Family giving: From personal tragedy to family legacy

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Charitable giving can span a range from spur-of-the moment decisions to a multigenerational strategy through a family foundation.

At the same time, factors like faith, a personal tragedy and generational trends can affect how people give and to what kind of causes.

While we have profiled many generous families and donors in Canadian Family Offices, this selection of pieces illustrates some of these themes, and offers some advice on how to approach giving.

Who’s who: Big-ticket donations from Canada’s wealthiest people

The country’s biggest donors are often entrepreneurs who are used to making an impact, and they want to do the same with their donations.

While larger donations generally go to major institutions such as universities and hospitals, change is coming. Increasing numbers of women, next-generation family members and first-generation Canadians have begun making their mark on large-scale philanthropy.

This story looks at a sampling of big donations given in Canada during the past year. Some of the largest were bequests, usually from individuals who had an established record of giving.

Son’s tragic death spurs family foundation to tackle mental health

As more Canadians face mental health crises, the work that family foundations do to strengthen awareness around mental illness and disorders is critical.

In this story, Ian Boeckh, president and director at the Montreal-based Graham Boeckh Foundation, founded to honour son and brother Graham Boeckh, who died from complications related to schizophrenia, shares how the family works together to keep Graham’s memory alive, and to bring support to others who are facing mental health crises.

“The health system failed Graham as it has countless others – poor access, misdiagnoses and improper care. That’s why the family is determined to improve how patients and families are treated.”

Next-gen donors bring dramatic change, but don’t call them philanthropists

Many “next-gen” donors are givers who view philanthropy in a whole new way. Given the expected wealth transfer coming from baby boomers, this new face of charitable giving could have a significant impact.

Next-gen donors hate the word “philanthropist,” and want to be called ‘social investors. People are coming to the table with a lot of wealth and saying, “How do we do this differently?”

This evolving mindset among Gen X-ers, well as millennials and Gen-Y and Z, is more issue-focused than institution-focused. Younger donors also pay more attention to how they give rather than the causes they support.

This story looks at how younger donors approach giving.

Want to change the world? First decide what you will fund

For wealthy families, the avalanche of charitable donation requests can feel both relentless and anxiety-inducing. How to choose which worthy causes to support when the need is so great, particularly as the pandemic continues to cause health and economic harm?

To determine what to fund takes some soul searching and planning. But the time spent is well worth it. Having a solid philanthropic plan that reflects a person’s or family’s values allows for greater impact because dollars are not spread too thinly.

And having a plan has another advantage: it helps alleviate the stress of turning charitable organizations down if they do not align with a family’s predetermined vision and goals. 

This story offers tips on how to create a giving plan.

‘Religion or faith will make or break a decision to give or not give’

Religion, or faith, can shape not only what charities donors give to, but how much.

In this story, three experts who work as philanthropic counsellors and consultants discuss how a strong sense of spirituality can be a powerful influence on charitable decision making, from whether to give publicly or anonymously, to how they align giving with their hierarchy of values.

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