Philanthropy and our Greater Common Good (GCG), November 11, 2021

In October 2019, I was heading off to a writing retreat in England. Before leaving, I met with two kind-hearted friends, asking if they would help me plan an event in celebration of National Philanthropy Day, November 15. That meeting, two years ago, supported the gathering of forty women to talk about “the word” and to agree that philanthropy is important – but not a word that is well understood.

At that inaugural event, one of our honest and enthusiastic participants explained with passionate hand gestures, “You know, philanthropy is a really good word with Greek roots.” She explained that philos means friend; and anthropos means human. By combining the two words, philanthropy means: friendly acts that show love, compassion, sharing and serve humanity.

“I don’t know,” she continued, “but somehow the meaning of the word has gone off its rails.” It was agreed that philanthropy is not easily understood but that it is fundamentally an obligation to our greater collective, the Greater Common Good. I call it the “GCG”.

If you were to research the words: Canada’s National Philanthropy Day, you would find that in 2012, an Act of Parliament was introduced on the floor of the Senate, during the term of then-Premier Stephen Harper, some key points stated in the Act are:

• Philanthropy is a spirit of giving without expectation of reward
• The work of dedicated volunteers inspires Canadians and improves the lives of others
• Philanthropy builds strong communities
• Philanthropically minded people are key to civil society, working in service to common goals
• Canadians benefit from and continue to benefit from a healthy philanthropic sector, a symbol of a strong civil society

As for the women’s gathering, we agreed that our conversations needed more time, more food, more wine and further consideration. We held two successful events, before the Universe screeched, and the bottom fell out of our usual patterns of social gathering. Across the country, sports groups, reading groups, educational groups, coffee groups, pub buddies and this philanthropic initiative were told to: “Isolate. Stay home.” In March 2020, COVID-19 landed as a big, huge, puzzling and multi-headed beast of a dilemma.

In November 2021, a friend and I were reminiscing: “Remember? We thought COVID-19, was a short-term pandemic-thingy that would pass, and we would soon be back to socializing, with a new and improved understanding of public health and the common good.”

Well, some of us thought that my friend and I agreed, and then we wondered, “The common good – do people really understand that concept?”

A quick internet search and I find the site: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/common-good/ … the “common good” refers to those facilities—whether material, cultural or institutional—that the members of a community provide to all members, in order to fulfill a relational obligation… Some canonical examples of the common good…: the road system; public parks; police protection and public safety; courts and the judicial system; public schools; museums and cultural institutions; public transportation; civil liberties, such as the freedom of speech and the freedom of association; the system of property; clean air and clean water; and national defense. The term itself may refer either to the interests that members have in common or to the facilities that serve common interests.

Coming on the heels of Remembrance Day, November 15 is National Philanthropy Day and after we remember and reflect on service and sacrifice, we need to think about practical ways we can be kind to others. The philanthropic sector builds bridges, bonds, and relationships for our greater good. Paying attention to the systems and facilities that support us all is what philanthropy does. Whether we understand the spirit, or not, it’s a force at work in our community. Think about it.