- 2 days ago
Philanthropy is often associated with large donations, but meaningful impact can take many forms. From sharing resources and making introductions to supporting small businesses and showing up for your community, we all have the ability to give in ways that create lasting change.
Join this fireside chat and explore how everyday actions can strengthen communities, expand opportunities, and support the causes and people we care about. Attendees will leave with a broader understanding of philanthropy and practical ways to make an impact, regardless of their resources or stage of life.
Speakers:
Monique Curry-Mims, Civic Capital Consulting
Chelsea Brown, The Black Mill
Join this fireside chat and explore how everyday actions can strengthen communities, expand opportunities, and support the causes and people we care about. Attendees will leave with a broader understanding of philanthropy and practical ways to make an impact, regardless of their resources or stage of life.
Speakers:
Monique Curry-Mims, Civic Capital Consulting
Chelsea Brown, The Black Mill
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FunTranscript
00:00Hello, hello, hello. I'm back. I'm Melissa Mitchell and I have the pleasure to talk about some amazing topics today.
00:08So we're going to actually talk about when you get your money, how are you spending your money?
00:12We have some amazing panelists today that are going to talk about philanthropy at its finest and how you can
00:17build a legacy through what you do with giving.
00:19So I'm going to bring up my good girl, Chelsea and Monique. We're going to have a chat about philanthropy.
00:25So let's give a round of applause to my girls. Come on up.
00:30Enjoy, ladies. You're welcome. You're welcome.
00:32Good afternoon, everyone. How y'all doing?
00:35Hello, hello.
00:35Hi. All right. We're going to get seated.
00:39Well, good afternoon, everyone. I am Chelsea Brown.
00:43I serve as the founder and CEO of The Black Mill, which is a national fundraising firm based in Baltimore.
00:49Any Marylanders, DMVers up here? Hey.
00:53We're based in Baltimore, Maryland.
00:55And since our inception in 2021, we have helped raise over $30 million for mission-driven organizations nationally.
01:02I'm here to talk to you about philanthropy today with my wonderful Fireside Chat co-person, Monique Curry-Mims.
01:11And today we will talk about why all of you all should think of yourselves as philanthropists.
01:16And my first question, I want Monique to introduce herself and give me some context on, in your childhood,
01:23what really made you look at yourself as either a philanthropist or someone that gives back?
01:28Well, thank you, Chelsea.
01:29As she said, my name is Monique Curry-Mims, and I am the founder and principal of Civic Capital Consulting.
01:35We are an international philanthropic advisory based in Philly.
01:39Anybody here from Philly?
01:41Yes, yes, yes, let's turn up Philly.
01:45So, my childhood.
01:47So, I don't think necessarily in my childhood I thought I was a philanthropist.
01:52You know, when I think about my childhood, my mom, I was a Head Start kid, and my mom volunteered
01:58at my Head Start, right?
01:59She always showed up.
02:01She was on the national Head Start board.
02:03She was going to conventions.
02:05I had a guidance counselor named Mrs. Smith used to always pour into me.
02:11She was an AKA.
02:12Any AKAs in the house?
02:14Okay.
02:15She was able to get me a scholarship for school.
02:18She allowed me to, or nominated me, to sit on some boards.
02:22So, I was a youth board member.
02:24So, I was just always active.
02:25I started a tutoring program in high school.
02:28I was just always community forward.
02:30And that is just something that was always ingrained in me.
02:33And as I, if you think about church and the things that are getting involved, you're a philanthropist when you
02:38are giving of your time, talent, treasure, ties, and testimony.
02:42So, I was giving of that time.
02:44And I think we all do in some way, shape, or form.
02:47Yeah, absolutely.
02:49As you know, black women are endlessly giving a lot of their time, their talent, their treasure, their advice, their
02:56wisdom, all the things.
02:58In order to make sure that their family, their friends, their people are good.
03:03How do we better practice generosity to ourselves?
03:07And how do we make sure that black women have the opportunities and permission to allow themselves to be free?
03:14I'm going to save you all a lot of therapy because I already did it, right?
03:18Set boundaries.
03:21We are taught or told or raised that we have to do everything and be everything for everybody.
03:27And we have to make sure that we are pouring into ourselves before we pour into anybody else.
03:32Someone told me, you know, there's that saying, like, don't pour for an empty cup.
03:35We as women, especially as black women, we have a bucket, right?
03:40And the bucket is leaking.
03:41So we have to make sure that we are taking time for ourselves.
03:44If anything, making sure that we are good so that we can be good for others if you want to
03:48give of whatever you want to give.
03:50So I think just being able to own that for yourself is very, very important.
03:55Absolutely.
03:57So what's something about philanthropy?
03:59Because I think a lot of the time, even when I've talked to folks and they're like, oh, I'm not
04:04a philanthropist, but they give money to their church, right?
04:06They give money to nonprofits that they care about.
04:09They support black-owned businesses.
04:11They support different things in their community.
04:13What do you think is something that philanthropy as a sector kind of gets wrong when they're representing what a
04:19philanthropist looks like?
04:21All right, let's get into it.
04:22So, one, when we think about philanthropy, we think about white philanthropy.
04:26We think about institutional philanthropy.
04:28We think about the millions of dollars in the six-figure checks.
04:32If you really think about philanthropy, everybody talks of it's the love of mankind.
04:36That is a Greek saying, right?
04:39So, traditionally or historically, if you actually look at it, Greeks were colonizers, and they colonized Africa, and they colonized
04:48Egypt.
04:49And when you think about some historical texts, you think about the Bible, right?
04:53You think about just the way that we operated.
04:55A lot of the practices of Greek philanthropy came from Africa.
04:59So, Africa, or philanthropy, is in our DNA.
05:03It is how we showed up collectively for our communities.
05:06It's Ubuntu, right?
05:07When we think about the Kwanzaa, right?
05:09Those aren't just words.
05:10Those are the practices of our community that allow for us to take care of each other.
05:14So, I think that that's the misconception.
05:17We've gotten caught up in this westernized understanding of it, and the root of it is not Greek, but it
05:23is African.
05:24Building upon that, I'm thinking a lot about how America has changed a lot within this past year, right?
05:32Thinking about kind of westernized philanthropy and what that looks like and how we as black people can put that
05:37better into practice,
05:38especially, again, in a kind of chaotic world right now, what are some tips and tricks that you have when
05:44you're thinking about how the everyday person can be a philanthropist?
05:49Well, one, we are launching a giving campaign starting today called Give As We Grow.
05:54And it's the idea that we are able to give to our communities through our time, talent, treasure, testimonies,
06:01whether that's to a nonprofit, a for-profit, an individual, we are giving to make sure that we are uplifting
06:07our community.
06:08I think about the idea that when we are giving, it is not just so that we are feeling good
06:16about ourselves,
06:16but it's that we are actually trying to make a change.
06:19And I think that, especially right now, where we are today, one thing that I would like everybody to do,
06:27and I know that, I think Taraji did it at Essence a couple years ago when she started talking about
06:31Project 2025.
06:33That was started by the Heritage Foundation, right?
06:36And the Heritage Foundation, what someone said, was not being creative, but they stuck to the roots of what our
06:42actual laws are.
06:44We have to understand what our laws are, what our tax laws are, and be able to use them to
06:49our advantage,
06:50because the way that we're using them now that they're set up is not for us.
06:54So how can we actually better understand them so that we can give?
06:57If you did not know in our tax code, you can actually give up to $19,000 as a gift
07:04to someone without having that person pay taxes on it.
07:09Did you know up until recently with HR1 that most black people, when we gave, we actually didn't get the
07:16tax deduction because we didn't meet the threshold?
07:18So if we weren't actually getting the deduction, but we were still giving, how can we increase that?
07:24How can we really focus on how we can support our businesses, support our nonprofits,
07:28making sure that we are uplifting not only the organizations, but the people like us that work in those organizations
07:34as well?
07:35I love that.
07:36Building upon that, again, I wanted to know, I'm sure there's folks in the crowd that are interested in either
07:41starting a nonprofit or have their own nonprofit.
07:44What are some words of wisdom that you would give to someone, I know, I know, words of wisdom or
07:51advice that you would give to someone that is interested in starting a nonprofit?
07:55I got to be honest, when anybody comes to me asking about that, I say don't.
07:59I do the same thing.
08:00Don't.
08:01I do the same thing.
08:01There are such things as fiscal sponsors.
08:03Now, I will say there are some fiscal sponsors that are not the best.
08:07You know, you have to vet everybody and make sure that everybody is trustworthy and is aligned with your values
08:13and your community.
08:13I think that is very important.
08:15But I think that we can do the work that we do again without having to go down that path.
08:21The 501c3 structure is a tax structure, right?
08:25It is just about taxes.
08:27And when you think about nonprofits, the billions of dollars that actually go out into philanthropy, we only receive 3
08:35% of it because we are operating in a system that was not built for us.
08:40So don't do it.
08:42Find the ways to support our communities without having to be part of a system that's not built for us.
08:47Yeah, I absolutely agree.
08:49Every time folks come to me and they say, oh, I want to start a nonprofit, I'm like, mm-mm.
08:53Pause.
08:54Pause.
08:54The amount of people who get in trouble, not out of malicious intent, but because they were violating something that
09:01they had no idea about, that is a struggle.
09:04Yeah.
09:04So let's say someone didn't talk to us and they ended up starting a nonprofit.
09:09Okay.
09:09What are some of the things that they should know when thinking about board membership and kind of like mission
09:16and things along those lines?
09:17Some tips and tricks you've gained along the way.
09:20Typically, when we start nonprofits or even businesses, right, we go to our family and friends.
09:25Can you sit on my board?
09:27Can you support me?
09:28That is a red flag for me because people are there for you and not the mission, which means, you
09:34know, I have nonprofits that come to me and say, my board isn't engaged.
09:37My board isn't fundraising, my board, because they didn't sign up for that.
09:41They signed up because you asked for them to be on something and they actually did not have the actual
09:46commitment for the mission.
09:48So make sure that you are finding people that understand that mission and that want to be with that mission
09:54is the number one thing for me as a startup because you want to make sure that you're not in
09:59this alone.
09:59You want to make sure that you have somebody that is supporting you and supporting your mission and supporting that
10:03community.
10:04And I think the other thing is making sure that you're building relationships.
10:08Okay, you're a nonprofit.
10:09You have to fundraise.
10:11You have to make sure that you're getting money from the public.
10:13You can't fund it yourself.
10:15The reason why a lot of nonprofits get money and you're like, well, why are they getting money and not
10:20me?
10:20Because they're able to build relationships with funders.
10:24The amount of money that I've raised over the years and even the money that I raise now came from
10:28a conversation.
10:30I have talked to a funder and said, hey, I'm doing X, Y, and Z.
10:33Not because I was actually trying to raise money just because we were just having a conversation about something.
10:38And they're like, oh, wait, you're doing what?
10:40All right, I'm going to give you $40,000 for that.
10:42I need to send you an application so that I can go through the board, but you're going to get
10:46$40,000 for that.
10:47You know how many other nonprofits actually had to apply and then got denied because they didn't have the relationship?
10:52So making sure you have relationships because even though it's an institution, right, it's still people that run the institutions.
11:00If I walked up to you and was like, can I have $40,000?
11:03You'd be like, what, girl?
11:04I don't know.
11:05You'll go.
11:06Right?
11:07They kind of feel the same way.
11:09So thinking about us as funders, right, there are folks that say, okay, I don't want to have a nonprofit.
11:15Maybe I want to have a family foundation or things along those lines.
11:18What are some things that they should keep in mind as they think about who they want to fund and
11:22how they fund?
11:24Really think about your values.
11:26It's really important, right?
11:27What is the mission you are trying to actually solve for?
11:31We get caught up in either one of two things.
11:34We are operating towards charity or we are operating towards systems change, right?
11:39There is a difference between the two and both are needed.
11:42So when you're thinking about food insecurity, yes, there's going to be an organization that is doing food drives, right,
11:49that are providing groceries to people and families.
11:51That's needed because people are in need.
11:54But there are other funders that are like, we want to make sure that everybody has food tomorrow.
11:59And the system and the process that is aligned with that in order for that to be successful is a
12:05lot different than the system and the process to actually doing a food drive.
12:09So really understanding where you are in this life cycle, what you're trying to fund, how you want your legacy
12:15to show up in your community now and later is really important in finding that alignment.
12:20Absolutely.
12:21So thinking about kind of, again, if everyone were to walk away with kind of one thing that they can
12:27do to be maybe a better philanthropist or a better steward of philanthropy, what are some things that you would
12:33recommend?
12:33Well, one, go to my website, CivicCapitalConsulting.com, and track your giving.
12:40So you are here today at Essence.
12:41You are in New Orleans for this amazing weekend of culture.
12:45I'm sure that all of us have gone to restaurants.
12:48I actually bought this dress yesterday from an O4 pop-up, right?
12:52I am supporting black businesses while I'm here, and I am tracking every dollar that I am giving because it
12:57allows for those businesses to grow.
12:59It allows for our community members to be hired so that they are able to have a living wage or
13:04have wages to take care of their family.
13:06But just I think the number one thing is to understand is that you are a philanthropist, right?
13:12You give of your time.
13:13You give of your talent, right?
13:15If you give somebody advice, that is giving of your talent.
13:19You are telling them how to show up in a certain way.
13:21So just understanding what you do and what you're doing it for, I think is really important.
13:27But I think the gist of it is that we are not having to abide by and follow institutional practices.
13:33The way that we show up for our community is important, and the way that you show up is important.
13:37And that is why you are a philanthropist.
13:40I do have one last resource, and then I will open up if folks have questions.
13:44But how many of you all knew that August was Black Philanthropy Month?
13:48Raise your hand if you knew that.
13:51All right.
13:52So August is not only the season of Leos, if there's any Leos in here, but it is also Black
13:58Philanthropy Month.
13:59And so during that month, there's a couple of initiatives that happen nationally that are focused on giving to Black
14:05-led organizations.
14:06A couple that come across in my mind, an initiative called Give 828.
14:12So it's on August 28th of every year.
14:15And, again, the focus is how do we kind of corral our own money to give back to Black-led
14:20organizations?
14:21And you can look that up, and you'll have the opportunity to look through all these different wonderful nonprofits in
14:26your area, outside of your area, in your focus, your interests, et cetera.
14:31And then, of course, locally there's some other ones.
14:34I know in Baltimore, we have Collective Give, which is an initiative for Baltimore Black-led nonprofits.
14:40And so just make sure that you're taking a look at what's going around you in your area for Black
14:45Philanthropy Month.
14:46I do want to open it for any potential questions, if any folks have any.
14:50Oh, come on up.
14:52And give your name and where you're from.
14:57Love your dress, by the way.
14:58Love it, love it.
14:58Hi.
14:59Hi, Monique.
15:00Hello.
15:01I know.
15:02So my question for you is about folks who just don't have a lot of money.
15:07Yep.
15:08Folks who may be young.
15:09Yeah.
15:10And we feel like, like you said, the Western perspective, right?
15:12Like, we need millions of dollars.
15:14I don't have five million.
15:15I can't start an endowment.
15:16I can't do all that.
15:17But how would you, what advice do you have?
15:20How would you frame this idea of small steps of scaling up your philanthropy?
15:26How do you do that?
15:27Where do you start if you're just not even sure that you can, how is this possible if I feel
15:33like I don't have the funds?
15:34First of all, Jackie could have been on this stage.
15:36I know her.
15:40So, right.
15:41To have an endowment, you do need millions of dollars.
15:44However, I have a family foundation.
15:46I do not have millions of dollars.
15:48I have a donor advised fund with more philanthropy, which is a black, another black philanthropic advisory that does fund
15:55management.
15:55They're based out of Boston.
15:57But you can pool your resources together.
15:59Through that fund, we put our family dollars into it.
16:03But there's an also ability to do pool sources as well where we can bring in other money.
16:07I'm also currently the co-steering committee member of the Philadelphia Black Giving Circle.
16:12So, being able to collectively pool your money together with your friends, with your family, with your neighbors to support
16:18local nonprofits and organizations.
16:20Now, I will say in both of those instances, though, the thing that we sometimes struggle with is we're still
16:26in that system.
16:28So, if I am using my donor advised fund or my family foundation, if I am doing a giving circle
16:34that is housed somewhere so that the money can grow, the only way I can distribute that money is to
16:39another 501c3 organization.
16:41I can't give it to the local grandmom on the block or community member who's doing food gatherings.
16:48But we can do that informally, right?
16:51We can come together and just pool our dollars so that we can get food and donate food.
16:57Or we can donate the food that we have or go grocery shopping, right?
17:00There are ways that we can provide the resources to our communities without having to be in structures that sometimes
17:06hinder us.
17:07Did I answer your question?
17:10I do have a quick question for you because we've used a lot of philanthropy speak, a lot of jargon.
17:15My bad.
17:16So, if you could, no, it's all good.
17:17If you could define, explain to me like I'm five, fiscal sponsorship and donor advised funds.
17:24So, a fiscal sponsor is an organization or entity that has signed up to be fiscally or financially responsible for
17:31you.
17:32So, they are allowing of you to utilize their 501c3 status in order to raise money.
17:37So, it can be any nonprofit can be a fiscal sponsor.
17:41So, that's one.
17:42And you want to make sure if you go that route that they have their finances set up appropriately.
17:46But there are some organizations that are just fiscal sponsors and that's all that they do.
17:50But they are set up to be able to have other, they call them programs.
17:54You become a program of their organization and you are able to fundraise.
17:59The money goes to them and then they distribute to your personal account or your organization's account or you have
18:04to submit some paperwork to get the funding, whatever that case may be.
18:08So, they're basically, again, signing up so that they can be financially responsible for your entity.
18:13A donor advised fund or a DAF is something very similar.
18:18But instead of you providing programming, you're providing grants.
18:22So, your local community foundation typically holds your donor advised funds.
18:27There are some other organizations that do as well.
18:29And the same thing happens, right?
18:31Like, you're using their 501c3 because foundations are also 501c3s.
18:36You're using their tax ID in order to raise your funds or store your funds.
18:42And at a community foundation, they grow as well.
18:45You typically grow in a pool.
18:47So, instead of you being able to individually say, I want to invest my endowment, and I'll talk about that
18:53as well, so that it can grow in these certain stocks, it just all goes into one pool.
18:58Now, I know we run out of time, but I just said, just jargon-wise, right?
19:02So, I just want to actually explain endowments and philanthropy because I don't think a lot of people understand that.
19:07When you are a foundation, you see all these foundations, the Ford Foundation and this foundation.
19:13Somebody a while ago or even recently had a bunch of money, and they put it into an endowment, right?
19:20So, this is invested money that is growing.
19:23According to the law, you only have to distribute 5% a year.
19:27When you are typically investing of your endowment, most organizations are trying to get a 12% to 15%
19:33return on their investment.
19:35So, they're taking 5% of that, let's say 15%, and they're putting it into the community.
19:40And the other 10%, they're basically keeping in their endowment to grow.
19:44Then they're hiring their family members to run those foundations, right?
19:48So, that's how they're creating generational wealth and legacy because their great-grandkids will always have a job, and their
19:54great-great-grandkids running those foundations because the money from the endowment is being used to pay their salaries, right?
20:01So, that is how foundations exist, and that is something that we can do as well, but also we can
20:06do it through donor-advised funds, which have a lower threshold of minimum amount to start and an easier setup.
20:12All right, Monique, where can people find you? We got 20 seconds.
20:15You can find me on Instagram at civic.capital, C-I-V-I-C dot C-A-P-I-T
20:21-A-L, and my website is civiccapitalconsulting.com, and also my personal Instagram is Monique Curry-Mims.
20:29Thank you, and if anyone would like to find me, Chelsea Brown, The Black Mill, my website is theblackmill.co,
20:36and you can find us on Instagram at theblackmillconsulting.
20:39Thank you so much for having us here today.
20:41Thank you, guys.
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