As a philanthropic advisor for the Adams County Community Foundation, I meet with professional advisors to learn how their clients think and feel about philanthropy. These individual conversations are my favorite part of this work. Years of working with major donors to local nonprofits helps me recommend ways the Community Foundation can help people give back to the charitable causes, issues and communities that are important to them.

Because they are often the lead advisor with a client’s charitable estate planning, my outreach work began with attorneys. Many professional advisors and their clients have shared their thoughts and experiences, and over time I’ve uncovered some interesting patterns from those conversations, including:

• Attorneys are familiar with the Adams County Community Foundation since it was founded through the efforts of Gettysburg attorney, Jack W. Phillips, and the Adams County Bar Foundation Endowment is invested there.

• Attorneys are enthusiastic about the Community Foundation and its role in educating people about charitable giving.

• Several attorneys admitted ruefully that they sometimes don’t ask clients about philanthropy during the planning process, but many clients report they are eager to have the conversation with their professional advisors.

• Many attorneys shared that their clients already know which nonprofits they’d like to support, but they appreciate the Community Foundation’s charitable giving resources, knowledge of local nonprofits and ability to help clients create a charitable legacy.

• Over 250 families, businesses and nonprofits have already created their own charitable fund with the Community Foundation and thousands of people donate each year through its Giving Spree. Many of those funds and individual gifts came through the recommendation of an attorney or other financial advisor.

• Several attorneys shared that they included a gift to the Community Foundation in their own will, underscoring the fact that attorneys care deeply about their community and have confidence in its community foundation.

I’m excited to continue these conversations and am asking for your help to reach as many professional advisors as I can.

• Ask your attorney and financial advisors to meet with me. You know them already and people like to say yes to people they know! 

• Invite me to speak with the service clubs and community groups that you treasure about charitable giving and community philanthropy.

• Encourage your professional advisors to introduce philanthropy to every client at every meeting.

Together we can make a huge difference in the lives of people today and in the generations that follow by continuing to build a permanent civic endowment for Adams County.

Theresa DiLoreto, CFRE is a philanthropic advisor with the Adams County Community Foundation and can be reached at tdiloreto@adamscountycf.org or 717.321.3212.