This month marks the retirement of Barry Gaberman, Senior Vice President of the Ford Foundation, who is also WINGS’ Chair Emeritus. Many acknowledge the outstanding contribution Barry has made to the field of philanthropy, but WINGS and associations of grantmakers, and all organizations whose role is in developing and supporting philanthropy, owe him a special debt of gratitude.

It was Barry, above all, who recognized the importance of philanthropy’s infrastructure to strengthening philanthropy itself. His work has strengthened philanthropic infrastructure organizations, raised their profile and enhanced their confidence in themselves. His sure touch in working across borders was also vital in shaping WINGS and the unusual structure which makes WINGS truly global – the movement of its secretariat every few years to a new part of the world, and its insistence on being a network, not a more formal institution tied to the style or legal framework of one country.

In Barry’s honour, the WINGS network and our friends are launching the Barry Gaberman Lecture on Global Philanthropy, which will be held every time the WINGS network meets globally. Barry himself will give the inaugural lecture at WINGSForum 2006 in Bangkok in November, and in subsequent years WINGS intends to invite leaders in the development of philanthropy of similar stature as guest lecturers.

In order to ensure that these future lectures come about, we are fundraising for the Barry Gaberman Lecture Fund, which will be held in the US, and the investment income from which will support the costs of the lecture and give some support to each WINGSForum. We are on the way to raising our target of $100,000. For those interested in making a donation, please see our website, http://www.wingsweb.org. This would be a fitting way to honour Barry’s role in founding WINGS and in the development of philanthropy generally.

WINGS (Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support)
Director: Gaynor Humphreys
T + 32 2 512 8938
wings@efc.be
http://www.wingsweb.org

For more information
See http://www.cfsymposium.org for a copy of Community Foundations: Symposium on a global movement