Great News for Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago

When I hear great news for charitable organizations, I like to share it.  Today I read that Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago received a $16 million gift from the Kenneth and Anne Griffin Foundation to establish an emergency care center at its new facility, the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.  

Per the article that appeared on the Philanthropy News Digest:

The funds will be used to create the Kenneth and Anne Griffin Emergency Care Center, which will open on the campus of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in the summer of 2012. The new facility will include additional examination rooms, major trauma/resuscitation beds, and an expanded triage area to allow rapid assessment of arriving patients — substantially increasing the hospital's emergency care capacity and improving patient response times. The facility also will feature state-of-the-art technology, including dedicated diagnostic radiology suites and a CT scanner.

This is a good example of what passionate board members can do.  Anne Griffin has been a member of the Children's Memorial Medical Center and Children's Memorial Foundation board of directors since 2005.  She and her husband, both successful business people in Chicago, fully understand the value of a the pediatric emergency care provided to more than 65,000 children treated there annually.  There is additional detail about the gift in the Children's Memorial Hospital press release.

Congratulations to Children's Memorial Hospital, the city of Chicago and the thousands of children that will benefit from this family's exceptional generosity!

On a side note, this hospital has a great tagline that no doubt serves as a powerful daily reminder as to its mission: "Where kids comes first."  It reminds me of the excellent mission that is visible at every entrance at Primary Children's Medica Centerl in Salt Lake City: "The child first and always."  Both of these are excellent statements of the hospital's purpose and what drives everything from clinical care to customer service. They are simple, powerful, effective and leaves no question as to what the number one priority is for every person that comes through their doors. 

Cool Blog Articles Today about Nonprofits Using Social Media

Just doing some browsing around and found some cool articles today about charitable giving that I think are worth sharing.

Beth Kanter posted on Twitter today a cool article from @Mashable:  "How to: Do Good on Twitter." There are some great suggestions here including following your favorite charities, participating in Twitter fund drives, and using Twollars.  Check out the article to learn what "Twollars" are.  It was new to me but will be something I'm going to explore in greater depth. I also want to see if there is some way Dayton Children's can participate in a Twestival this year. 

One of the most informative blogs out in the blogosphere is Nonprofit Tech 2.0: A Social Media Guide for Nonprofits.  There is always something informative here for nonprofits using social media to share their message.  Subscribe to this blog...it's worth the time.  Today I found an interesting article listing 11 TwtPoll Results Nonprofits Can Use to Plan Communication Strategies.  One interesting fact is that 73% of those polled said they would rather donate online than send in a check.  Now, given that those who responded to a TwtPoll are probably those very comportable with doing everything online, it does bring attention to the fact that there is an entire audience nonprofits need to reach that they may not be identifying if they are not using social media.  

Based on this TwtPoll, 25% of charities have a presence on Facebook and Twitter.  I know in 2010 this number will grow and the next thing we will want to know is which charities are using these social media networks most effectively to share their message and engage friends and followers.  Conversion may be the most important word for 2010.  Nonprofits may have launched themselves into the social media fray in 2009 but the winners will come out on top by converting friends and followers into loyal donors.  

Another excellent blog to follow is Jeff Bullas' Blog.  He always has concrete recommendations for using social media for nonprofits.  This is another one worth subscribing to and reviewing regularly.  He just posted an article about "7 Great Resources on Using Facebook for Nonprofits".  His recommendations are spot-on.  If you are just getting started with social media or even for those of you using it but looking for more creative ways to take things to the next step, check out this Blog.

I could probably do this all night but I'm starving so I'll take a break.  Stay tuned...there's some brilliant minds out there and I hope to introduce you to them. 

My Fav Charities

It's December 31, 2009.  What better date to relaunch the Electric Philanthropy blog?  If you are still making last minute choices on charities to support, I thought I would suggest some remarkable organizations for your consideration.

Best Friends
The Best Friends Animal Society is quite possibly the most remarkable organization working on behalf of animals today. They accept all kinds of animals: injured, abused, neglected, abandoned, elderly and those needing special care and treat every one of them like a long-lost pet.  Their direct mail program is second to none (and believe me, I've seen just about every kind of direct mail package known to man) with each story more compelling than the next.  I can't say enough about them and they deserve every single penny they receive.

The Children's Miracle Network
Ok, so I may be slightly biased about CMN because I work at a children's hospital, but even if I didn't work at Dayton Children's, I'd still think this is a remarkable charity.  CMN supports 170 non-profit pediatric hospitals.  The best thing they do is ensure that money raised locally benefits the local pediatric hospital.  This organization is committed to bringing the best healthcare possible to children in the US, Canada and now parts of Europe.  No one wants to think of sick or injured children and with the state of pediatric healthcare reimbursements, these hospitals desperately need every bit of support they can get.

The Hole in the Wall Camps
Paul Newman founded the Hole in the Wall Camps to give children battling chronic and life threatening illnesses a normal summer camp experience.  To say these camps are magical is an understatement.  I have volunteered several times at Camp Boggy Creek in Florida and have visited the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Connecticut and the Victory Junction Gang Camp in North Carolina.  I will do anything I can to help support all of the others, including the Flying Horse Farms Camp that will open in Mount Gilead, Ohio in the near future.  These camps allow kids to soar in every way, all the while ensuring they receive state-of-the-art medical care at the same time.  Remarkable.

Donors Choose
Brilliant concept here and I still believe one of the most unique charitable organizations in existence today. Teachers list their needs, donors pick where they want to help. It's the best possible kind of donor-directed support. 

There are thousands of worthy charities out there.  What matters most is you finding what matters most to you.  I have my personal reasons for always supporting the Sigma Sigma Sigma Foundation  Tri Sigma has helped sculpt the person I am today.  But that's a more personal individual choice, like supporting a church, University or civic organization. The suggestions for this blog are more broad-based.   I'll keep listing organizations I believe are doing remarkable things. I'd like to hear from you...who do you recommend and why?