Give into your passion

At first glance, the title of this article may seem provocative. But before you think that I am advocating a lifestyle free of restraint (or worse), allow me to clarify my use of the word passion. In the English language, passion has many definitions. The suggestive one might be the most widely understood. The sort of passion that I promote, though, is the noun form that refers to the object of compelling desire or enthusiasm.

The subject of passion came up at a recent Community Foundation event as I conversed with one of our trustees. Always the curious marketing guy, I was interested in learning what an experienced leader in the area of philanthropy thought about how I could better communicate our organization's message. Now, you might think that such "shop talk" would be expected, but I wasn't interested in merely talking about work. Still fairly new on the job, and not knowing very many people at the event, I was also on a personal mission to find a good, deep conversation that would keep me engaged and feeling more comfortable. I hit pay dirt when I bumped into this trustee, and we could have gone on for hours once we got started on the subject of passions.

His message was quite simple, and it certainly needed no slick packaging or gripping marketing angle. "If we can speak to a person's passions," he said, "it's really not hard to show how they can give." By giving, we were meaning philanthropically, and we mainly had in mind not a single-time gift or a gift to support a specific, present need, but giving that could benefit a cause well into the future.

To elaborate, everyone has a passion for something: the arts, nature, sports, animals, helping people, education, food, religion, travel and hobbies of various kinds. Whatever your passion is — the thing that really drives you — it is possible for you to make a lasting difference in that area through philanthropic giving. Supporting or starting up a fund at the Community Foundation can be the vehicle to help you support your cause or passion well into the future, and you can do this at any stage in life.

My play on words in this article's title suggests that you give "into" your passion. So many people want to give, but they don't know what or who to give to, or they feel uncomfortable making the choice alone. To this, I would ask, "What is your passion?"

Are you passionate about the environment in southwest Florida — about keeping it pristine for future generations? Are you passionate about the arts? Is what drives you the idea of helping

people out? Supporting the continued fight against cancer? Feeding the hungry? Education? Sports?

You can support the future of your favorite sport in Southwest Florida by setting up a scholarship fund for students. Funds can be established to support

clean water and

oceans for fishing and recreation or in support of the environment.

Space does not permit me to go on with a list of examples. Hopefully you can see that there are many, many ways to attach your philanthropic giving to your greatest passions in life.

My colleagues at the Southwest Florida Community Foundation are experts in sitting down with people and showing them the possibilities. Our passion is to connect people and their philanthropic passions to evolving needs in our community. Indeed, the Community Foundation exists as a tool for you, and one of our other passions is keeping things simple. So, if you have been thinking about your own giving, start by exploring your passions. Then, give into that passion for today as well as for tomorrow.

The Southwest Florida Community Foundation has been supporting the communities of Lee, Charlotte, Collier, Glades and Hendry through endowed funds for 33 years and during that time has provided more than $39.5 million in grants and scholarships to the communities it serves. For more information, please c all 274-5900, or visit our Web site at www.floridacommunity.com.