A time to give awards to the giving

By James Edward Mills

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In a city where "every day is philanthropy day," Madison-area philanthropists gathered among peers to give top honors to those who give of themselves in support of those less fortunate.

In a luncheon ceremony at the Overture Center, the greater Madison chapter of the Association of Fundraising Profes-sionals conducted its 19th annual National Philanthropy Day Celebration.

AFP chapter board president Kristi Shepard said that in city where selfless individuals and institutions give generously, this event allows them to reflect upon and acknowledge their many contributions.

"Madison is a place where every day is a philanthropy day," Shepard said. "It's nice that we can take a moment and recognize the people that are so involved and make it happen."

In its third year at the Overture Center, the Philanthropy Day Celebration welcomed a capacity crowd of professionals who help others while making a living. There were more than 400 AFP members and guests in attendance.

"Just the range of organizations that were represented here today just shows that people can get involved and make a difference, no matter what they do in every aspect of our community," Shepard said.

Jac Garner, chief executive of Webcrafters, said as he accepted the award for his company that he is part of an establishment whose philanthropic efforts stem directly from the kindness of its workers.

"It's fun to work for a company whose employees have such generosity of spirit, time, energy and resources," Garner said. "And they all deserved to be standing here with me because they make the difference every day in the lives of our community."

Rachael Weiker, a recent UW-Madison graduate and the recipient of the outstanding young philanthropist award, said her work with Habitat for Humanity has helped her to choose public service as profession.

"I believe I have found my career path early in life," Weiker said. "I hope to continue to work with nonprofit organizations and I feel very fortunate to be selected for this award and to contribute to Dane County's commitment to helping those in need."

Dr. Virginia Henderson and her husband Dr. Perry Henderson accepted recognition of their years dedicated to serving the Madison community. Virginia Henderson said their contributions were merely a part their role as conscientious citizens. "We never thought of our service as philanthropy," she said. "We just went about our business identifying needs or being asked to work with others in following through on what had to be done."

Working as professionals in the fields of medicine and higher education, the Hendersons said giving of themselves in the furtherance of causes they believe in was a small price to pay to maintain the integrity of the community they love.

"Madison is a generous community. And we don't come anywhere near the magnitude of the financial contribution which is commonplace here," Perry Henderson said. "However we do feel committed to the community and we're willing to pay back in time and effort some of the opportunities and advantages that make Madison such a wonderful place to live."


James Edward Mills is a State Journal reporter.
jmills@madison.com

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