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BOSTON, August 3, 2006 - Driven by a greater desire to be more strategic about their charitable giving -- as well as to be around to see the impacts of their donations -- Americans are driving a sea change in philanthropy. The role donor-advised funds play in this "new era" of philanthropy is evident in the fact that the Fidelity Charitable Gift FundSM, one of the nation's largest public charities and the nation's No. 1 grant maker among those charities1 with donor-advised fund programs2, today announced that it surpassed $6 billion in grants since it was founded in 1991.
Since inception, the Gift Fund has received more than $8.3 billion in contributions from more than 39,000 donors.3 More importantly, the Gift Fund has disbursed more than $6 billion in grants to 99,000 charities4 - with nearly $945 million of that going out in the 12 months ended June 30, 2006.
"With total charitable giving reaching an estimated $260 billion last year,5 Americans' penchant for giving back continues," said David L. Giunta, president of the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund. "And while we expect giving to continue increasing, at the same time we are seeing Americans' attitudes towards philanthropy evolve. More donors are practicing 'living giving,' an approach where donors seek more active involvement in their charitable giving and want to see for themselves the impact it has, while they're still alive.
"Driven, in large part, by the Boomer generation's desire to give back, we expect the 'living giving' trend to continue. In fact, of the contributions made to the Gift Fund, half are donated by Boomers," said Giunta. "The flexibility offered through donor-advised funds can help Americans, whether they want to donate $10,000, $1 million or $30 million, to be more strategic about their charitable giving -- making it easier to become an organized, thoughtful giver today and in the future."
Since inception in 1991, the Gift Fund's donors have granted 27 percent to support community and human services organizations, 33 percent to religious organizations, 25 percent to education, 7 percent to the arts, 6 percent to health and medical research, and 2 percent to environmental causes.
"The mission of the Gift Fund has always been to further the tradition of philanthropy by providing programs that make charitable giving simple and effective," continued Giunta. "The $6 billion in grants milestone reflects the continued generosity of our donors and illustrates the role donor-advised funds play in the continued flow of dollars to charities."
About Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund
The Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund is one of the nation's largest public charities and has the largest donor-advised fund program in the country.6 The Gift Fund was established by Fidelity Investments® in 1991. The mission of the Gift Fund is to further the American tradition of philanthropy by providing programs that make charitable giving simple and effective. Since the Gift Fund's inception, more than 39,000 donors have recommended grants totaling more than $6.0 billion to more than 99,000 nonprofit organizations nationwide, as of June 30, 2006. For more information on the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund, visit http://www.charitablegift.org.
1The Chronicle of Philanthropy, The Philanthropy 400, October, 2005.
2The Chronicle of Philanthropy 2006 Survey of Donor Advised Funds, May 2006.
3,4As of June 30, 2006.
5Giving USA FoundationTM / Giving USA 2006.
6The Chronicle of Philanthropy Rankings, 2005.
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The Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund ("Gift Fund") is an independent public charity. Various Fidelity companies provide non-discretionary investment management and administrative services to the Gift Fund. Charitable Gift Fund and the Charitable Gift Fund logo are service marks of the Trustees of the Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund. Fidelity is a service mark of FMR Corp. used by the Gift Fund under license.
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