A Connection for Good

The Hot Springs Future Fund brings young professionals together to learn about philanthropy and invest in the future of their community.

PHILANTHROPY. What picture comes to mind when you hear the word? Is it a grainy black and white image of Andrew Carnegie or John D. Rockefeller? Is it a glossy magazine profile of Bill and Melinda Gates or Warren Buffett?

Picture Amy Johnson: fitness instructor, mother of two, philanthropist. Or Lance Porter: dentist, lifelong Hot Springs resident, philanthropist.

Johnson, Porter and their colleagues on the Hot Springs Future Fund steering committee are partnering to build a giving circle for young professionals in their community. Members of this newly formed group pool their charitable dollars and meet to decide which causes and organizations they want to support with their shared funds.

"Most people my age don’t have $10,000 lying around to start an endowment of their own," explained Porter. "I like the concept of being able to take the pooled membership dues and bring them together to build an endowment."

Johnson echoed, "This group appeals to 20-, 30- and 40-year olds who are in the middle of raising families, working 40 hours a week and living on tight budgets."

Group members are discovering that the Hot Springs Future Fund is less about their financial contributions than about their long-term support for the community. Because membership dues are invested in a permanent endowment, the money they contribute now in their 20s and 30s will continue to grow and benefit Hot Springs when their children and grandchildren are in their 20s and 30s.

That means membership is not only a commitment to Hot Springs, it’s also a commitment to each other, as members come together to make grants from their endowment every year. "Our mission isn’t just to raise money. We also want to engage a younger generation of givers and educate them about what an endowment is — what philanthropy is," said Porter.

Across the state, people are partnering with Arkansas Community Foundation to build giving circles in their own communities. Whether they seek to build new relationships with others who share their charitable interests or solidify existing friendships through the bond of giving, these everyday philanthropists recognize that giving is most effective when we work together and unite behind common causes.

Giving circles are just one way Arkansas Community Foundation engages people, connects resources and inspires solutions to build our state’s communities.