Social Venture Partners Greater Tucson

Craig, who has medicine in his roots (his father and grandfather were medical doctors), practiced Family Medicine for 26 years in Golden, Colorado. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Colorado Boulder, received a medical degree from the University of Minnesota, and trained in Family Practice and Psychiatry in Denver and Albany, NY. He served as the President of the Colorado Preferred Physician Organization for 3 years. He also taught meditation to interested patients. He volunteered to serve in the Public Health Service doctoring under-served people in upstate rural NY for 2 years and was a Big Brother for 3 years. He now volunteers with the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona. 

Craig “fell in love” with Tucson after he and wife Deb visited her brother, Rabbi Tom Louchheim of Or Chadash for his birthday one year. In addition to schooling others on Single Malt Scotch 101, you may find Craig golfing, biking, or taking photographs around town. Unless it’s summer, when they will escape to Boulder to play with their twin grand-babies and chocolate lab, Zane.

This Doc Watson may not sing you a bluegrass song (or maybe he would…), but sit back, take a moment, say an “oohhmm,” and get to know Craig.

 

Q: My ideal way to spend an evening in Tucson…

A: Is to have a Scotch tasting party in my backyard at sunset with about six people.

Q: If you could go on a week-long adventure to anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?

A: I would scale Mt. Everest with sherpas who could guarantee sunny weather.

Q: What was the best piece of advice you ever received? From whom?

A: The best piece of advice I ever received came from my father who taught me to ‘learn to listen.’

Q: If you could witness any event past, present or future, what would it be?

A: It would be the coming of aliens to earth, who make it clear they can see and hear everything and are all powerful. Anyone breaking the rules would be removed from Earth…and on January 19, 2020, they would appoint me the maker of all the rules.

Q: If I could go to any concert right now, it would be __.

A: John Coltrane and Miles Davis

Q: When you have 30 minutes of free-time, how do you pass the time?

A: I might choose to use my iPhone to take photographs with the Instagram application and send the pictures to family or friends.

Q: If you could travel back in time, to when would you go? Where would you go? Who would you want to visit?

A: To camp out at the site of the resurrection from Good Friday til past Easter with my iPhone camera.

Q: If I could have one super power I would choose…

A: To fly so that I could avoid the lines at the airport.

 

 

 

A month ago, Social Venture Partners celebrated their 15th Anniversary in Seattle on March 23.

Paul Shoemaker, the first executive director of an SVP and the founding President of the SVP Network, shared why he believes that even after 15 years of work, practice, and building the team, SVP “just got done warming up…we’re walking out onto the court right now, and right now the game is getting ready to start.”

Why? Paul says,

“Who SVP is today is not yet who our community needs us to be.”

“We have done great things and I am really proud of it. And what I also believe is that there is so much more to do, and we have a lot more to do to become who this community needs us to be.”

Watch the full video here.

Who do we need to be for Tucson?

“What is each of us willing to risk, to leave behind; what are we willing to put at stake so that every kindergartner, every youth and every citizen truly, truly has the opportunity to live a successful, whole, healthy life in America?”

We welcome your feedback to Paul’s question! If this video or these quotes spark something within you, please share with us- whether it’s a blog (a few paragraphs) or one sentence, we’d love to hear and share your reflections. Email Erin

 

Social Venture Partners is pleased to announce our Investment Selection for 2013 is Tucson Youth Development. Each of the four finalists are doing exceptional work for our community, and we are honored to have had the experience of getting to know their staff, meet some of their clients, and see their missions in action.

We know the SVP Investment process asks for a significant contribution of time and talent from applicants, as well as from our Investment Committee members. This year, 16 nonprofits submitted Letters of Inquiry and 4 proceeded with final proposals for selection. The finalists (Ben’s Bells, Old Pueblo Community Services, Tucson Oasis, and Tucson Youth Development) then conducted presentations and site visits to acquaint our Partners with the ins-and-outs of their work, mission, and vision. The Investment committee members were along for the ride, hanging tight while we rode the waves of new improvements to the process, new challenges, and a new host of outstanding nonprofits from which to choose.

This is our first Investee selected under the “life skills” funding focus.  At last year’s Annual Meeting, the Focus Task Force announced the expanding of our funding focus to the broader area of life skills, including literacy. We are committed to investing in building the capacity of innovative nonprofits which work to increase the life skills necessary to weave the economic, cultural and social fabric of our community now and in the future. SVP believes the development of core life skills, including literacy, enables individuals of all ages, through education and learning, to participate fully in the workplace, the marketplace and in day-to-day community life.

The mission of Tucson Youth Development (TYD) is to provide quality employment, training and educational services to economically disadvantaged youth who are in need of help to stay in school, graduate and prepare for post-secondary education and the world of work.  Opportunities offered by TYD include tutoring and instruction, skills preparation, structured training, resume building and interviewing skills training, soft skills development that encourage employability (punctuality, attendance, performance), and vocational training.  TYD annually supports approximately 1,200 youth through their varied programs.

Debra Stevenson, TYD Board President stated “We (the Board) understand that a partnership with SVP is a substantial commitment of staff and board time and effort that we are dedicated to fulfilling. We feel this is a unique and vital opportunity in supporting our efforts to take our organization to a higher and more secure level.  Your knowledge and support is an incredible resource.  We truly value your expertise and collaboration.”

Capacity building projects for Tucson Youth Development will be mutually agreed upon by SVP Co-Lead Partners, Rebecca Bednar and Will Butler and the SVP Work Team, and the Board and Staff of Tucson Youth Development.  Likely projects include the development of a strategic plan, exploration of new sources of funding (both earned and contributed), increased visibility for the organization, and leadership development.

“The selection process this year dug deeper than ever before”, stated William Wissler, Investment Chair “we had a very difficult choice, but believe we will have great impact on a population of young people and our community investing in and working alongside Tucson Youth Development”.

Partners can look forward to hearing from TYD and meeting members of their Board and staff at the Annual Partner Meeting on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 from 5:30 to 7:30 pm at the Lodge on the Desert (click here to RSVP). 

The Board of Social Venture Partners wholeheartedly thanks the members of the Investment Committee for their hard work, due diligence and dedication to a thorough process.

2013 Investment Committee Members: William Wissler- Chair, Patricia Andrade, Rhonda Fleming, Bob McKay, Rebecca Bednar, Susan Tarrence, Will Butler, Mark Rubin, and Adaline Klemmedson.

Any Partners interested in joining the Work Team for TYD should contact Julia Waterfall-Kanter (Julia@svpgt.org), or Lead Partners Rebecca Bednar (rebeccabednar@me.com) or Will Butler (wmb@nextrio.com) .

  Joe Sharkey has written “On the Road,” the weekly business-travel column in the New York Times, for 14 years. He is also the author of five books, four non-fiction and a novel. Two of the books are in development, by Paramount Pictures, and by Bold Films, as movies.

Before his association with the Times, Joe was an assistant national editor and a reporter with the Wall Street Journal. Before that, he was a reporter, editor and columnist with newspapers in Philadelphia, and the executive city editor of the Albany (N.Y.) Times-Union. He is now at work on a new novel and a screenplay.

A Vietnam veteran and a native of Philadelphia, he is married to Nancy Sharkey, a former  senior editor for the New York Times who is now a professor at the University of Arizona. They are both avid equestrians, and live on the border of Saguaro National Park in Tucson, where they are volunteer mounted National Park Rangers. They have a horse and two parrots, one of whom never stops talking. (The parrot, that is).

Q: Describe your earliest memory of volunteering to serve your community. About how old would you have been?

A: 9 or 10, Boy Scouts, scrap metal collections.

Q: Why did you join Social Venture Partners?

A: My wife Nancy and I really, really like the people, and thanks to them are enthusiastically motivated. Plus we really, really like Tucson and would like to have some kind of positive effect.

Q: What was the best piece of advice you ever received? From whom?

A: #1: “Be prepared.”  -Boy Scouts of America. #2: “De gustibus non est disputandum.”

Q: As a frequent traveler, what do you never leave home without?

A: My sense of humor.

Q: Have you ever met a celebrity or public figure? Tell about the experience.

A: Frequently, as a reporter for 40+ years. Some examples: Weirdest: Mel Gibson, hands down. Nicest: Lily Tomlin. Most Beautiful: Rania, queen of Jordan. Most Dumb: Tom Cruise. But the oddest experience was at a Hollywood dinner sitting next to June Lockhart, who had played the mother on “Lassie” in the 1950s, and who was in early stages of dementia at the time of this dinner. We had a grand old conversation, but June kept calling me “Timmy” and talking about the fun we used to have. Darryl Hannah, sitting on the other side, then went along with it. Afterward, June’s daughter thanked us profusely for showing her mother a grand evening.

Q: If I could go to any concert right now, it would be __.

A: The next time EmmyLou Harris sings anywhere, but I’ll also happily settle for Rene Fleming doing great coloratura arias

Q: My ideal night on the town in Tucson would include…

A: Barbeque in our backyard with friends, sitting by a fire pit as the sunset colors the mountains

Q: What did you like most about living in New York?

A: The fact that as a flâneur, you can walk and walk and walk in New York and never run out of city.

Q: Life in the desert is ____________________.

A: Physically energizing and stimulating; visually breathtaking.

Q: What is your ideal way to spend a day off from work?

A: On a horse in the desert with my wife.

 

 

 

 

 

A Moment for Mindful Governance

by Patricia Andrade, SVPGT Board Vice-chair and Governance committee chair

At SVPGT’s most recent board meeting, we dealt with some important agenda items, but then took time to further our own growth as individual board members and collectively as a governing body.

When we sent out our board meeting packet last week, we included an opinion piece from an issue of The Chronicle of Philanthropy published last summer. It was meant to stimulate discussion about governance practices, with the goal of elevating our own performance as a board. The piece, “Damage Done by a Culture of Deference:  Leadership Lessons from the Penn State Tragedy,” written by a foundation executive, summarized the key points that boards could learn from the recent Penn State University debacle. Most importantly, the author argued, the board’s habits, processes, and systems – taken together, its culture – had inadvertently contributed to its failure to discharge its responsibilities.  As boards, however, it’s not enough to claim that our failings were inadvertent. We must actively take steps to learn about good governance, to be aware of our board’s strengths and weaknesses, and then to build on our strengths and to mitigate our weaknesses in an intentional way.

Our conversation, while limited to 20 minutes, was thoughtful and wide-ranging. It was less about the Penn State case than it was about considering the formal and informal ways that SVPGT creates a culture of strong board leadership representing diverse perspectives. Ideas discussed ranged from ensuring that the Board/Executive Director partnership is open and appropriately balanced, to taking personal responsibility for being knowledgeable about all aspects of our fiduciary requirements (including the inner workings of our financial reporting). We decided that we will revisit our current board structure, in which our committee chairs are automatically board members, to see if it supports our desire to maximize opportunities for Partners to meaningfully participate in the leadership of the partnership.

Board meetings are usually jam-packed with important operational reports and strategic updates. These are the “bread and butter” of our work. But it’s essential to step back, regularly and purposefully, to assess (and challenge) our assumptions and practices. Much like we have to change up our workout routines periodically to move beyond our current fitness levels, it’s important for board members to invest time in learning how to be more effective leaders. I’m proud that our board is committed to its ongoing development.

By the way, if you’d like to read the article that inspired our discussion, click here.

Harriet is an enthusiastic volunteer, who, in addition to keeping her and husband Len’s home ship-shape, is enjoying her retirement years with her hand in multiple nonprofit organizations including Brandeis National Committee, Congregation Or Chadash, the Community Food Bank, Literacy Volunteers of Tucson, and Women’s Committee of Jewish Federation. As V.P. and Director of Harte-Hanks (the largest global direct marketing company) List & Data Services, she ran a $50 million division and later served for 6 years on the Ethical Guideline Committee of the Direct Marketing Association which develops guidelines for the direct marketing industry. Between the two of them, Harriet and Len have 5 kids and 4 grandkids. And of course, their four legged kid- a Labrodoodle named Dude. Foodies on a mission, Harriet and Len are founders of the Jewish Food Festival of Tucson.

Q: Describe your earliest memory of volunteering to serve your community. About how old would you have been?

A: My earliest charitable memory – I was in first grade – was a tin silver Tzedekah (Charity) box on our kitchen window – and I put part of my allowance in that box each week. When I was 13 or 14,  my Young Judea group baked bread each Friday for a Jewish Shelter for Homeless in Silver Spring, Maryland. My mother drove me to the shelter to deliver the bread.

Q: What was the best piece of advice you ever received? From whom?

A: There is an old expression “You can’t dance at all the weddings”, but my dad told me over and over as I grew up, “Harriet, you CAN dance at ALL the weddings!”

Q: If I could choose one new talent to instantly acquire, it would be ____.

A: Speed Reading. So many books, so little time!

Q: Tell about a significant volunteer experience that you have had in Tucson.

A: In March, I began tutoring an amazing woman through Literacy Volunteers of Tucson. Experiencing her enthusiasm, willingness to learn and hard work to improve her life has rewarded me with a deep satisfaction and gratitude for my own life’s riches.

Q: What’s the best thing about being retired?

A: The luxury of time and freedom to choose how you want to spend it.

Q: How did you and your husband Len get the idea to start the Jewish Food Festival?

A: We volunteered for Fundraising at our synagogue- and they needed a new idea. We had watched a food festival in Massachusetts that supported the town library’s growth from a few hundred attendees to 10,000 over 3 or 4 years and felt we could do that too! The Jewish Food Festival is on November 4th this year – contact me for tickets or information. www.tucsonjewishfoodfestival.com

 

 By Erin Henderson, Programs and Communications Associate/AmeriCorps VISTA

The 2012 Grant Round is officially underway. On Thursday, September 27, SVPGT welcomed over 40 nonprofit representatives to a Meet SVP session at the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona. Executive Director Julia Waterfall-Kanter delivered a fantastic presentation to educate grant hopefuls on the realities of working with SVP, the investment process, and how to determine if their organization would not only be qualified, but a good fit.

A good fit:

With the shift in our funding focus from literacy to life skills, we saw new players entering the game. Representatives from the following 42 organizations attended the launch session:

Administration of Resources and Choices

American Red Cross

Amity Circle Tree Ranch

Arizona Blind and Deaf Children’s Foundation

Arizona Youth Partnership

Arts for All

Arts Integration Solutions

Assistance League of Tucson

AVIVA Children’s Services

Ben’s Bells

Beowulf Alley Theater

Boys and Girls Clubs

Children’s Museum Tucson

CODAC Behavioral Health Services

Community Food Bank

Compass Health Care

Diaper Bank of Southern Arizona

Easter Seals Blake Foundation

Education Enrichment Foundation

Emerge!

Habitat for Humanity

Interfaith Community Services

Intermountain Centers for Human Development

Kore Press

La Paloma Family Services

Live the Solution

Model Community Learning Center

National Institute for Peer Support

Old Pueblo Community Services

Our Family Services

Pima Council on Aging

Primavera

Strength Building Partners

Trot

Tucson Botanical Gardens

Tucson Junior ??

Tucson Museum of Art

Tucson Oasis

Tucson Youth Development

Voices for Education

YMCA of Southern Arizona

YWCA

If you know our eligibility requirements, you know that right off the bat, some of these groups are already eliminated. Some just won’t be ready for a Partnership with SVP. Some of their Boards or Staff won’t be on board with the idea of another entity being involved in their processes. Some are too big and complex. Some are just too small. Like Goldilocks, we will be selecting the organization that is “Juuuuust right!”

Stiff competition. Slim chances. Only one organization out of 42 will be chosen.  But we don’t think it was a waste of the other’s time to show up and Meet SVP.

Why this meeting was valuable

A key element of SVPGT’s mission is to “build a culture of philanthropy.” At the meeting we took a moment to go around the room and have each representative introduce herself/himself. By familiarizing everyone with who was in the room, we took another step towards building that community. A community of philanthropy must be reflected in the relationships between nonprofits in order to best serve the community and inspire collaboration among individuals. These representatives weren’t only meeting SVP, but other members of the nonprofit community.

Kassy Rodheaver of the Pima County Public Library’s Grants and Nonprofits Info Center also brought along a few resources to plug all of these representatives into other grant opportunities. If SVP isn’t the right opportunity, there are more resources out there and the crowd seemed to really appreciate the additional info.

And just because an organization might not be a good fit this year, there’s always next year. And the next…and the next…

42 organizations now have a strong understanding of who SVPGT is, what we do, and why we do what we do. That spreading of knowledge is invaluable for the advancement of SVPGT and for the advancement of nonprofits that we invest in.

With the support of Partners Will Butler, Rhonda Fleming, Frank Grundstrom, and Mark Rubin, this meeting was a huge success. We can’t wait to start reading the Letters Of Inquiry!

DIVE INTO SVP: Join the Investment Committee and be a part of these exciting times. Who doesn’t want to have a hand in giving away money?!

 

Virginia “Ginnie” Griffis was an Education Technology educator and has a combined total of 16 years working with children, teachers, and administrators. She shared her passion for reading for 12 years as a Language Arts classroom teacher. As a Lead Partner, Ginnie has served as a trusted liason between Reading Seed Staff and the SVPGT Partnership. If you notice her thumb looking a little green, no need to be alarmed: Ginnie is on the Community Gardens of Tucson Board. She also previously served on the Pima County Library Foundation Board. 

Q: Describe your earliest memory of volunteering to serve your community.

A: My earliest memory of volunteering was through the girl scouts. I was one of several scouts that helped the Community Foundation in Indianapolis stuff envelopes for a fundraiser.

Q: On the weekend, you are likely to spot me _______.

A: Biking somewhere through Tucson or walking Sabino Canyon in the early morning.

Q: Where did you spend your summer and what was the most interesting/fun thing you did this summer?

A: I vacationed in Michigan most of the summer staying at a cottage on Torch Lake, known for its beautiful “carribean blue” waters. One of my favorite moments was to watch a lingering sunset while cruising in the middle of the lake on a neighbor’s float boat. I loved sharing the moment with good friends and being surrounded by the shimmering water.

Q: Never have I ever _______.

A: Skydived.

Q: If I could choose one new talent to instantly acquire, it would be ____.

A: To be fluent in Spanish.

Q: What is the best trip you ever went on? Who was with you? What did you do?

A: Rafting down the Grand Canyon is my favorite recent trip. To celebrate an “0″ birthday, I organized a week long rafting trip through the Grand Canyon. I’ve hiked the canyon several times, but found traveling at the river waters’ level gave me a new appreciation of its geological history as well as what the amazing early explorers experienced. Nine family members and friends accepted my invitation. We had very unusual weather for Memorial Day weekend, rain almost every day with hail. But with the crazy conditions, we all bonded. The outfitters provided fabulous food, history and side trips. However took me almost a week for my body to adjust to being back on land.

 

 

 

 

By Erin Henderson

Programs and Communications Associate/AmeriCorps VISTA

“Today’s 9/11,” the round cheeked 7-year-old girl with fancy braids and wide blue eyes informed me. “My big sister told me that two planes flew into these buildings.” Sitting next to her on the child-sized bench in the lunchroom of Gallego Elementary, I realize that most of these precious faces weren’t even born on that day in 2001. But it’s already a part of the history lessons, though for most of us it still feels like an open wound.

Not wanting to hash over the details of such a tragedy with this innocent child on my first day volunteering as a reading coach, I replied: “Yes, you’re right. It was a very sad thing and many people were hurt. But when something bad happens, we can do something nice for others and try to make the world a better place. That’s why I am here today to read with y’all. Lots of people around the country are volunteering today. ”

She nods, smiles, and promptly says “I don’t like apples. Are you going to come to recess with us?”

Like most kids, she’s moved on to another topic in the blink of an eye.

But she seemed to understand what I was getting at and I can only hope that the concept sank in.

I was only 13 when the towers fell in New York and the country stood in disbelief and grief. Watching the news with my classmates in Home Ec, I remember wondering “How could this happen?” I didn’t understand then. And I don’t understand now.

What I do understand is exactly what I told that little inquisitive girl:

The actions we take in the aftermath of tragedy define our strength as a nation and as individuals. It tests our character to the limits: Can we love those who persecute us? Give without discrimination? Serve whole-heartedly?

All easier said than done.

The 9/11 Day Movement acknowledged this in a powerful way. “9/11 Day is a movement built on people remembering through positive action” (slogan from the website). People from all walks of life volunteered in different capacities: celebrities, politicians, blue collar, white collar, etc. As national service volunteers with the AmeriCorps VISTA program, we were given the opportunity to take the day from work and volunteer with another nonprofit to show support for the positive things happening in our communities.

What else is there to do after such tragedy? We’ve mourned. We’ve been angry. We were confused. Now what?

I can’t think of a better way to honor the lives lost, defy terrorism of all forms, and heal our wounds than spending the day in service to one another. When we stand together in service, we stand for our right to a high quality life free from crippling fear or debilitating hate. We stand for those who can’t. We stand for those whose rights were taken from them.

Serve because you remember.

Join the 9/11 Day Movement next year, September 11, 2013, and each day until then.

A word from Mark Rubin, Chief Engager and Founding Partner

 

Why should you go to the Social Venture Partners Annual Conference in Portland Oregon in early November (from Thursday evening, 11/8 through noon on Saturday, 11/10)? No, really, why should you go?

I could try the 10 reasons list that David Letterman made famous, but I employ no writers to make me look good and sound funny, and I’ve been gone for 17 days and have piles of paper that require my attention! I could tell you all about the great food and spirits you’ll find in Portland—including food at Luce, one of Bon Appetit’s ten best new restaurants of 2012, and food trucks galore—but I left my foodie magazines at home. I could share with you the exciting programming that will be presented at the conference, but you can read about all of that here. I can tell you our very cool staff members—Julia and Erin—are going, as well as my wife Jane and I (and at least two other Partners), and that we’ll all have a better time if you’re with us.

Alas, if I haven’t persuaded you yet, I must share with you the fact that going to Cleveland for the 2009 Annual Conference—yes, that’s Cleveland, with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as the party venue—was a highlight of my six years with SVPGT. Terrific programming, yes, but what really made the trip was meeting and spending time with a truly committed bunch of highly talented people who, with huge hearts and big brains, want to change the world!!! Those are the people with whom I want to share my time!

Now, acknowledging the limits of time, wallets, etc., I hope and expect that you’ll be joining us in Portland. Click here to REGISTER or contact Julia for more info.

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