New Labor Supply to Help Keep Philanthropy Women Running

Hello Feminist Giving friends! This week at Philanthropy Women brings some exciting news for us. As it turns out, a male ally to gender equality givers is retiring after 33 years as a business analyst, and he is going to be joining us as a writer at Philanthropy Women. This new writer and thinker will be adding fuel to our fire as the only funding news outlet in the world exclusively devoted to women. And who is this exciting addition to our team?

Philanthropy Women founder Kiersten Marek with her husband, Kevin Marek, who has retired after 33 years working in the business world. (Image credit: Kiersten Marek)

Why, it’s none other than my husband of over 25 years, Kevin Marek! As of May 26, he will be taking off the corporate shackles and rejoining the rest of the world to pursue all of his many interests and hobbies, and one of those interests is in being a male ally to the cause of gender equality.

I won’t lie. It’s been a tough time keeping going with publishing on Philanthropy Women now that I have a secret other job, and since our loss of funding meant we had to downsize our team completely and become a one-woman show. Now we finally have a new supply of labor coming on board!

Kevin will start by alternating the authorship of our bimonthly newsletter for Philanthropy Women, and if all goes well (meaning more subscribers come on board) we will continue to add other features to his work. 

As a little background, Kevin is a graduate of University of Toronto with a BA in Classics and Providence College with a Masters in History. He has been working in the insurance industry for most of his career, and is particularly known for his business and procedure analysis acumen. 

And now, on to some big news from the Feminist Giving realm!


1. Latino Victory Fund Endorses Sabina Matos in Historic Bid for RI Congressional District

Sabina Matos is running for a House of Representatives seat in Rhode Island. (Image credit: Sabinamatos.com)

It’s true: we have a brave, competent, and experience woman running to fill Rhode Island’s first Congressional seat: Sabina Matos. I have known Sabina for over ten years and am confident she is the strongest candidate for this job, so I’m thrilled that she has received endorsement from the Latino Victory Fund. You can learn more about Sabina Matos’ campaign HERE.

2. Ms. Foundation Unveils New Campaign Aimed at Racial and Gender Equality

During the 2023 Women of Vision Awards: Celebrating Generations of Progress & Power, the Ms. Foundation for Women marked the kick-off of their largest-ever fundraising campaign. This new campaign, entitled Creating the Future We Deserve, plans to raise a $100 million over the next year. Ruth McFarlane, Chief Advancement Officer, and Sara Gould, former President of the Ms. Foundation, took to the stage to celebrate the foundation’s impact over the past 50 years and acknowledge the continued urgent need to provide for better safety, health, and economic opportunities for women and girls of color. “We are honored to announce our groundbreaking campaign, Creating the Future We Deserve, which will empower grassroots organizations led by women and girls of color, expand the gender and racial equity movements, and scale effective, targeted philanthropy,” said Teresa Younger, President and CEO of the Ms. Foundation for Women. For more information about the campaign, please visit www.forwomen.org/future

3. Beyonce Plans to Make More Grants to Business Owners During Upcoming Tour

Beyonce plans to offer small business grants during her upcoming Renaissance World Tour. The entertainer’s foundation, BeyGOOD plans to host luncheons for entrepreneurs and students in cities visited along the tour route. As part of these events, entrepreneurs will have the chance to apply for grants, with a total of $1 million available. The tour is scheduled to run from May through September. More information here.

4. Skoll Foundation Makes First Large Donation to Heading for Change, Suzanne Biegel’s Legacy Funding Vehicle

Suzanne, Biegel, longtime expert on gender lens investing, has launched a new endowment called Heading for Change along with her husband Daniel Maskit. The new endowment will be “investing at the critical intersection of gender and climate.” Skoll Foundation has made a $500,000 gift to support this work. More information here.

5. How Does Women’s Health Research Lack Funding? Let Us Bubble Map the Ways

Nature Magazine has done a bang-up job of creating new data that shows just how badly underfunded women’s health research is. Check out the statistics and get enraged like me. And then figure out how you can help solve the problem by funding more women’s health research.

Related:

As Gender Lens Investing Grows, Social Impacts Expand

How Lady Gaga Responded to the Community While on Tour

This Social Enterprise Helps Women See Strategies for Giving Up-Close

How The American Jobs Act Strengthens Women in Society

Author: Kiersten Marek

Kiersten Marek, LICSW, is the founder of Philanthropy Women. She practices clinical social work and writes about how women donors and their allies are advancing social change.

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