When Barbara Epke was interviewed for the co-chair position of the Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle, she asked one of the interviewers how she felt about being part of the group. The woman said it changed her life – and today, Epke couldn’t agree more.
“Being a member and being involved with nonprofits really changes how Circle members know Baltimore and the needs of local nonprofits, as well as how they regard philanthropy,” said Epke.
Giving circles, when a group of people pool their funds and donate periodically to nonprofits of their choosing, have risen in popularity as a more accessible and community-focused type of philanthropy.
According to a report published by The Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers and the Maryland Philanthropy Network, during the late 1990s, giving circles emerged as a higher-engagement form of philanthropy. Donors who wanted to do more than simply write a check were looking for ways to ensure their contributions made maximum impact.
What emerged from this need was two strategies: One was venture philanthropy; the other was giving circles. The latter was especially popular among women, African-Americans and younger donors.
Baltimore’s Giving Circles
Baltimore boasts a wide variety of giving circles that focus their funds on everything from women’s issues to teen philanthropy to teachers.
Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle has more than 400 members, making it one of the city’s largest giving circles. Volunteers can serve on any of its seven committees, including its post-grant committee.
While having more than 400 members can increase a giving circle’s influence, smaller circles can still make a difference. The Jewish Women’s Giving Foundation of Baltimore has more than 100 members, according to the circle’s current chair, Jodi Moskowitz, and makes grants between $5,000 and $20,000.
“It really has opened my eyes to all the things that you think about when you give money,” says Moskowitz. “The other thing about being part of a giving circle is, if I had $1,000 that I wanted to give to six organizations, it wouldn’t be that much money that I was able to give to each organization. But if I combine my $1,000 with everybody else’s $1,000, we can give an organization up to $20,000, which, for a lot of organizations, can make a huge difference.”
How It Works
Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle, like most giving circles, uses membership dues to fund grants for Baltimore nonprofits. In the last year, the organization has donated over $500,000 to nonprofits that advance opportunities for women and their families in Baltimore City and Baltimore County.
“We feel, in Baltimore, there are so many nonprofits that can use our help,” says Epke, who has been involved with the giving circle since 2018. “By design, we devote a very high percentage of our membership dues to fund grants, up to $25,000, to as many applicants as possible.”
The Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle is accepting new applications online this month and plans to award another round of funds in the spring. Once an organization receives a grant, it is typically required to wait at least a year before applying for another.
Giving circles are also not limited to Baltimore. According to Philanthropy Together, there are an estimated 4,000 active giving circles worldwide, 60% of which are women-centered.
“What [our] members have in common is a desire to make Baltimore better. Our mission is to create opportunities to improve the lives of Baltimore City and County women and their children,” says Epke.
An Education in Giving
Giving circles often provide members with information about local nonprofits that they might not learn otherwise.
For example, in the last year, the Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle received more than 180 applicants for grants. While the organization allocated funds to 23 grantees, members who participated in the decision-making process were able to learn about all of the applicants, many of whom are less well-known.
“There are a lot of newer, smaller grantees, nonprofits in the community which really need funds to grow, and often the achievement of receiving a BWGC grant is a stepping stone to applying for other sources of funding,” explains Epke. “People may not know them terribly well yet.”
Epke says close to 40% of the circle’s grants were given to those smaller nonprofits.
This year, members of the Jewish Women’s Giving Foundation of Baltimore received applications from about 40 different organizations. According to Moskowitz, members broke into reading groups to examine the applications, with each assigned three proposals to review more in depth.
Since Jewish Women’s Giving Foundation of Baltimore is part of The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore, the organization has a director who handles initial outreach to nonprofits, according to Moskowitz. However, everyone else involved in the giving circle is a volunteer.
“The whole philosophy of a giving circle is collective giving, so that we’re making a decision as a group about how we want to give our money,” says Moskowitz. “That broadens your perspective.”
After an organization receives a grant, the work of a giving circle is not done.
Epke says Baltimore Women’s Giving Circle has a post-grant committee to evaluate the grantee’s use of the donation and provide other resources if needed. “It’s one thing to get the money, and then it’s another to work with them and see if they need volunteers or any help.”
