Calculating the Value of Nonprofits
Giving is good business
The equation is easy to understand: A weak economy equals challenging business conditions equals reduced corporate support for nonprofits. Understandable, yes, but terribly unfortunate — and, I’m convinced, not particularly good business.
Drink for a Cause
Young social entrepreneurs value altruism over profits
Ashley Coleman has wine in her blood. Great-granddaughter of winemaker Julio Gallo, she grew up tending grapes in the family vineyard and working at its winery in Livingston. She knew the family business would color her future, but she never dreamed she would use wine to drive social change.
Out of Darkness
A bright future for the blind
Shane Snyder has been fighting his whole life. He is 46 years old and has Usher syndrome, a genetic disorder affecting hearing and vision.
Charitable Vetting
Determining whether an organization is worth your money
Charities come in all sizes, dedicated to myriad causes, and generous donations to a small, do-good organization sometimes will make a big difference.
Wishful Thinking
Making dreams come true in the golden years
Doris Hobbs threw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Sacramento River Cats game. Harriet Antonides at last became a Girl Scout at age 100. And Mino Ohye, who hadn’t seen his beloved brother in 60 years, in January would fly to Japan for a reunion.
Future Earnings
On the job training for students in need
Juliana Espinoza was a bashful teenager until last summer when she began a year-long internship at Junior Achievement of Sacramento.
Street Smarts
Helping at-risk youth achieve beyond their limits
A teenage boy walks through dangerous gang territory to reach the train that will take him from his low-income neighborhood to a private high school in Sacramento where almost no one knows his story.
Tech Appeal
Leveraging social media for a nonprofit cause
Monica Gonzalez recently logged onto the Facebook page of Weave Inc., an organization that treats survivors of domestic and sexual abuse, to post a simple message about how the nonprofit helped her overcome a nightmarish ordeal.
Gift of Sight
Local company provides vision for the underserved
Each year, Rancho Cordova-based Vision Service Plan provides free, annual, comprehensive eye examinations and eyewear to 50,000 underserved children throughout the country.
Driven to Win
A life-changing turnabout behind the wheel
At age 15, Erik Self sneaked into the home of a friend’s mother and, when she got out of bed to investigate the noise, stabbed her repeatedly with a survival knife. He was arrested and charged with attempted murder and burglary.