20-05-2025
Sara Lomelin
Credit - Courtesy Bryan Patrick
Sara Lomelin runs the nonprofit Philanthropy Together to show that you don't need to be wealthy to be a philanthropist; you can participate in collective giving. Get some friends, neighbors, or other philanthropic-minded people to each kick in small amounts, then gather to decide where to donate the kitty. By pooling resources, you create a bigger impact.
'It's the multiplying effect of the dollars, the ideas and the volunteer hours,' says Lomelin, a former fundraiser for San Francisco's Latino Community Foundation who previously created the Latino Giving Circle Network, the largest network of Latinx philanthropists in the U.S. Lomelin then co-founded Philanthropy Together in 2020, with backing from the Gates Foundation, to help scale and strengthen the collective giving movement. The organization offers free training videos and webinars, and a searchable database of more than 4,000 circles looking for new members.
It's a movement that's gaining traction. Philanthropy Together's 2024 study found that collective giving has more than doubled since 2017, with more than 370,000 Americans now participating in giving circles, donating about $3.1 billion.
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