Capacity Building Takes Off
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| Kathleen Swann (left) of Leadership Rhode Island and Deborah Perry of the YWCA of Northern Rode Island are two members of the 2009 Class of Foundation Fellows. |
Imagining a sustainable sector: The Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence Fund
The fortune cookie David Hirsch opened in September 1965 declared, “He who has hope has everything.” At the time, David was a student at Harvard Business School, occasionally dating a junior at Simmons College, Hope Alperin. The fortune was prescient: just two years later, in December 1967, the two were wed and hope has continued to spur them on to great adventures.
"To the extent that we can empower them to fulfill their missions even more effectively, we can be a better community.”
David and Hope Hirsch are no strangers to the Foundation, of course. David has been a director since 2003 and chairman since January 2009; Hope’s brother, Melvin Alperin, is a former director and chairman. The Alperin Hirsch Family Fund, established in 1995, provides scholarships to students of Pawtucket’s Shea High School, supports Rhode Island for Community & Justice (David is a former trustee), and supplements the Rhode Island Scholarship Assistance Fund at the Foundation. And they are certainly no strangers to philanthropy. Loyal alumni of their respective alma maters, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and Simmons College, they have established named scholarships at both institutions to help deserving students fulfill their educational potential. David is a trustee of RPI, chairman of its advancement committee, and former national chairman of its annual fund, and Hope is a Simmons College trustee.
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| Hope and David Hirsch | In fact, education has been a prevalent theme of their philanthropic lives. Both were active fundraisers for the Wheeler School, where their three children, Andrew, Jeffrey, and Jamie attended. David served as co-chairman of Wheeler’s Centennial Fund and Hope served as a trustee. They have been avid supporters as well of Community Preparatory School in Providence, admiring the school’s commitment to preparing minority and low-income students from Providence for challenging high school environments. Jewish causes also have captured their philanthropic imagination. David is past president and campaign chairman of the Jewish Federation of Rhode Island, past vice president of the state’s Jewish Community Center, and past national vice-chairman of the United Jewish Appeal. Hope has led fundraising efforts for the Alperin Schechter School and Jewish Community Day School, whose board she has served, and has taught swimming at the Jewish Community Center for three decades. She also has been a board member at several other organizations, including Community Preparatory School and the Jewish Federation of Rhode Island.
"I say, ‘Give me a day to work on it,’ and I start conceiving a plan that volunteers can put into action.”
In the early days of their marriage, the Hirsches lived in Cambridge for a year, as David started a career in the fastener business that would eventually land him in the position of chairman and chief executive officer of Vertex Distribution in Attleboro, Massachusetts. Hope worked at a high tech company doing research in thermionics. Soon after, they moved to Hope’s hometown of Providence, raising their family in the shadow of Brown’s Marvel Gymnasium. Hope embarked on her volunteer career, becoming known as the consummate teacher for fundraisers, explaining, “Teaching people how to ask for money comes naturally to me. When I see an organization – like the Jewish Day School, for instance – that needs fundraising help, I say, ‘Give me a day to work on it,’ and I start conceiving a plan that volunteers can put into action.”
So how did these two philanthropists, so enthusiastically involved in education, social justice, and Jewish causes, decide to start a new endowment for the Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence (INE) at the Foundation? David reflects, “I liked this project from the beginning because of its focus on Rhode Island nonprofits – the organizations that deliver so many important services in the state. Strengthening these critical institutions will have a ripple effect. To the extent that we can empower them to fulfill their missions even more effectively, we can be a better community.” Hope adds, “This just seemed like such a logical place to put some money to work.”
"The INE allows us to deliberately, thoughtfully, and intentionally complement our ongoing grantmaking, and to find out what’s working so we can do more of it."
The Hirsches also see INE as very much tied into their interest in education. “INE is at its core about education,” says David. “And not only about teaching nonprofits new approaches to persistent challenges. The board was behind this project because of the learning opportunities it offers the Foundation through a built-in evaluation element. The INE allows us to deliberately, thoughtfully, and intentionally complement our ongoing grantmaking, and to find out what’s working so we can do more of it.”
David was emphatic about establishing this new fund without the Hirsch name attached. “Hope and I plan to add to the fund every year. As the INE becomes more well known and the Foundation is able to publicize the results of its innovative efforts to help Rhode Island nonprofits achieve financial sustainability, our wish is that other Rhode Islanders will see this as a viable focus for their philanthropy and will contribute to the fund, so it can grow into a true endowment for the INE.” |