GOOD NEWS: Be Bold
Steve Filosa, Founder To The Good
Fortune Favors the Bold
In addition to their competence, compassion, and work ethic, what inspires me about my clients is their willingness to be bold. Farms, bank foundations, youth and community centers, institutions of secondary or higher education, and individuals in pursuit of fulfilling their own unique missions, all thriving in large part because of their ability to follow their own compass and imagine what is possible where others can’t. The ancient Roman poet Virgil was right: “Fortune favors the bold.”
Are you bold? Do you resist the influence of some peers, family members, a boss, board, company, country or culture conspiring to tell you that your dream is not possible? Thinking about launching a startup experience of your own? Maybe you are an executive director with big ideas for a small organization? Or perhaps you are a program director launching a new initiative that is right for our times but not yet widely embraced? Are you a development team or board member about to have a transformational conversation with a major donor?
Are you insisting on racial, gender, and other areas of equity rather than allowing bias or other kinds of rot at an institution you care about? Are you senior staff or a board member changing expectations among executive leadership or in the boardroom? Whether it is a big idea for yourself or humanity, it takes a lot of courage, independence, and resolve - boldness - to reach your goals.
I hope you enjoy reading Nancy Stager’s perspective on setting a bold, new course for the recently renamed Eastern Bank Foundation. And please check out the links at the bottom for other bold innovators and thinkers.
Investing In Our Future Together
Nancy Stager, President and CEO of the Eastern Bank Foundation
We made this change to signal our transition from a mindset of charity for those less fortunate, to the more equity-oriented approach of intentional investment in systemic change by, for, and with our communities. We hope our example continues movement in the philanthropic sector toward systems solutions and partnerships rather than charitable giving. The distinction may be subtle to some but it is vital to us.
Twenty-seven years ago, Eastern Bank’s leadership set a bold course of action when our leadership created the Foundation. It would have been difficult at the time to predict the magnitude of our growth and the impact we would have in partnership with our communities over a wide range of needs. By the end of 2021, we will have invested over $100 million through more than 31,000 grants to more than 6,700 organizational partners across our region. Many such organizations grew right alongside us on our journey. Together, we created meaningful opportunities for and with our communities while forging long lasting relationships. Our efforts leverage philanthropy, volunteerism, advocacy, and deep collaboration with community partners. Such a combination keeps us connected to each other, strengthens our relationships, and informs our broader view.
Eastern Bank Foundation’s vision is a future where we enjoy a thriving regional economy in which centuries of arbitrary, social hierarchies and entrenched systems of oppression are recognized and eliminated; where distinctions of identity or demographics are no longer reliable predictors of economic outcomes. While remaining committed to our broad-ranging Community Donations program, we are equally committed to investing in a set of strategies to advance economic inclusion and mobility so that our neighbors prosper. Today's name – Eastern Bank Foundation – is intended to reflect, affirm, and remind us of this equity-oriented approach to everything that we do. We invite you to learn more at easternbank.com/foundation.
