WELCOME!

Welcome to our Giving Circle. At the heart of our Giving Circle is a belief that collective philanthopy can create lasting change for low income women and children in our Philadelphia community.  Together in giving we pool our funds to create greater impact , inspire hope and make a difference.

The Giving Circle of Women's Connection Philadelphia Chapter connects, educates and inspires women to come together in collective philanthropy. We are a donor-based 501( c) (3) organization, housed at The Philadelphia Foundation. Each year our 170+ members award grants that help local nonprofits to make a meaningful difference in our Philadelphia community.



Annual Donor Appreciation Event

All Donors who made a contribution to our Giving Circle in 2024 and 2025 are invited to attend our annual Donor Appreciation Event. It is an opportunity to mix and mingle over light refreshments with your fellow Giving Circle contributors and hear how Giving Circles are changing the face of philanthropy. If you didn't receive your invitation which was sent out on February 18th via Paperless Post, please contact Barbara Lissy at barbaralissy@comcast.net. If you did receive an invitation, please respond as to whether you can attend or not.

We are gathering to celebrate you! Hope to see you there!

2025 Focus Area . . . Juvenile Justice

Our educational programs in 2025 focused on Juvenile Justice - what the term means and why it is important. Too many of our youth are funneled into the justice system and incarcerated for minor offenses. Diversion programs are severely underutilized despite being effective when used and the juvenile justice system is riddled with racial disparities. There has to be a better way.

Our grant process is underway. We received over 20 applications from nonprofits throughout the city. Our grants committee is starting their work in reading and discussing the various applications and arranging site visits. Their job is to select five or six finalists which will present to the entire group of Giving Circle donors at the Annual Voting Meeting on May 20th. More updates to come.



Time to Join a Giving Circle!

The number of giving circles, and the number of people who are part of one, tripled between 2007 and 2016 — and then tripled again between 2016 and 2023.

According to Philanthropy Together, an initiative that follows the activity of giving circles, individuals come together to create the change they want to see in the world by joining a giving circle. This way of giving enables people to increase their impact and knowledge, have fun, and connect with their local community. Collective giving has exploded in popularity, growing to more than 4,000 circles in the U.S. with over 370,000 engaged in collective giving, based on Philanthropy Together’s data. The Giving Circle of Women’s Connection, Philadelphia is proud to be a part of this profound way to give back to our communities.

Various studies have found that:

Giving Circle influence donors to give more

Giving Circles influence donors to give more strategically

Giving Circle participants give to a wide array of organizations

Giving Circle participants are highly engaged in their community

Giving Circles Increase participants knowledge about philanthropy, nonprofits, and the community

Want to join our Giving Circle? Click here to make a donation.

Join Us! . . . . Join Us! . . . . Join Us! . . . . Join us and give below. Thank you!