requesting another year of the program. Food for Backpacks has been in place at the McRoberts elementary school ever since.

Despite the commitment of GPF and other independent organizations to McRoberts, Eisenberger said there has been insignificant advancements in the Appalachian city.

“There are so many things going against the tide which makes it an area resistant to any improvement,” said Eisenberger, who listed physical isolation and widespread drug abuse among many hindrances from development. School is closed down for weeks at a time during the rougher winters, she added, because there is no way to clear the unpaved roads for the school busses.

The people, however, are “warm, humble and appreciative,” Eisenberger said, which is why she will return to McRoberts again and again, so long as the one traffic light blinks.

McRoberts – Non-Profit News – NorthJersey

Notable new grants compiled by The Chronicle:

Grainger Foundation

The foundation awarded $20 million to Chicago’s Field Museum to create new science learning programs and support for research technologies. The grant supports the museum’s $250-million campaign, which has also received several major gifts.

Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust

The foundation awarded a $17.5 million grant over three years to the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America to develop an online database of research and resources for academic and industry researchers, patients, clinicians, and health-care providers. The project aims to foster collaboration and information sharing that leads to better care, treatments, and cures for the digestive diseases.

Carroll and Milton Petrie Foundation

The foundation awarded $2 million over three years to New York University to expand its scholarship and advising program for students transferring from local partner community colleges.

John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

The foundation awarded $500,000 to the Detroit Journalism Cooperative, a project for radio, TV, print, and online reporting on Detroit’s municipal bankruptcy and involving citizens in finding ways to revitalize the city and deal with its challenges.

William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

The foundation awarded $200,000 to a pilot program at 15 of Virginia’s Community Colleges to cut textbook costs by supporting open-educational resources online

Herb Alpert Foundation

The grant maker awarded $150,000 to the Good People Fund to provide financial support and professional guidance to innovative grass-roots nonprofits. The foundation has given a total of $800,000 to the fund over the last six years.

Carnegie Corporation of New York

The foundation awarded $50,000 to CRDF Global, a science-focused nonprofit, for its yearlong Robin Copeland Memorial Fellowship, which supports women scientists studying the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons. The remainder of the fellowship is being crowdfunded.

Grants Roundup_ The Chronicle of Philanthropy