News Archive - Page 9 of 18 - The Good People Fund

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October 24, 2016 by

I am the co-founder and executive director of The Good People Fund where I discover, mentor and financially support grassroots organizations that respond in creative ways to society’s most intractable problems.

Together we focus on board development, fundraising, staffing, administration and more; all critical to the success of any organization. I challenge them to think realistically about how best to implement this growth.

I was professionally trained to be a high school U.S. history teacher, but I spent only a few years in that role before becoming a mom. I also worked as a plant doctor, used my love of cooking as a caterer, my needlework skills to build a needlepoint business and revived a tired family business selling men’s and boys’ clothing. Somehow, entrepreneurial opportunities always seemed to find their way to me.

My quest for meaning following a cancer diagnosis in 1991 led me to read books by Danny Siegel, a Jewish writer and founder of a small fund that supported small grassroots programs led by inspiring people. I was captivated by his philosophy about how we can each use our talents to make a difference and my second career calling became clear. In 1994, I became Siegel’s intern and eventually moved to full-time Managing Director.

When his nonprofit was no longer in operation, I could have retired at the age of 62 but, instead, saw a rebirth opportunity. With so many small organizations counting on us for support and so many donors excited about our focus, I decided to start over and brought together several people who believed in me and this work. Under my leadership, we formed a new nonprofit and began The Good People Fund in 2008.

The grantees I work with have all decided to dedicate themselves to a specific problem. One such organization/grantee is Unchained At Last, which provides support for women leaving arranged and forced marriages. Fraidy Reiss founded the organization in 2012 to help other women like herself. I knew this organization needed support both professionally and financially; it addresses a serious issue previously ignored in our culture. Today it has grown to be the only nonprofit in the US dedicated to both helping women rebuild their lives, and promoting social and policy change to prevent forced marriage.

Reiss explains the impact GPF has had over the years this way: “They have never just handed over the check. Naomi became a trusted adviser and mentor, helping me to figure out when and how to start hiring other staffers, how to reign in a board gone wild, and which items to prioritize on a tight budget.”

Now that I myself have become that “older worker,” I can see even more clearly that nothing can replace experience and the wisdom that comes with it. How sad it is that we live in a culture which worships youth. How much better our world would be if we would embrace the contributions and experience of older workers. I have learned that with age I am more comfortable being forthright in my interpersonal relationships and more willing to share what life has already taught me. It is at once liberating and joyful!

Inspired By The Work Of Everyday Heroes, She Found Her Second Calling In “The Good People Fund”

October 10, 2016 by

A former teacher and local business owner, Naomi Eisenberger began a new quest for meaning following a cancer diagnosis in 1991 and a chance meeting with an author focused on everyday heroes who help better the lives of others. Captured by a philosophy about how we can all use our talents to make a difference, Naomi invited him to speak at her synagogue, and her second career calling became clear.

Shortly after, she became a volunteer at this non-profit and eventually moved from a part-time employee to a full-time Managing Director role. When that organization closed with the founder’s retirement, she saw a rebirth opportunity. In 2008, she assumed the role of co-founder and executive director of The Good People Fund and demonstrated tremendous leadership capacity in evolving this new non-profit to where it stands today.

The Good People Fund (GPF) was founded to support small grassroots organizations(mostly volunteer-run) engaged in repairing the world. At the center of each program is a single visionary or a group of Good People who have chosen to dedicate themselves to fixing some societal issue. Each of them, in fact, can be considered an entrepreneur in their own right.

Naomi spends her time serving as a mentor, coach, resource, connector and lifeline to the grantees. Her work takes her from remote corners of the US to countries abroad where she gives a voice to programs and people that operate under the radar and work directly on the ground to ease poverty, hunger, disability, social isolation and other forms of human suffering. She lives and breathes this work “commuting” to a home office 20 feet from her bedroom.

Who Are Some Of These Good People
Jacob Sztokman is the founder of Gabriel Project Mumbai which works to foster health, nutrition, literacy and empowerment among families living in Mumbai’s slums. Barry Hoffner founded Caravan to Class with the goal of rebuilding the educational infrastructure in the villages around Timbuktu, Mali and Sub-Sahara, Africa. Erin Zaikis is the founder of Sundara which focuses on reducing preventable hygiene-related deaths and disease by creating sustainable soap recycling programs for underserved populations in India(read her inspiring story here) and now worldwide. Gloria Baker Feinstein founded Change the Truth which provides kids in Uganda, most of whom were orphaned by the AIDS epidemic, with food, scholarships, books, a library, music education, medical care and other essentials. Linda Smith founded Reading Village in Guatemala which empowers Mayan teenagers to serve as reading promoters in villages around the region to help eradicate illiteracy and lead their communities out of poverty.

Naomi’s efforts with these grantees in India, South America, Africa and with others throughout the U.S. and Israel exemplify how unique an organization she has built. She has inspired the visionaries behind each to persevere despite the challenges of running a small non-profit. She nurtures their good work and navigates them through crises, helping them gain solid footing with her wisdom and GPF funds. Naomi’s unwavering support translates into the lives of many vulnerable people changed for the better. She has inspired people to connect to The Good People that she holds out as role models, reflected by the $8,000,000 raised in 8 years. Grantees believe that GPF is more than just a source of money. They value the strategic perspective the Fund brings, in addition to its deep network and general knowledge of the nonprofit world. GPF takes pride in facilitating partnerships, connecting people and programs, and offering guidance and expertise.

More Than Just A Business
Naomi has a deep emotional connection to the stories of the Good People and their causes. “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. Ultimately, our wish is that every program we support eventually outgrow us and flourish without our funds and support,” explains Naomi.

Traditionally funders donate and step away, but for her, it is highly personal. It is not just about site-visits and grant reports, but relationship building, hands-on support and being a partner, collaborator, advocate and sounding board. Since co-founding Good People Fund, she has helped steward more than 150 grassroots organizations with both grants and
guidance.

One grantee may have said it best: “Don’t try to save the world alone! Surround yourself with trustworthy advisers who are experienced in non-profit management and want to help you succeed.”

The Good People Fund Marks End Of Year Giving

August 30, 2016 by

At the Good People Fund, we mentor and support grassroots community-based organizations led by visionaries who respond in creative ways to address society’s most intractable problems whether its focus be as insurmountable as hunger or as defined as supporting women leaving forced or arranged marriages. Since our inception in 2008, we have granted more than 5.3 million dollars to more than 60 nonprofit organizations in Israel.

In each case the individual or small group’s actions inspire others to join their work to effect change. To date, we have been able to provide more than $8,000,000 in grants to more than 150 nonprofit organizations based primarily in the United States and Israel. For the recently concluded 2015/2016 fiscal year grants of nearly $1,500,000 were made to programs based in those countries.

Highlights of the grants made in Israel this past fiscal year include; $335,000 for organizations focused on kids including Kaima, a program that utilizes sustainable organic farming to help young people who cannot learn in traditional environments and S.A.H.I. an organization that embraces compassion and giving as tools to help youth-at-risk; $123,000 to organizations that alleviate hunger such as Pesia’s Kitchen in Tel Aviv which distributes quite literally tons of donated food and fresh produce; $81,000 to IDF-related organizations like Tzvika Levy’s Lone Soldier Program; $58,000 to organizations helping to ease poverty including Ten Gav, a unique crowd-funding platform that assists social workers as they manage the needs of Israel’s most vulnerable citizens; $45,000 to organizations that promote women’s empowerment including Yotsrot which trains women, exiting the cycle of abuse and prostitution, for fashion-related careers and Ba’asher Teichi which supports Haredi women navigating the divorce process; $55,000 for organizations that offer alternative healing, like HAMA Israel’s animal-assisted therapy program that reduces emotional pain in varied situations; and $8,800 to organizations like In Their Shoes which creates awareness and understanding of dementia and aging.

Project Kruvit is our most recent Israeli grantee. Inspired by Dr. Ravit Hilleli when she was only a teen, this all-volunteer program prepares and distributes high quality meals to thousands of people for Passover, Shavout and Rosh Hashanah; a logistical challenge that involves an army of volunteers (about 8,000) who cook, shop, and deliver meals during a 48-hour period immediately before the chaggim (holidays) begin.

Highlights of the Fund’s U.S. grant recipients include; $51,000 to organizations that address the needs of children including Atlanta’s Creating Connected Communities that trains local teens in leadership skills with a special focus on homelessness and advocacy and connects them to meaningful volunteer opportunities with disadvantaged kids; $38,000 to organizations like Boston-based Courageous Parents Network that empowers parents to care for children with serious illnesses by maintaining up-to-date virtual community resources; and $18,000 to organizations focused on alternative healing such as Shelter Music Boston that performs live classical chamber music for displaced shelter residents who might not otherwise have the financial means or opportunity to experience music and its healing powers in less-accessible venues. Other grants were directed towards programs focused on eldercare, hunger, women’s empowerment, poverty and veterans.

One of our most important goals is to give visibility and recognition to these nascent efforts so that others will join us in helping to support their work. We know that with the right amount of fiscal support and mentoring these small efforts can flourish. With this in mind we continue our commitment to seek out these inspiring individuals and their good work and invest in their growth and success.

Naomi Eisenberger is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of The Good People Fund, based in Millburn, New Jersey. For the past decade, she has drawn on her extensive business and nonprofit experience to help grantees build their own successful nonprofit organizations.

The Benefits of Incubators: Nurturing New Nonprofits and How Mentorship and Guidance Can Lead to Success

August 30, 2016 by

When it comes to actually creating a nonprofit or managing one newly formed, there are countless resources available. A simple Google search reveals a host of topics at your fingertips which may include legal advice in establishing an organization, board development, selecting a logo, best practices in fundraising, website development and so much more.

Indeed these widely disseminated tools are helpful, but we believe that newly established and smaller scale nonprofits have their best chance of success if they can take advantage of the benefits of a personal connection; a mentor to guide them in addition to the shared experiences of other successful nonprofits.

The Good People Fund serves as an incubator for these small nascent programs that have been formed to address some need or injustice in our society. In our case, all of these organizations were started by inspiring individuals who felt compelled to “do something.” Very few of these visionaries have studied nonprofit management and most are truly “leading with their heart” not always with their “head.” How do they succeed? How can we as funders help them with their mission? If a funder is inspired enough by the organization’s mission it should also take those steps necessary to assure that the grant succeeds.

With more than 25 years experience working with new nonprofits we believe that they have unique needs that when met can help to insure their ultimate success. Some ways in which funders could operate as an incubator:

Spend quality time with the founder getting to know them, their background and what has brought them to this place. A strong personal relationship can be beneficial to the organization’s ultimate success. Let them know that they have an ear when it comes to the challenges they will face on a daily basis. If they fail to reach some goal they should know that it is safe to share that failure and that it doesn’t necessarily reflect on the future of additional grants.

Discuss board development and the importance of bringing on people who share the passion of the founder. With passion comes commitment. Board members should not necessarily be your best friends, but people who will both support and challenge the founder when necessary. Board members should be made aware from the very beginning exactly what their responsibilities will be, whether that is financial or hands-on work or both. If a board member does not know what is expected of them they may fail.

Encourage your grantees to interact with each other. Many of their challenges are not unique and having a peer to confer with is not only comforting but validating as well. Building a network of support and learning from others is invaluable.
Offer matching grant challenges. What better way to have your new grantees sharpen their “asking” skills and learn to interact with donors?

Remind your grantees about those things that are considered “best practices” in the nonprofit world. This could relate to the best ways to collect online donations; the need for the appropriate insurance coverage whether it be liability or D&O insurance and where to get it; hiring staff as employees or consultants and so much more.

Encourage your grantees (and perhaps yourself as the funder) to understand that the word “overhead” should not signal an immediate negative reaction. Like everything else, moderation and common sense should prevail. As an organization grows its staffing needs will naturally change. As long as the proper funding is found (and an organization’s board members are the perfect donors to help cover some of those administrative costs) to underwrite some or all of this expense they should go for it. Trying to do it all just doesn’t work.

Remind your grantees that for every step forward there may be two steps back. That is to be expected running any business and nonprofits are businesses.

We understand first hand that the process of starting or managing a nonprofit can be overwhelming. The guide and points above are listed to stress that you are not alone and there are opportunities through mentors and organizations looking to serve as incubators to both nurture, mentor and help guide your organization to success.

Naomi Eisenberger co-founded The Good People Fund in 2008 and became its Executive Director. She assumed this role after more than 10 years as the Managing Director of the Ziv Tzedakah Fund. For the past decade, she has drawn on her extensive business and nonprofit experience to help grantees build their own successful non-profit organizations.

“Barbershop Books” Cuts Through Literacy Gap One Trim At A Time

June 1, 2016 by

Chances are, we wouldn’t consider a child staring quietly out of a Barbershop window to be cause for concern.

But for first grade teacher Alvin Irby, 31, who recognized the boy as one of his students, an intuitive thought arose—one that was laced with concern.

“I know what his reading level is, and he should really be practicing his reading right now,” he thought. “I just wish I had a book to give him to read while he was waiting.”

Across New York City, he says, there are thousands of boys of color who will never see a male who looks like them engaging in reading during their first few years of school…or encouraging them to read at all.

That’s why he founded Barbershop Books, a nonprofits aimed at getting young boys excited about reading, and providing them with the resources to do so.

The community-based literacy program creates child-friendly reading spaces in barbershops, working from a list of carefully curated titles perfect for boys ages four to eight years old.

The program, which literally puts books in front of children and their parents, is designed to encourage parents—primarily, fathers—to read to their kids.

Citing a recent Harvard study that suggests children get “something different” from a “father and son” read-aloud (as opposed to reading with their mother) Alvin believes that by connecting books and reading to a male-centered space, he can and connect black men to the early reading experiences of black boys in a positive and culturally meaningful way.

“We believe that having men serve as relevant reading models is absolutely essential in encouraging boys to read and emphasizing that reading is important,” he said.” Ultimately, we want to get them to read for fun.”

As a result of the program, parent Jabbar Richardson and his fiancée read to his six-year-old son Jamere every night before he goes to sleep, taking the time to read along together when they’re at the local Barbershop where they first discovered Barbershop Books late last year.

These days, Jamere runs to the table with the books every time he walks in for a haircut, and has been “stepping up the amount he reads on his own” since January, according to his father.

“He loves books about sports, and looks for anything about LeBron James to read,” he said.

Recently, even more new books have been added to the program, thanks to a grant from the Good People Fund, which will make their way into the 11 New York City barbershops that have these special reading spaces, reaching more than 440 boys annually.

Plans are also currently underway to begin conducting “barber workshops” prior to installing reading spaces, teaching the barbers themselves specific reading strategies to help promote reading as a fun activity.

“Alvin is such a passionate educator, guided by his determination to make positive change in his community. He is really committed to the vision he has set forth,” said Naomi Eisenberger, Founder and Executive Director of the Good People Fund. “He is a great example that one person can make a significant difference.”

Click here to learn more about Barbershop Books or the Good People Fund

A Social Entrepreneur’s Thriving Nonprofit Enables Others to Bring about Change

May 23, 2016 by

Over the past 25 years, Naomi Eisenberger has sought out individuals who do good in their own communities and beyond. As the Executive Director of The Good People Fund (www.goodpeoplefund.org), she is responsible for discovering and supporting grassroots organizations that respond in creative ways to society’s most intractable problems. While certainly not household names, each program is making an impact in their respective areas. There are approximately 75 grantees under her guidance throughout North America and abroad. These dedicated Good People work quietly, most with little recognition and minimal funding, in an effort to improve the lives of society’s most vulnerable.

Eisenberger’s years of experience with small nonprofits makes her uniquely suited to advise her grantees in many areas. She realizes that there are some basic ideas that all organizations should embrace. “I work very closely with each of our grantees” explains Eisenberger. “Together we focus on board development, fundraising, staffing, administration and more; all critical to the success of any organization. I challenge them to think realistically about how best to implement this growth. It is a delicate balancing act that requires sufficient funding to underwrite the costs of additional staff. II approach each grantee as a partnership and most admit that having a friendly supportive voice on the other end of the phone makes their efforts easier. Very few of our grantees have any formal training in nonprofit management so having someone to help answer the difficult questions is important. I have created and implemented a unique ideology that includes vetting and supervising each grantee, as the means to making the Good People Fund’s work both unusual and highly effective.”

One organization that has benefited from Eisenberger’s guidance and funding is Amir Project, which places sustainable gardens within summer camps and uses them as a tool to foster and teach social justice practices. Amir’s founder, David Fox, created the organization while still a college student. Upon graduating he formally incorporated Amir Project and set about raising funds to make his dream possible. One of David’s first fundraising attempts was a visit with Eisenberger where he detailed his vision. Eisenberger immediately recognized David’s passion for this work and Impressed with David’s ideas and his personality, immediately offered him his first grant, a matching grant to hopefully inspire others. David found the matching funds and Amir Project was on its way. That first GPF donation led to additional grants over the next five years as well as ongoing mentoring to help David resolve challenges related to the organization’s growth. Today more than 8,000 young people have been exposed to the Amir Project which operates in 30 camps nationwide.

Eisenberger has always believed that small actions can have huge impacts, whether it is to start a nonprofit or support one, and shares that belief with others. Since its inception in 2008 the Good People Fund has raised and granted more than $7 million dollars to these small programs working diligently, but quietly, to improve lives.

Naomi Eisenberger is the founder and Executive Director of The Good People Fund. For the past decade, she has drawn on her extensive business and nonprofit experience to help grantees build their own successful nonprofit organizations.