They say charity begins at home. But here in Austin, it took some prodding.
I Live Here, I Give Here was founded in 2007 to support charitable giving and Austin nonprofits. It was born out of necessity: a Chronicle of Philanthropy report from that time found Austin ranked 48th out of the 50 largest U.S. cities when ranked on giving. (Disclaimer: As a nonprofit, KUT partners with I Live Here, I Give Here.)
Austin’s since improved its standing – and I Live Here, I Give Here has played a part in that. Its online “moneybomb” earlier this year – Amplify Austin – raised close to $3 million in just 24 hours.
With the retirement of the group’s founder, Patsy Martin, the group’s announced a new executive director: Tom Spencer. A longtime KLRU-Austin PBS mainstay, and CEO of Interfaith Action of Central Texas, Spencer stopped by the KUT Public Media Studios to talk about Austin’s generosity and its robust nonprofit sector:
“The nonprofit sector carries so much of the weight of the social needs of our community making sure that our arts organizations are thriving … That’s where we come in, I Live Here, I Give Here: to inform people about the vitality of that sector , and to help make those connections between the individual donors and their individual passions – and all these exciting things that are happening, to meet our needs.”
