ATLANTA — The dawn of the new year offers the opportunity to increase the amount of time, talent and treasure people commit to doing good in the community, the head of an Atlanta grantmaking community foundation said Thursday.
Alicia Philipp, president of The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, urged members of the Buckhead Business Association (BBA) to find their passion and donate their resources to help a community organization however they can.
“What’s your talent and how can you sometimes share that talent in a way that will really help others in the community to make a difference?” Philipp said. “Time often is just that volunteer time of really helping an organization to do the things that need to get done. And treasure, for all of us to think about how can we give more.”
The Community Foundation serves 23 counties in and around Metro Atlanta and aims “to strengthen the region by providing quality services to donors and innovative solutions to community problems,” Philipp said. The organization works with more than 900 families and individuals, maintains more than $929 million in assets and is one the largest 25 organizations of its kind in the nation.
“Find your passion,” Philipp said. “Figure out how you can make a difference somewhere that is meaningful to you and really think about how is that gift going to make a critical difference in this community.”
The Chronicle of Philanthropy recently ranked Atlanta the fourth most generous city in the country, behind Salt Lake City, Memphis, Tenn., and Birmingham, Ala. According to the publication, Atlantans on average give 4 percent of their adjusted gross income to charity.
But, Philipp told BBA members she wouldn’t rest until Atlanta tops the list.
“Now, am I satisfied with fourth? …We really should be first,” Philipp said. “Fourth is not good enough for anybody. So, we are going to work very hard as a community to be No. 1.”
Philipp spoke during the BBA’s final Thursday breakfast meeting of 2014. The BBA’s Thursday breakfast series will resume on Jan. 8.
For more information, visit www.buckheadbusiness.org.