Major Gifts: What to Do Now for a Big Year-End Haul

A free email with news, trends, and opinion articles about the nonprofit world, as well as links to our tools, resources, and webinars. Delivered every weekday. Philanthropy Today subscribers also get a bonus weekly email called Philanthropy Today — The Commons, about how America’s nonprofits and foundations are working to heal the nation’s divides.

July 28, 2025

From: Philanthropy Today

Subject: Major Gifts: What to Do Now for a Big Year-End Haul

We're sorry. Something went wrong.

We are unable to fully display the content of this page.

The most likely cause of this is a content blocker on your computer or network.

Please allow access to our site, and then refresh this page. You may then be asked to log in, create an account if you don't already have one, or subscribe.

If you continue to experience issues, please contact us at 571-540-8070 or cophelp@philanthropy.com

Major Gifts

Get Your Major Donors on the Path to Big Giving at Year-End

By Rasheeda Childress July 28, 2025

The summer is an ideal time to deepen ties with donors and craft a cultivation plan for the rest of the year, major-gifts experts advise.
Giving

More Funders Announce Long-Term Support as Federal Cuts Deepen

By Stephanie Beasley July 28, 2025

Foundations are shifting their spending strategies, particularly for groups affected by Trump administration policy changes. Among them is a $1 billion initiative to support economic mobility for low-income Americans.
Exit Interview

Darren Walker on Philanthropy: ‘We Don’t Take Enough Risk’

By James Pollard, Associated Press July 28, 2025

In an exit interview, the president of the Ford Foundation talks about why his new book is still hopeful despite growing inequality.

WEBINARS

Today: August 14 at 2 p.m. ET | Register Now

Amid so much disruption in the nonprofit world, some funders are rethinking how to get money to the field quickly and effectively by investing in nonprofits’ capacity. Join us for the webinar How to Secure Capacity-Building Grants to learn from two funders who invest in organizational capacity as they explain ways to identify grant makers, craft compelling proposals, and build relationships with nonprofit associations that offer these grants to members.

ONLINE FORUMS

Today: August 5 at 2 p.m. ET | Register Now

Join us for How to Use AI Without Breaking Donors’ Trust to learn from Jeremy Morse of Anthos|Home, CJ Orr of the Orr Group, and Josie White of Shelter the Homeless as they discuss responsible ways to use AI. They’ll explain the importance of human oversight and share ways to increase productivity while avoiding potential pitfalls.

Nonprofit News From Elsewhere Online

Media Matters, which has monitored and critiqued right-wing media for more than 20 years, is in crisis as lawsuits and federal investigations threaten to shut it down. It is defending against a 2023 lawsuit brought by Elon Musk over its coverage of Nazi content and advertiser placement on X and against a Federal Trade Commission investigation of a related issue. It has “racked up about $15 million in legal fees over the past 20 months,” while some donors have pulled back in fear of retaliation of the kind that Media Matters itself is experiencing. (New York Times)

Gaza Aid

Opinion: The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation Can Feed Starving Gazans (Wall Street Journal — subscription)
How Food Supplies in Gaza Have Dwindled Under the New Israeli Aid Plan (Wall Street Journal — subscription)

Attacks on Nonprofits

Controversial Official Fired in Trump’s First Term Appointed Head of U.S. Institute of Peace (Associated Press)
Muslim Leaders Increase Security After Vandalism Reports at L.A. and Texas Mosques (Associated Press)
Opinion: You May Not Be Trump’s Target This Time. But You Could Be Next. (New York Times)

More News and Opinion

Trump Signs Order Pushing Cities and States to Remove Homeless People From Streets (USA Today)
How Nonprofits and Academia Are Stepping Up to Salvage U.S. Climate Programs (MIT Technology Review)
Judge Issues Temporary Injunction Against Trump Administration Cancellation of Humanities Grants (Associated Press)

Note: In the links in this section, we flag articles that only subscribers can access. But because some journalism outlets offer a limited number of free articles, readers may encounter barriers with other articles we highlight in this roundup.