Corporate Giving
12 • PhilMthropyJoumal of North Cardina
No gain in
corporate giving
The Conference Board says corpo
rate giving will remain flat for 1994,
with most gifts going to edncation.
June 1994
A piece of the pie
Companies
ranked on
minority
giving
A new report on corporate giving
to programs benefiting minori
ties has found that companies
gave less than 20 percent to
programs for ethnic and racial
groups, which now make up 24
percent of the nation’s popula
tion.
By Barbara Solow
A study believed to be the
/\ first comprehensive look at
/ 1 corporate giving to minori
ties shows U.S. companies gave less
than a quarter of their grant dollars
to programs aimed at racial and eth
nic groups.
The study of 19 top profit-making
U.S. corporations by the Nationai
Committee for Responsive Phil
anthropy foimd that only 17 percent
of their 1988 grant dollars went to
programs for minorities.
The report, “Corporate Grant
making: Giving to Racial/Ethnic
Populations,” analyzed only those
programs that were primarily
intended to benefit minorities,
excluding those that may have inci
dentally or even substantially bene
fited a population that was not tar
geted.
The country’s four largest racial
and ethnic groups - African
Americans, Asian Americans,
Hispanics and Native Americans -
now make up 24 percent of the U.S.
population - a percentage that is
steadily rising.
Changing demographics is one
reason the National Committee
decided to do the study, says Bob
Bothwell, executive director of the
Washington-based watchdog group.
“The issue of the changing work
force has made this even more
important. With all the projections of
what the workforce is going to look
like in the future, one way for corpo
rations to help their operations along
is to use their contributions pro
grams” to support minorities.
Of the 19 companies studied,
ARCO ranked first in corporate giv
ing to minorities, awarding $4.7 mil
lion in 1988. Amoco and Exxon fol
lowed with $4.1 million and $4 mil
lion, respectively.
Bell Atlantic ranked lowest,
awarding $133,500 to minority pro
grams. Six other companies gave
less than $500,000: Ameritech,
Look for GIVING, page 19
BRIEFLY
David Packard
receives award
The Council on Foundations
has named David Packard,
chairman emeritus of
Hewlett-Packard Company
and his late wife, Lucille
Salter Packard, as winners
of this year's distinguished
Grantmaker Award. The
award is given for lifetime
achievement in the field of
organized philanthropy.
Pigskin philanthropy
Panthers target Carolinas charities
When the Carolina Panthers of the
National Football League begin
piaying in their new Chariotte
stadium in 1996, some of the
profits from the stadium wiil go
to charities in the Carolinas.
Panthers piayers and officers
also are plugging into the com
munity as volunteers.
By Dane Huffman
Charlotte
“I— hree days after the Carolina
/ Panthers were awarded a
I National Football League
team in October, a league exec
utive bragged to a Charlotte
audience about how much
money NFL Charities distrib
utes.
That drew a bemused look
from Jerry Richardson.
Richardson, the Panthers man
aging partner, had just agreed
to pay $140 million for a fran
chise.
Richardson drew a laugh
from the crowd — and a
sheepish smile from NFL
Properties President John
Flood — when Richardson
said he had yet to see
the charitable side of
the NFL.
That day, however,
is coming. As a league
member, the Panthers
will help NFL
Charities, which draws
its funds from the sale
of licensed products
and from player fines.
In 1993, NFL Charities
pumped $1.7 million
into charities with a
national scope.
The Panthers plan
to contribute to local
charities as
well. Their
first major
hire after ^t-
ting the team
was Donnie
Shell, the
FIELDING
DREAMS
SPECIAL REPORT
^ team’s director
of community
affairs.
Shell, a former Pitts
burg Steelers star, already
has done more than just
pass out autographed foot
balls. He has worked with
kids in the city schools.
When the Panthers were urging the NFL to award
team owners agreed to put a new $160 million
money to Charlotte-area
using football cards to help build
reading skills.
Shell also has planned the first
Panthers youth camp for July. About
20 athletes will talk to yoimgsters at
Charlotte’s Memorial Stadium about
the importance of staying in school
them a football franchise last year,
stadium in a trust that will award
charities.
and the need to resist peer pressure
to use drugs and alcohol.
Shell says athletic trainers,
wei^t-lifting coaches and other foot
ball support personnel will be there to
Look for PANTHERS, page 13
Charity slam dunk
Shinn, Hornets shoot hoops for philanthropy
Charlotte businessman George
Shinn and his NBA Hornets sup
port nonprofits and community
activities as a way of returning
to the community its support
for their business.
By Bea Quirk
Charlotte
I A /hen George Shinn and
I/l / his partners were
v ¥ awarded an NBA fran
chise for Charlotte in April 1987,
one of the first things the self-made
millionaire announced was a com
mitment to philanthropy.
“I owe the community so much,”
he said at the time. “I pledge that
this team wili be involved in the
community.”
Shinn - with his Charlotte
Hornets - has been true to his word.
One of Shinn’s first actions after
landing his NBA franchise was hir
ing Marilyn Bowler as director of
community relations. Her first task
was to help Shinn lead the effort to
raise $3.5 million — in a three-
month period — for the city’s home
less shelter.
The shelter, which has been
named after Shinn, is still important
to him. Every Christmas Eve, he
and Hornets players bring dinner to
the men at the shelter and fit them
with thick socks and warm heavy
shoes.
“George just doesn’t believe in
writing a check,” says Bowler, now
the team’s director of public rela
tions. “There’s also the human ele
ment for him. He wants to be there
and see what’s going on.”
But Shinn knows how important
those checks can
be, and he is gener
ous with them. His
Shinn Foundation
has contributed
about $300,000 for
operating the
homeless shelter
over the last three
years. In March,
the Hornets gave
$92,172 to the city
of Charlotte to
cover the costs of
training and equip-
^^4
\
FIELDING
DREAMS
SPECIAL REPORT
George Shinn
ping two police officers,
plus a police car. As a
result, the city was able
to hire two additional
officers. The Hornets
win repeat the donation
on an annual basis.
The Hornets also
have a director and
assistant director of
community relations,
and Shinn wants the
Hornets to support
activities sponsored by
the NBA. For example, the team’s
“Bee CooL.Stay in School” program,
a motivational and incentive effort
that awards students for improve
ments in attendance, attitude and
academics, is the largest in the
league.
And when the teams were
encouraged to mark the observation
of Martin Luther King Day in a spe
cial way each year, Shinn decided to
present an annual $2,000 scholar
ship to a student at Johnson C.
Smith University, Charlotte’s histor
ically black university.
In the team’s “Shoot Hoops, Not
Guns” program, the team
does more than just write a
check to pay for building
and renovating playground
areas at Charlotte housing
projects. Staff members
work with residents and
community police officers
to paint, clean and refur
bish the areas, and players
also get involved.
Although every player
is required by his standard
NBA contract to make six
community relations appearances
each year. Hornets players go far
beyond that minimum. In addition
to being involved in such team
efforts as “Bee Cool...Stay in
School” and “Shoot Hoops” they
also take on causes that are of per
sonal significance to them.
Larry Johnson, just after he was
signed by the Hornets in 1991, con
tributed $180,000 to United Way of
Central Carolinas to enable the
group to make its campaign goal.
Last August, he sponsored “Starry,
Look for HORNETS, page 13
Sewing center con
tributes to public TV
The Morse Sewing Center in
Charlotte contributed
$ 1,000 to support the new
PBS series, Sewing'Today.
The series airs Thursdays at
3 p.m. on UNC-TV. "We are
excited about being part of a
program that educates the
sewing public," says Joyce
Kile, co-owner of the sewing
center.
Financial alliance
gives scholarships
The N.C. Alliance of
Community Financial
Institutions gave $4,000
scholarships to four high
school seniors in the state
who have a parent
employed by one of the 122
community financial institu
tions that make up the
alliance.
Council announces
awards
Thirty-four foundations and
corporate giving programs
across the country have
been cited for excellence in
communications by the
Council on Foundations.
The Wilmer Shields Rich
awards are for annual
reports, newsletters, maga
zine and public information
campaigns.
Glaxo boosts
leadership effort
Glaxo Inc. recently gave
$30,000 to Leadership
Triangle, a program
designed to educate 25 to
45 year olds on issues facing
the Triangle as a region.
Leadership Triangle is
accepting applications for
the 1994 program through
July!. Call (919) 549-
9840.
GE Foundation
gives to education
The GE Foundation in
Fairfield, Conn., has given
$1 million over five years to
Southern Durham High
School with a goal of dou
bling the number of college-
bound students. Almost 15
percent of the school's
1,143 students live below
the poverty level.