Posts by James Burden
Sometimes Trust is a Green Garbage Bag
An Unexpected Lesson in Trust and Giving Lori Reesor knows that trust is a key component in donation decisions. While completing her doctorate thesis on Christian giving, she spent many hours sitting on a variety of plastic stacking chairs in a multitude of church basements exploring this connection. Her research process was the same in…
Read MoreHaving the Time of Their Lives: An Unconventional Retirement
Finding Enough Time in the Day It is an undisputed fact that there are only 24 hours in every day. It often feels that our “me time” is so scarce that we need to hold on tight to what little we can muster and guard it from intrusion. That’s why it wasn’t surprising that when…
Read MoreSpring Forward Your Giving
Despite our very snowy and cold weather of late, turning my clock forward on Saturday was a nice reminder that Spring is actually on the way. That means it’s almost time to tackle those jobs around the house I often put off. Cleaning out the garage. Painting the living room. Organizing the digital photos we’ve…
Read MoreDonating Securities to Charity
Why donate publicly traded securities to charity? Historically, donations to charities have been in the form of cash (cheque, e-transfer or credit card). However, as people discover the benefits of donating publicly traded securities (stocks, bonds or mutual funds), these in-kind gifts are gaining prominence as a tax effective way to donate versus cash gifts.…
Read MorePassion for Giving, Passed Down Through Generations
For Alain Reimer, learning to be generous started when he was a child. “We were taught that giving was just a part of life,” he says of what his parents told their children. On Sundays, when the family attended church, he remembers being given money to put in the Sunday school offering. “If we had…
Read MoreSometimes Love is Half a Sandwich
I never would have thought it, but one of the best lessons of love I ever learned was taught by a man with half a sandwich. More than thirty years ago, I spent a few summers on a construction crew. The work was hard, and the days were long. The pay was okay, but like…
Read MoreGenerations of Giving
Evelyn is an avid volunteer and gives to various charities. Most of her holidays are spent with teams of shoe box distributors: building water filters for homes, providing medical services in needy communities, and supporting agriculture projects (food always in the home). “After annually packing shoe boxes, I was curious about the distribution at the…
Read MoreA Legacy of Love
Arthur and Beverly* were in love. It had taken years to understand the depth of their connection, but they had found it and cherished it. Then, tragedy struck. A story like theirs needs to be remembered and honoured. This is how their legacy continues. A Difficult Family Separation Neither Arthur nor Beverley could pinpoint a…
Read MoreTitle Change for Executive Director
Kitchener, Ontario: On May 11, 2018, Allister Penner, Board Chair at Abundance Canada (formerly Mennonite Foundation of Canada), announced a change in title of the Executive Director, Darren Pries-Klassen, to Chief Executive Officer. With the goal of positioning Abundance Canada more broadly within Canada, it was the consensus of the board that this new title…
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