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Modest financial scale but intense personal involvement
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Collaborative relationships need not be based on large gifts. The financial scale can be modest while the personal involvement can be intense.
Rebecca Berman is a retired New York City schoolteacher living in Teaneck, New Jersey. Not wealthy but frugal, Berman has pursued her philanthropic passion of helping children and families in the poorest areas of Guatemala. A 69-year-old widow and three-time cancer survivor, Berman first went to Guatemala through an exchange program in 1992. Though she had always been committed to public service and philanthropy, the opportunity to make a difference in Guatemala was striking.
On her trip, she heard that $1,000 could build a school. Following the trip, she raised money from friends to build three schools in remote areas of the country. Her commitment, however, is about more than raising money and writing checks. Berman has visited Guatemala nearly every year since, bringing everything from basketballs to books as well as money raised for new schools and health care.
Back home in New Jersey, Berman convinces friends, stores, and hospitals to donate goods that she brings to Guatemala. She seeks out deals at yard sales, and takes goods that others might throw away. She has found or been given clothing, wheelchairs, and school supplies at little to no cost. In Guatemala, she is connected with the schools, clinics, and families, which allows her to target her efforts to the needs of the communities. Giving across national boundaries creates cultural challenges and requires more than check writing.
Berman’s small-scale approach to giving allows her to meet these challenges by engaging very directly and deeply with the schools she has founded and supported.
Rebecca Berman is a retired New York City schoolteacher living in Teaneck, New Jersey. Not wealthy but frugal, Berman has pursued her philanthropic passion of helping children and families in the poorest areas of Guatemala. A 69-year-old widow and three-time cancer survivor, Berman first went to Guatemala through an exchange program in 1992. Though she had always been committed to public service and philanthropy, the opportunity to make a difference in Guatemala was striking.
On her trip, she heard that $1,000 could build a school. Following the trip, she raised money from friends to build three schools in remote areas of the country. Her commitment, however, is about more than raising money and writing checks. Berman has visited Guatemala nearly every year since, bringing everything from basketballs to books as well as money raised for new schools and health care.
Back home in New Jersey, Berman convinces friends, stores, and hospitals to donate goods that she brings to Guatemala. She seeks out deals at yard sales, and takes goods that others might throw away. She has found or been given clothing, wheelchairs, and school supplies at little to no cost. In Guatemala, she is connected with the schools, clinics, and families, which allows her to target her efforts to the needs of the communities. Giving across national boundaries creates cultural challenges and requires more than check writing.
Berman’s small-scale approach to giving allows her to meet these challenges by engaging very directly and deeply with the schools she has founded and supported.
