Perez Hilton takes Sting to task on fundraising

Earlier this week, the popular celebrity blogger Perez Hilton reported the following news about the announced final concert ever in August by rock band the Police.

"This final concert will be a fundraiser with proceeds benefiting the production of arts programming for New York's public television stations Thirteen/WNET and WLIW New York. Tickets will be available nationally online via the Thirteen/WNET and WLIW Web sites. The band also announced that they will contribute $1 million to NYC Mayor Bloomberg's MillionTreesNYC initiative — a gift the city will match — to plant trees all over New York City."

It was interesting to hear Perez report such positive news for Sting, because the day before he did a hit job on Sting's Rainforest Foundation. The self-appointed "celebrity gangster" picked up on a NY Post article that criticized the distribution of funds after a previous fundraising concert:

"The 2006 concert - which drew Lenny Kravitz, Sheryl Crow and Will Ferrell to the landmark stage - raised $2,156,989, according to the latest available IRS tax filing.

Yet only $887,374 of the money raised, 41 percent, was divided among the charity's eight programs that support native-land claims and forest preservation in Latin America and Africa - a paltry percentage, according to agencies that monitor nonprofits."

You can read the original NY Post article here.

Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala

My least favorite type of fundraiser is the gala. I hate them. But, I also know some people really like them... and I know blog posts about celebrities really drive visitors to this site, so here goes:

"The most stylish stars flock to Manhattan each year for the Metropolitan Musueum of Art's Costume Institute Gala, which is thrown by Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour. This year, the A-list guests embraced their inner superheroes for the "Superheros: Fashion and Fantasy" themed bash May 5, 2008. The superhero mania that is invading American cinemas this summer took hold at one of the country's most distinguished art museums with an exhibit on how the colorful costumes have influenced fashion."

If you listen closely, you can hear me gagging. If you want to see photos of celebrities, go here.

Will the Mint Jubilee Gala outshine the Kentucky Derby?

Over the years the Mint Jubilee Gala has grown from 250 attendees to more than 1,500 and has become a signature Kentucky Derby event. Last year, they raised $350,000 after expenses. It isn't hard to imagine that soon the fundraiser will attract more attention than the Kentucky Derby itself.

According to a press release from the gala, the "celebrity" guests for tonight's event include:

Conrad Bachmann (The West Wing)
Nigel Barker (America’s Next Top Model)
Cristen Barker (Model, celebrity stylist)
Robert Bogue (Guiding Light)
Mandy Bruno (Guiding Light)
Greg Grunberg (Heroes, Alias, Lost, Band From TV)
Bob Guiney (Reality TV, The Bachelor, Band From TV)
Rebecca Budig Guiney (Actress, All My Children)
Phil Hellmuth (World Series of Poker)
John & Brad Hennegan (Producers, First Saturday in May)
Kathryn Joosten (Desperate Housewives, The West Wing)
Bonnie-Jill Laflin (LA Lakers Scout Manager, Maxim Hot 100, Model)
Billy Lopa (Artist)
Warren Moon (NFL Hall of Famer)
Joe Piscopo (Saturday Night Live, Comedian)
Nora Roberts (Author) Honorary Chair, Mint Jubilee 2007
Peter Searcy (Singer, Oprah’s Big Give)
Bonnie Somerville (Cashmere Mafia, Band From TV)
Fred Willard (Best in Show, Back to You)
Montel Williams (Talk show host)
Robert Williamson (Poker champion)

The 2008 auction items will include:

* Tickets to the 2008 Masters in Augusta
* VIP passes to the 2008 Emmy Awards and Governor’s Ball
* A trip to the 2008 PapaJohns.com Bowl in John Schnatter’s private jet
* Tickets to the upcoming MTV Movie Awards

If you don't have tickets already, forget about it... they've been sold out for quite some time.

Another fundraiser reacts to Oprah's Big Give

Joshua Horwitz, the executive director of the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, in Washington, wrote an angry criticism of Oprah's Big Give reality television show... it's a well written piece that I agree with.

While Mr. Paletta did perform admirably given the parameters of the show, Big Give was a loser for the professionals who run nonprofit organizations and foundations.

Television offers a great opportunity to educate and to make people passionate about causes — especially when a philanthropist and television personality as popular as Oprah Winfrey is sponsoring the lessons.

But the show ended up featuring amateur and embarrassing efforts at giving. It passed off as entertainment people wasting thousands of dollars of donated money and did little to help the American public learn what it really takes to change the lives of other people. Oprah’s last words on the show Sunday night were to encourage the television audience to “give big,” which is a worthy goal, but the television program failed to show average Americans how they can become effective and strategic philanthropists.

Go here to read the entire article.

Paper claims Bill Gates 'reneges' on $2 million pledge

In recent weeks, Microsoft had given up to $500,000 of its software to Prince Charles' charity named, the Technology Leadership Group, a subsidiary of the Prince's Trust.

Sources claim that Microsoft agreed verbally to commit an additional £1million was apparently secured for the charity's efforts to train young entrepreneurs.

The Daily Mail cites an "insider" that admitted on closer inspection the specific project the Prince's Trust wanted to use the new money for was not "tightly focused enough around technology" to benefit its recipients.

But negotiations between Microsoft and the Prince's Trust broke down and the offer was abruptly withdrawn. Insiders suggest Gates, given an honorary knighthood by the Queen in 2005 for his charity donations, intervened personally to block the donation after a trip to Britain in January.

It should be noted that the discussions and plan were never legally binding and no public announcements were made.

Drew Barrymore donates $1 mln for world hunger

From E! News:

The E.T. star personally pledged $1 million of her own money Monday to the World Food Program, a United Nations initiative that aims to feed thousands of school children in Kenya.

The 33-year-old Barrymore, a WFP ambassador against hunger, announced her donation on The Oprah Winfrey Show to kick off the World Food Program's "Fill the Cup" campaign, which is seeking to persuade Americans to fork over cash to feed 10 million hungry kids for a year.

The program is part of a larger-scale crusade that hopes to raise $3 billion to guarantee nutritious school meals to at least 59 million young students in developing countries worldwide, but particularly those in Africa.

Did you know she was dating that guy Justin Long who plays the "Mac" on Apple's cute new commercials?

Oprah's Big Give

I gotta admit, I really am looking forward to see what Oprah's Big Give looks like. I usually hate reality TV, but maybe this will spark a national conversation:

Oprah's Big Give will begin with the 10 contestants -- who hail from across the country and have diverse backgrounds -- as they converge on Los Angeles for their first challenge, where Winfrey will hand them sealed envelopes with only a picture and the name of a complete stranger. Then, in only five days, each contestant must "give big" to "change this person's life" by using their creativity and resources to "make a real difference."

Do you remember when she gave everyone in her audience $1,000, but asked them to go out and and pay it forward?

The "gives" get even bigger throughout Oprah's Big Give's eight-episode run, and at its conclusion, the contestant left standing will receive the title of "The Biggest Giver" and -- unbeknownst to them -- a $1 million prize.

Go here to read about the identity of the contestants.

James Brown's children fight late singer's charitable trusts

According to an Associated Press story on Time.com:

Five of James Brown's children say their late father's will should be invalidated because his former advisers used undue influence to get him to create charitable trusts that the advisers would profit from, according to court documents filed this week.

The New York Times adds this:

Five Brown children are challenging the will in Aiken County Probate Court. They claim Brown's longtime advisers Buddy Dallas, Alford Bradley and David Cannon convinced the soul singer to create the trusts so the advisers would profit from managing the two charities after Brown died.

Just how much money is involved in Brown's estate is unclear. In October, Forbes reported Brown made an estimated $5 million in 2005 alone. But attorneys have said Brown's accounts do not have the money they expected.

Did Paris Hilton get screwed or was it a play to avoid taxes?

When Paris Hilton's billionaire grandfather announced on Christmas day that he plans to give away 97% of his fortune, the news coverage was almost giddy. Was the controversial heiress going to become a pauper?The Guardian Unlimited reported that the 80 year old Barron Hilton is worth over $2.3 billion thanks to the recent sale of the Hilton Hotels Corporation and from the coming sale of Harrah’s Entertainment.

Jerry Oppenheimer, author of House of Hilton, said that Barron Hilton "was, and is, extremely embarrassed by how the Hilton name has been sullied by Paris. He now doesn't want to leave unearned wealth to his family."

Seriously?

Call me cynical, but it seems like the media is ignoring the fact that the mega-rich often use charitable donations to manipulate tax laws. So, let's take a closer look:

First, since most of this wealth was generated in 2007 as the result of two huge sales of almost a billion dollars in assets, you can be sure that Barron was facing some serious taxes. By placing $1.2 billion in a charitable trust this year, he gets immediate tax relief. Convenient, right?

Now, I guess the foundation does do some good work. But don't forget, it also paid Steven Hilton more than a quarter million dollars in 2006. The most recent IRS Form 990s for th Conrad Hilton Foundation show three other Hiltons on the payroll, in addition to a group of investment managers who received over $2,300,000 in 2006.

It sure makes those claims that Barron wrestled millions intended for the poor from his dead father's estate look more interesting.

Former Bears coach Mike Ditka faces fundraising questions

Last week, the USA TODAY reported on the financial questions surrounding Mike Ditka's charity fundraising.

Twice this year, pro football legend Mike Ditka has blasted the National Football League and its players union, telling Congress that both groups are "delaying or denying" requests by needy retired players for help.

Ditka formed a charity in 2004 to aid those players. The Mike Ditka Hall of Fame Assistance Trust Fund has collected $1.3 million and netted about $315,000 after expenses. But it has given only $57,000 to former players in need, according to federal and Illinois tax records.

The trust paid more in fees to induce former stars to appear at a 2005 fundraiser than it gave needy ex-players in its first 3 years.

The net looks low because the charity spent $715,000, the bulk of the money it raised, to put on three annual golf tournaments. That figure includes payments of about $280,000 to a Chicago firm that organized the tournaments and at least $65,000 in honoraria to ex-stars.

Ditka is the outspoken former Hall of Fame player and coach for the Chicago Bears. In June, he told a House panel that injured and needy ex-players are "treated like dogs" while the union "does nothing material to help these guys." His charity, he said then, was created to redress "this grave injustice."

The charity, recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt organization, gave nothing to players during its first two years. It aided 10 ex-players in 2006.

Carl Francis, a spokesman for the players union, that Ditka frequently targeted, used the story to point out the potential hypocrisy in Ditka's criticisms.

"At some point it's got to be about more than holding yet another press conference and blasting people," Francis said. "You ought to be announcing 'We just gave away a half a million.' Unless, of course, you didn't."

Now, the former NFL legend is paying more attention.

Ditka said he had paid little attention to his charity's numbers until this year. He has begun cutting fundraising costs and will insist that half of the annual tournament's proceeds be paid out, he said, adding that the trustees have been told to pay needy players first before requiring them to fill out forms.

Daniel Borochoff, president of the American Institute of Philanthropy, a charity watchdog, said the Ditka trust may have underestimated the charity's workload by naming only two volunteer trustees — three fewer than the minimum the institute recommends.

The group, he said, appears to have underestimated the cost of putting on golf tournaments, which are typically among the most expensive types of fundraiser.

This isn't the first time celebrities seemed surprised to hear that lending their name to charity fund can go badly unless you pay attention to the important things - like money.

Now the Chicago Sun Times and others are starting to ask hard questions.

The Things We Think and Do Not Say

Do you remember that scene in Jerry Maguire where Tom Cruise stays up all night writing a passionate mission statement and then distributes to his coworkers. He called it, "The Things We Think and Do Not Say" and when he walks in to the office the next day everyone gives his a standing ovation... only for him to be fired less than a week later.

I had this movie clip running through my mind when I came across Marsha Gittleman and James R. Rennert's opinion piece on the website of a Long Island, NY newspaper. Gittleman is director of development and public relations at United Cerebral Palsy of Suffolk and Rennert is province director of development at the Cenacle Sisters.

The two of them criticize the inefficiencies of special event fundraisers. They scold honorees who lend their names for fundraising without ever learning about the nonprofit honoring them or the cause. The authors even shame donors who ask, "what's in it for me?" or who attend fundraisers only because of the social status it brings them.

The directors of development come to the conclusion that if we all really care about the biggest percentage of each gift going to the cause, fundraisers should declare a hiatus in special events and return to personal face-to-face solicitations.

On Long Island for too long, organizations have had a misplaced comfort level in selling tickets to an event rather than promoting a cause.

The real target of this opinion piece does not appear to be the event planners, caterers, and silent auction promotion companies... rather the real target of this piece seems to be fellow development directors who have forgotten how to solicit donations based on the mission of their nonprofit without selling donors a ticket to a gala or an event.

Perez slams Mario Lopez

From Perez Hilton:

Mario Lopez was scheduled to attend a benefit for victims of domestic violence and their children in his hometown of Chula Vista (San Diego) on Saturday, October 27th.

He was a no-show, PerezHilton.com has learned. And, what’s worse, he gave an awful excuse has a cover-up!

The Saved By The Bell and Dancing With the Stars blamed the local fires and displaced relatives – victims of the fires – as reason for his absence.

However, this week, video surfaced of Lopez dancing the night away at the Playboy Mansion’s Halloween party - the same night he was supposed to be at the benefit.

The 9th annual benefit raises money for children of Casas Seguras, a shelter for domestic violence victims. Lopez had shown much concern about helping children in his hometown.

Apparently he cared more about having a good time at the Playboy Mansion.

So many people were disappointed. He’d been advertised on their promotional materials and everything, which he had signed off on and was aware of.

And to use the fire as his excuse !!! Not very bright considering the press about Hef’s Halloween party is everywhere!

How much do you think Peyton Manning's name is worth?

Rookie fundraisers make the mistake of thinking it is vanity that motivates hospitals to name a building after a major donor.

The truth is that when a living donor allows a hospital to name a building after them, it could be viewed as part of the donation and not just a reward for the ego.

For example, when St. Vincent Health in Indianapolis recently renamed its pediatric facility after Peyton Manning, it did so because of the money the football star's name would attract.

"By Peyton lending his name to our organization, he'll take a much more active role to help us raise additional funds," said St. Vincent Health Chief Executive Vince Caponi shortly before the name change. "As you can imagine, Peyton knows a lot of people I don't know."

Daniel Lee reported today at the Indianapolis Star that St. Vincent has said only that Manning and his wife, Ashley, made an unspecified donation, but the couple requested that the nature of the gift remain private.

St. Vincent seems to be wasting little time preparing to reach all of those people.

Since the Sept. 5 unveiling of the new name, St. Vincent has appointed a director of development, Michele Rodger Spencer, for the children's hospital. It is the first time St. Vincent will have a fundraising chief dedicated to its children's facility.

St. Vincent will set specific fundraising goals in the next month or two, said Kevin Speer, chief strategy officer. He added, "Putting Peyton's name on the building, it thrust us into a national spotlight overnight."

Kim Gattle, director of development and communications for the Center on Philanthropy at IU, called it "a gift of his social capital." So how much do I think Peyton's name is worth?

...oh wait! Before you answer, maybe it would be helpful to remember some other recent use of social capital on January 1, 2007. Britney Spears was paid $240,000 for her now-classic fainting performance at PURE on New Year's Eve. To count down from 10 to one and wish the crowd a Happy New Year, she was paid $16,000 a syllable.

Shakira gives $45 million to charity

Shakira announced an enormous $45 million charity donation yesterday in New York.

The Colombian superstar revealed that the charity she co-founded, Latin America for Solidarity Foundation, will donate $40 million to help earthquake stricken Peru and damage caused by a hurricane in Nicaragua.

She gave the news at a summit on global climate change yesterday, organised by Bill Clinton, says Reuters.

The singer also revealed a $5 million effort to help children in area who live in poverty.

Some Friday fun - with celebrities!

We all love celebrity gossip... don't even pretend you don't. If you are reading this blog, there is a pretty good chance you also read Perez Hilton, TMZ, or some other celebrity blog.

Today, I stumbled on to Celebs Done Good. They use a cool mix of celebrity gossip, funny pictures, and current events about philanthropy of good deeds. The blog is produced by the cool folks over at DoSomething.org.

Look at this cool description on the group's website:

We believe young people have the power to make a difference. It is our aim to inspire, support and celebrate a generation of do-ers: people who see the need to do something, believe in their ability to get it done, and then take action.

Our website is a community where young people learn, listen, speak, vote, volunteer, ask, and take action to make the world a better place. Currently, only 23% of this generation actively volunteers. Our hope is to create a do something generation: a world where more than 51% of young people are involved with community action.

Now that's a freakin' mission statement.

Jerry Lewis raises over $63 million; drops F-bomb on live television

When you are on television for a 21 and a half hour live telethon, a national television audience can forgive you if you get tired... but will they forgive Jerry Lewis for calling someone (or something) an "illiterate faggot" during the 18th hour of his broadcast?

Some gossip blogs have raised the question whether Lewis actually said, "fatty" instead. Either way, it's a major on air faux pas. You can watch the video for yourself here.

Lewis reps did not have a comment for TMZ about the slip, but according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Jerry Lewis 42nd Labor Day Telethon set a record of $63,759,478 in contributions and pledges.

The telethon does not use a lot of "A-list" celebrities (this year included: Ed McMahon, Jann Carl,Tom Bergeron, and Alison Sweeney), but it did rely on MDA's largest national sponsor, the International Association of Fire Fighters, to present checks representing the agency's year-round fund-raising efforts in the record amount of $25 million.

You gotta hand it to Jerry... even though there are critics of some of the marketing tactics, that's a lot of money to raise. Let's see when/how he issues an apology for using what I consider hate speech.

UPDATE: At 8:20pm, we saw that Jerry Lewis issued this apology:

"I made a joking comment to a member of my production team," he said in a statement issued to CNN. "I apologize to anyone who was offended. I, obviously, made a bad choice of words. Everyone who knows me, understands that I hold no prejudices in this regard. In the family atmosphere of the telethon, I forget that not everyone knows me that well; that something like this would distract from the true purpose of the telethon pains me deeply."

Oprah's rules for Obama's donors

It's no secret that Oprah loves Barrack Obama's campaign for president. Early next month, Oprah is hosting a garden party fundraiser for Obama.

The LA Times reported Saturday on the instructions being sent to donors by Julianna Smoot, Obama's national finance director.

Among the rules told to donors: no gifts for either Obama or Oprah will be accepted on site, security procedures to prevent ticket re-sales, and even dress code expectations.

First, you need to wear "Garden Attire." And that don't mean clothes to go garden in, folks. It means summery, sheer, lots of linen, maybe some floppy hats, blazers, contrasting slacks and open collars for the guys (because you know Barack likes open collars).

Finally, the event at Oprah's house in Montecito is not being called "a fundraiser" -its being called "a celebration."

CNN publishes list of celebrity donor to presidential campaigns

Many people have been digging through Q2 reports all week to uncover the hidden stories of presidential politics. CNN thought it would be interesting to find the celebrity donors.

...finding them in those Federal Election Commission reports buried among tens of thousands of celebrity-impaired Americans can be a royal pain in the Oscar. But we at the CNN Political Ticker have painstakingly reviewed the latest batch of presidential fundraising disclosures and have compiled that information in convenient list form, complete with bullet points.

Go here for the complete list. You'll find Paul Newman on more than two lists... but who would have thought Pauly Shore was into politics?

Bacon makes 'Six Degrees' a fundraiser

About a year ago, Kevin Bacon bought the domain name SixDegrees.org. Today the actor will be at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, to launch the site as an online charitable-giving site that is inspired by his namesake game and driven by today's obsession with celebrities.

I have to admit, even after reading this article in the USA Today, I'm not really sure I understand how it's going to work... but it seems as if potential donors will be able to learn more about the charities their favorite celebrities support.

Some of those already on board (and their charity of choice):

Kyra Sedgwick (Natural Resources Defense Council)
Nicole Kidman (UNIFEM)
Tyra Banks (Tyra Banks TZONE Foundation)
Ashley Judd (YouthAIDS)
Bradley Whitford and Jane Kaczmarek (Clothes Off Our Back)
Dana Delany (Scleroderma Research Foundation)
Jessica Simpson (Operation Smile)
Will Ferrell (Cancer for College)
Kanye West (Kanye West Foundation)

The USA Today article explains how Bacon teamed up with the non-profit group Network for Good, AOL and Sundance sponsors Entertainment Weekly. But it also explains that long before the corporate players stepped in, Bacon says he was inspired by Paul Newman's salad dressing.

Oprah mulls reality show on philanthrophy

Following the ratings success of Oprah's "pay it forward" episodes, the talk show icon has developed a new reality show, tentatively titled The Big Give. According to ABC, the show will present 10 people with large sums of money and other resources and challenges them to find "the most powerful, sensational, emotional and dramatic ways to give to others."

The contestants will gradually be narrowed as the group confronts a "big catch" each week complicating their efforts, with the winner getting his or her "wildest dream come true."