When you give through Grand Rapids Community Foundation, you join a community of donors making a big impact, together. This past year, we partnered with the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy. We invited donor partners to join a new Impact Accelerator Cohort. The four-week course took them on a journey of reflection to create personal giving plans.
Gene and David Lyons—a father and son—joined the cohort together. They laugh and learn together, and they care deeply about helping others. More than a decade ago, Gene and his late wife, Jean, created a Donor Advised fund at the Community Foundation. Now, at 93, Gene encourages their sons, David and Kevin, to continue the family legacy of giving.
The Lyons’ family giving has focused on youth and education. Gene’s parents and grandparents instilled in him the importance of having an education, and he passed those values on. Today, David is an educator and Kevin is a librarian.
The cohort gave the Lyons family space to think about what they hope their giving will do. “It concentrated my brain on what I want to accomplish,” Gene says.
The program followed a curriculum developed by Elizabeth J. Dale and Farrah Azizi, with support from the Johnson Center. Participants explored their values, talked with fellow donor partners and considered how to make a deeper impact in the community. The experience encouraged them to think not only about where they give, but why.
“I like that the coursework began with understanding our own values,” David says. “We considered our own biases and how they influence our giving.”
Pictured: Impact Accelerator Cohort participants
Angel Mendiola, our philanthropic services manager, organized the cohort and joined donor partners in the learning process.
“We created a very safe space,” Angel says. “People reflected on their stories and how those stories overlap. They could have done their giving alone, but chose to hear others’ perspectives. That’s where the magic happens.”
One conversation stuck with David. A participant asked whether giving should focus on immediate needs or long-term policy change. It made him wonder: “Are we just bandaging as a family with the way we’ve been giving? Are there ways where we can change something more systemically?”
Angel says, “When you have spaces to make those connections, you realize community is everywhere. Giving is personal—and it can stay that way—but it doesn’t have to be done alone.”
Pictured: Angel Mendiola, Philanthropic Services Manager
Responding to New Challenges
Coming Together for Collective Impact
