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Philanthropy Magnified
February 2011
 
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A Message from Our Director, George Ferrari

George Ferrari


I want to encourage you all to visit our new Community Foundation Facebook page.  We are dedicated to posting at least one item each day. You can friend our page and then get something of interest about philanthropy, Tompkins County's great non-profit community, issues of concern and celebration as well as Foundation news each day in your own Facebook newsfeed.  Take a look and I think that you will find it an easy and fun way to stay in touch and give us feedback, alert us to your concerns and build a virtual community with other philanthropic minded Tompkins County neighbors.  It is as simple as clicking on the link right here!

 

 Find us on Facebook

 

Building Lifelong Economic Literacy Skills for Kids 

  

A grant from the Community Foundation's Johnson Graduate School of Management Community Impact Fund, has supported 25 local elementary students to participate in AFCU's Earn, Save, Share program. This program inspires local 4th and 5th graders to take charge of their financial futures.

 

The curriculum is divided into small lessons on earning, saving, and sharing money.  Lessons will coincide with the planning and development of a class entrepreneurial project.  The financial education curriculum has been developed to be income sensitive and lessons will be modeled on the "earn, save, share" principle in which students are taught the importance of not only setting savings goals, but spending wisely and donating regularly.  Furthermore, the entrepreneurial projects are rooted in principles of community development to help the students understand their potential impact on the community through good financial habits and decision-making. 

 

In this way, children learn to be financially literate -

able to make judgments and decisions in the use and management of money - and begin to develop a future-oriented mindset.

 

 

 

 

 

Community Foundation Joins List of Collaborating Organizations for Unifying Concert 

  

We invite all in our community committed to social justice and building bridges across differences to consider a very special event on March 2. brought to us by Rabbi Scott Glass.  This outstanding opportunity is: 

 

Neshama Carlebach in concert with Reverend Roger Hambrick and members of the Green Pastures Baptist Church Choir-The Unity Tour. 

 

  

A Special Message from Rabbi Scott Glass of Ithaca's Temple Beth El

 

 I am delighted to share the news that we have secured Ithaca's historic State Theatre for the event.  We are hoping to fill all 1600 seats with friends from every quarter of the Ithaca community.  Members of our congregation have been inspired to work on this event as our contribution to bringing our community together, doing our part to help heal Ithaca.  The message of the artists is one of unity and hope--people of diverse racial, ethnic and religious  backgrounds, and even different musical traditions, coming together to uplift spirits, to heal divisions, to bring peace and harmony to the world.

 

The music of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach is spiritually uplifting and speaks to people's souls in a unique way.  This was just what happened at a rally for unity in the Bronx after the February,1999  shooting of Amadou Diallo.  Rabbi Avi Weiss was invited to deliver a prayer at that gathering and he began his prayer by singing a Carlebach melody.  The melody touched the soul of Reverend Roger Hambrick who introduced himself to Rabbi Weiss after the rally and asked him about the melody.  Rabbi Weiss and Reverend Hambrick met, Rabbi Weiss shared the song, Brother and Friends, and a few other melodies with Reverend Hambrick who decided to incorporate some of them into the repertoire of his Baptist choir.  Subsequently, Rabbi Weiss invited Reverend Hambrick and the Green Pastures Baptist Church Choir to sing at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebration at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale.  The choir has sung there every year for the last eleven years as part of the congregation's tribute to Dr. King. 

 

I first heard the Green Pastures Baptist Church Choir at H.I.R. in 2007.  Two years later I was back to hear them again but this time they were singing together with Neshama Carlebach, a famous artist in her own right both because of her efforts to keep the music of her father alive but also because of her own talents.  The synergy of Neshama and the choir singing together, the spiritual uplift, was amazing.  After that performance, Reverend Hambrick and Neshama decided they should cut an album together.  The collaboration resulted in a rearrangement of nine melodies by Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach and an original piece written especially for this album, as Neshama has said, "ten pieces of hope."  The album, "Higher and Higher," is soulful, joyful, hopeful, incredibly moving.  The styles range from gospel to African to rock.  The album reflects a true melding of cultures and an update of Carlebach's classic "soul music."   When the group performed to open the Rabbinical Assembly convention last May, they brought the house down.  

  

This past January 17, I heard the group again, this time at Symphony Space in Manhattan at a very moving Martin Luther King, Jr. Day event.  It confirmed what I'd suspected-that each time this group performs together, they get better. 

 

I look forward to seeing you and a large and diverse audience on Wednesday evening, March 2, at 7 PM.  I promise you, you won't be disappointed.

 

For ticket information, click here.

 

 

 

Board Member of the Month

 

John Rogers

 

 John Rogers

  

 

John, Community Impact Committee member, is an independent construction consultant with 20 years experience in affordable housing work at INHS where many local community connections were established and nourished.  He has served on boards of the Finger Lakes Land Trust, Cayuga Trails Club, On Site Volunteer Services, Greenstar Coop, and an inter-municipal youth service agency.  He served as a trustee for the Village of Trumansburg and has led international wilderness outings with the Sierra Club.  John has two children who were taught to live lightly, be well traveled, and be in touch with nature.  John wishes to help promote local philanthropy and connect this gracious giving with local community needs. 

 

In This Issue
Economics for Kids
A Special Community Event
Board Member of the Month
What is a Community Foundaiton?
Community Foundation Leadership
Who We Are


 

 Community foundations are non for profit organizations founded and staffed by people who are dedicated to seeking out what is needed in our community and what is valuable about Tompkins County and to helping those valuable assets grow important results. We understand our community's needs and help you to turn your charitable passions into results oriented philanthropy. We show donors how to make your gifts go further and accomplish more. 


 

Contact George Ferrari, Community Foundation of Tompkins County, Executive Director  or call 607-272-9333 if you would like to explore ways for the Community Foundation to assist you in making your philanthropic dreams a reality for Tompkins County.

  

  

 

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Upcoming Events


March 11, 2011

5pm

Howland Grant Applications Due

 

March 15, 2011

12pm

 Women's Fund Grants & Holmberg Award Luncheon

Ithaca College



Meet the Board

Board Chair

Mariette Geldenhuys

 

Vice Board Chair

Mickie Sanders-Jauquet

 

Secretary
 
Kim Rothman

 

Treasurer
 
David Squires

 

Immediate Past Chair

Tommy Bruce

 

Members

Jacki Barr

Mary Berens

Max Brown

Tom Colbert

Caroline Cox

Jennifer Gabriel

Anthony Hopson

Linda Madeo

Robin Masson

Alan Mathios

Lauren Merkley

Nina Miller

Ed Morton

John Rogers

Carol Travis

Amy Yale-Loehr

 


Incorporating Board

 

Jeff Furman

Howard Hartnett

Bill Myers
 

Robert Swieringa
 

John Semmler

Diane Shafer


Executive Director

George Ferrari, Jr.

 

Program Officer

Janet Cotraccia

 

Executive Assistant

Amy LeViere

Dear Reader,

We value your input.  We hope you have found this newsletter to be informative.  We strive to provide continued communications to our donors, grantees, donor advisors, community members and board members.  Please contact us with comments, or if  you would like to update your email or home address. 

 

 E-Mail:

[email protected]

Website:

www.cftompkins.org 
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