Despite its modest start, Donahue’s daytime show became very popular, was eventually syndicated, moved to Chicago in 1974, then New York City in 1985. In between, Phil Donahue divorced his first wife and married a celebrity, TV’s “That Girl” Marlo Thomas. My mother’s and my life dramatically changed too. Still, for 29 years, Phil, his guests, and his audience continued to be something my mother and I shared and debated (thanks to VCRs and long-distance phone calls).
Some shows were just silly, but no serious topic was too controversial: the Vietnam War, AIDS, sex, LGBTQ issues, abortion, birth control, marriage, divorce, free love, education, religion, racism, civil rights, immigration, women’s rights, politics, poverty, and on and on. One standout for me was seeing Ryan White, a teenager with hemophilia kicked out of his school in Kokomo, Indiana after he was infected with HIV/AIDS. Phil Donahue was a pallbearer at White’s funeral in 1990. I could give so many examples. Nevertheless, even the best things come to an end, especially on TV. The last Donahue show aired in 1996. His commitment never wavered. He was upfront about his liberal politics, but open to contrary and often outragious opinions expressed by guests and members of the audience. Other talk show hosts followed, but Phil Donahue was the first. President Biden recognized Donahue’s pioneering role with the Presidential Medal of Freedom last May.
In many ways, the Giving Circle is an extension of what I learned from watching Donahue. Our donors are committed to learning about the challenging issues that face too many women and children in Philadelphia. Many topics are unfamiliar, difficult, or both. After receiving input from the spring survey of Giving Circle donors and doing research on nonprofit organizations working on a variety of the issues reflected in your responses, the Executive Committee chose juvenile justice as the focus area for this year’s campaign.
As we learned from our programs and grant review process last year, the pandemic intensified the challenges facing many children and their families. Sandi Slap and Ellan Bernstein are working on programs to inform us about the many aspects of juvenile justice and how your generous gifts to our collective giving grants can help nonprofit organizations working with pre-teens, adolescents, and their families touched by the judicial system. We are also lucky that our co-chair Phyllis Bookspan has a professional background in this area. Look for Phyllis’s article on the topic of juvenile justice in the October newsletter.
My world has expanded far beyond anything I could have imagined when I was 12. There have been so many influential people who helped me grow into the person I am today. Learning about the recent death of Phil Donahue at age 88 on August 18 makes me especially grateful to him and my mother for teaching me the importance of listening and learning about the lives of others in order to discover the best ways I might help to make the world a better place. Please give generously to this year’s Giving Circle campaign and we hope you will participate in our educational programs to learn more about the best ways to help.
Together in Giving,
Kris Lindenmeyer, co-chair