{"id":3380,"date":"2022-11-09T12:01:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-09T17:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3380"},"modified":"2022-11-09T12:01:00","modified_gmt":"2022-11-09T17:01:00","slug":"guest-commentary-at-the-heart-of-giving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3380","title":{"rendered":"Guest commentary: At the Heart of Giving"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Carolyn Hendrickson<\/strong><\/p>\n

As someone who genuinely enjoys building relationships, I am always curious what motivates people to give. In a study referenced in Psychology Today, 85% of respondents said the reason they gave was simply because someone asked them. I have been asked whether the inclination to give is more likely to be grounded in family values or is it a learned behavior. The good news is that there is no firm answer; it\u2019s likely to be a combination. And, with the advances in social media, the \u201casking\u201d by nonprofits is highly visible and reaches a much broader audience than ever before.<\/p>\n

Having grown up on a farm in Central New York, my formative years of financial giving was limited to dropping money into the collection plate on Sunday. I watched my parents\u2019 do that as the plate was passed down the pew, and inherently knew I wanted to be part of it. I didn\u2019t know all the ways the money would be used, but I knew some of it helped poor people in our community. Even as a child it felt good to help and be connected with something bigger than myself. Whether it was a quarter or a dollar bill I earned from babysitting, I wanted to contribute. Little did I know this was the start of what would become my life\u2019s passion.<\/p>\n

Throughout my childhood and emerging adulthood, I thought philanthropy was something only for the incredibly wealthy. Over the past 25 years as a development professional, I now know that philanthropy\u2014the act of giving to help others or society\u2014is a meaningful opportunity for everyone. I have had the good fortune to know people considered wealthy and those with very limited resources give generously. Helping others simply feels good.<\/p>\n

Of no less importance are gifts of time\u2014volunteering, pitching in. My father was quick to help other farmers when the need was apparent, and his caring ways still impact my actions today. Answering phones at a fundraiser, serving on a board, collecting hygiene items for families in need might speak to your heart, or knitting hats for a street outreach providing medical care. Giving your time and talent can change your life and the community around you.<\/p>\n

Through the years, my personal philanthropy is a result of learned behavior. My former career in financial services gave me insights on tools and strategies for giving. Though knowledge of tax advantages is helpful, my career in charitable giving has helped me better recognize how much the heart is connected to giving. Listening to donors, understanding what matters to them, and helping them find a meaningful opportunity to have impact\u2014whether it is a gift of time, money, or both\u2014is incredibly rewarding.<\/p>\n

There is no such thing as a too-small gift. Giving is deeply personal. It is about a relationship. One thing that the cloud of a two-year pandemic has reinforced for me is that people and relationships are what matter most in our lives. American researcher and author Bren\u00e9 Brown tells us \u201cWe are hard-wired to connect with others, it\u2019s what gives purpose to our lives and without it there is suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n

My hope is that going forward we never forget how human connection and wellbeing are intricately tied. My wish for each and every one of you, is that you richly experience the joy of friendship and the love of others in a way that will replenish your spirit. May every gift you make come from your heart.<\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s note: Carolyn Hendrickson is the Director of Planned Giving at The Upstate Foundation.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Carolyn Hendrickson As someone who genuinely enjoys building relationships, I am always curious what motivates people to give. In a study referenced in Psychology Today, 85% of respondents said the reason they gave was simply because someone asked them. I have been asked whether the inclination to give is more likely to be grounded…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":3381,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1245],"tags":[1189,1317,990,1191],"class_list":["post-3380","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guest-commentary","tag-carolyn-hendrickson","tag-november-2022","tag-philanthropy","tag-upstate-foundation"],"gutentor_comment":0,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Carolyn-Hendrickson-Upstate-Hospital.jpg?fit=1352%2C2026&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3134,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3134","url_meta":{"origin":3380,"position":0},"title":"For Carolyn Hendrickson, Philanthropy is a Lifestyle","author":"Staff","date":"November 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"By Ken Sturtz \u00a0 A stillness swept over the church as the congregation sat enthralled by a visitor\u2019s story of how he\u2019d been called upon to make a life-changing decision to leave a career in business and devote himself to missionary work. Then he offered a piece of advice: if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Cover Story"","block_context":{"text":"Cover Story","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=100"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Carolyn-Hendrickson-0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Carolyn-Hendrickson-0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Carolyn-Hendrickson-0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Carolyn-Hendrickson-0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Carolyn-Hendrickson-0004-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3514,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3514","url_meta":{"origin":3380,"position":1},"title":"Guest Commentary: This year, \u2018Be the Beat\u2019","author":"Alyssa Dearborn","date":"February 20, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By Kristy Smorol February is one of my favorite months of the year. It\u2019s American Heart Month! As a marketing and communications director for the American Heart Association, I spend my February days wearing red, talking about heart health, and reminding women that heart disease is their biggest health threat.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=1245"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Kristy-Smorol-headshot-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Kristy-Smorol-headshot-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Kristy-Smorol-headshot-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Kristy-Smorol-headshot-scaled.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3331,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3331","url_meta":{"origin":3380,"position":2},"title":"Guest commentary: Pay It Forward","author":"Alyssa Dearborn","date":"September 30, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"By Tracey Burkey Life was good! My husband and I married in August 2014. My youngest son was a sophomore in high school and all our adult kids were healthy and thriving. We were also proud grandparents to a beautiful granddaughter. I had a job that I loved. I had\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=1245"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Tracey-Burkey.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Tracey-Burkey.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Tracey-Burkey.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Tracey-Burkey.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3351,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3351","url_meta":{"origin":3380,"position":3},"title":"Guest commentary: Pay It Forward","author":"Alyssa Dearborn","date":"October 17, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"By Tracey Burkey Life was good! My husband and I married in August 2014. My youngest son was a sophomore in high school and all our adult kids were healthy and thriving. We were also proud grandparents to a beautiful granddaughter. I had a job that I loved. I had\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=1245"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Tracey-Burkey-1.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Tracey-Burkey-1.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Tracey-Burkey-1.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Tracey-Burkey-1.jpg?fit=829%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3599,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3599","url_meta":{"origin":3380,"position":4},"title":"Guest Commentary – Dear Cancer\u2026","author":"Alyssa Dearborn","date":"May 10, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By Amber Smith Dear Cancer, I decided to write you a letter. It seems strange to sit down and write a letter to something that can take on many different forms, however, I\u2019m going to try. You and I have had a relatively short relationship, only spanning the course of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=1245"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Amber-Howland-Smith-Syracuse-Woman-Magazine-0065-scaled.jpg?fit=801%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Amber-Howland-Smith-Syracuse-Woman-Magazine-0065-scaled.jpg?fit=801%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Amber-Howland-Smith-Syracuse-Woman-Magazine-0065-scaled.jpg?fit=801%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Amber-Howland-Smith-Syracuse-Woman-Magazine-0065-scaled.jpg?fit=801%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3553,"url":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?p=3553","url_meta":{"origin":3380,"position":5},"title":"Guest commentary: Thinking about starting or scaling a small business? You don\u2019t need to do it alone!","author":"Alyssa Dearborn","date":"April 19, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By Meghan C. Florkowski At the WISE Women\u2019s Business Center (WBC), we\u2019re often asked about why we do the work we do. We love this question! The short answer is that our center is wholly dedicated to helping Central New York women achieve their potential as business owners. At WISE,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Commentary","link":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/?cat=1245"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WISE-WBC-Women.png?fit=1200%2C960&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WISE-WBC-Women.png?fit=1200%2C960&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WISE-WBC-Women.png?fit=1200%2C960&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WISE-WBC-Women.png?fit=1200%2C960&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/WISE-WBC-Women.png?fit=1200%2C960&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3380","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3380"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3380\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3382,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3380\/revisions\/3382"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3381"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3380"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3380"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.syracusewomanmag.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3380"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}