The Found Year

I love that quote by Anne Frank. It’s clear, direct, and hard to argue with. Most of us can afford to give at least a little bit of our time or money or both to a cause or an organization that is meaningful to us. The more personally connected you are to that charity, the more likely you are to feel the good vibes that come with your generosity. And that will make you want to keep giving.

Even as my husband and I save for our sabbatical, we have continued to support charitable causes that matter to us from homelessness to education, because it makes us feel good and it’s the right thing to do. In fact, one of the things we are both looking forward to while on sabbatical, is giving more of our time to causes we believe in.

Read on to learn how and why I give and for some ideas and resources to support your own giving plan.

How and why I give

When I gave my notice at Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF) after almost 10 years (nearly since its founding), my boss and mentor did something awesome and unexpected when he established the Rana Tarkenton Scholarship Fund in my honor. I decided that all funds raised would go either to theatre majors, which was one of my college majors, or immigrant students, who have inspired me over and over again during my time at DSF.

The gesture was immensely humbling, and also motivating. Although I am generally feeling excellent about my recent decision to take a year long sabbatical to travel and spend time with my husband, that joy has been accompanied by a sadness and occasional feeling of hopelessness given the state of our nation these days. Oppression, acts of overt racism, and disregard for both humanity and the environment have left me feeling pretty empty some days.

The scholarship fund in my name gave me something so positive to which I could redirect my focus. You may be thinking, but you work for DSF, weren’t you uplifted and motivated every day? Yes! The work we do is so important, and I’ve helped to raise millions of dollars already for the organization. I’ve been a donor for the last ten years already. But the scholarship fund that I am now supporting through DSF supports two causes that are very personal to me–the arts and equity for immigrants.  That brings my commitment to an even deeper level on which I hope to engage many of my friends, colleagues and family members who also have a personal connection to those causes.

I am trying to raise $25K to endow the scholarship. I’m donating $1,000 myself to start. So far we’ve raised about $10,000. If you are looking for a very real way to protect the freedoms, the values, and the people that make this country great, I encourage you to consider making a donation or finding your own cause to support (see resources below). 

Giving Day Websites: Many communities have Giving Days that promote nonprofits in the community on a certain day of the year. In Colorado, it’s www.ColoradoGives.org, and the day happens in December every year. Google “giving day” in your own community to see what pops up!

Denver Scholarship Foundation: How can I not plug this amazing organization that has done more for Denver students than any other charity (imho) in the last decade? DSF supports college and technical school scholarships for Denver students. Type my name, Rana Tarkenton, in the “in honor of” field if you want to contribute to my fund, which specifically supports theatre majors and immigrant students.