See For Yourself - Site Visits
All too often foundation philanthropy is practiced at arm's length, over the phone, by email, or the applicant coming to the foundation. The reality of philanthropy is to see for yourself what is happening in the streets. To this end, Philanthropic Ventures Foundation conducts site visits for donors and potential donors.
A typical visit would be to a high school to meet and speak with the principal, to hear what the issues are, what challenges
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| Bill warmly greeted by the students at the Holy Family School, Redwood City, during a site visit. |
he/she faces, to listen carefully for possible opportunities where philanthropic funds could be helpful, maybe even to meet and interview some students.
What often comes out of such a visit is an idea for funding, in one case, for an executive assistant for the Principal to help alleviate the administrative pressures of the job. PVF came up with this idea and funded such a person for 4 years at one high school.
The most rewarding thing about site visits is to meet and interact with the outstanding people of passion with whom PVF works. Listen to them. Learn how they keep their energy level up. Let them tell you about their work and how they measure effectiveness. It is an honor to meet such people and observe their resourcefulness and commitment.
The impact of a site visit can be rewarding for both the visitor and the host program, as described in a recent San Jose Mercury News article: "I was just blown away by this amazing place," raved singer-songwriter Kim Baker, after accompanying me on a tour of the Saint Francis Center in Redwood City. Ms. Baker determined to give back by performing a benefit concert for the Saint Francis Center - which was a sold out event. Read the article in full here.
A field trip takes about three hours, on-site at two or three programs, observing and interacting with program staff to get a full, rich picture of what is going on. Next is lunch at a soup kitchen after touring the kitchen, speaking with the staff and volunteers, and coming to understand the scope of their operation. I recently took two women from the business world on a site visit to East Palo Alto, which ended up being mutually beneficial to the visitors and the sites we visited - click here to read more about it.
It is important to see first-hand what and how philanthropy works in your community. It is also important to see people at work, people being served in creative ways, and the moral fibers of society being woven.
At PVF we mourn that our long time board member Howard Bell has passed away. He only sat on boards where he enjoyed the people and the cause. And in turn, everyone enjoyed Howard and his wisdom and wit. 
