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Thursday, September 9, 2010

Social Change Book Club

Posted by Priscilla Macy on January 29, 2009

Last autumn, a Global Sojourns Giving Circle wine tasting/informational meeting was held in Denver to introduce Priscilla Macy, the GSGC’s founder. At that gathering, the idea of a book club was bandied about; one that would focus on social change. Fast forward to January 2009 and GSGC members Linda Dee and Amy Wood have successfully organized a club and its held its first meeting.

The book that was discussed was, How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas by David Bornstein. The group of 14 readers was led by Dr. Jane Scandlyn, an anthropologist and a total supporter of the book club. The club, which will be limited to 20 people, will meet monthly. The group is comprised of a city council member, two psychologists, the president of a large non-profit organization, a philanthropist who began a skills program in India, a director of a food bank, an accountant, a job developer, and the list goes on. Most people did not know one another, but within minutes, conversation was flowing and our moderator had to rein us in to keep the group from interrupting one another.

Want to join in from afar? Our next book to read is Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder. Stay tuned to learn more.

On a side note, the book How to Change the World, tells about Ashoka Fellows; people who see a need and really do something monumental to make positive changes in our world. David Kuria, a water and sanitation expert from the Kibera informal settlement in Kenya, will be in Denver next month and amazingly, he too is an Ashoka Fellow. All GSGC book club members have been invited to meet him in person!

GSGC members understand the importance of education in order to become responsible global citizens- and this is a great place to start!

Template for Future Wine Tastings

Posted by Priscilla Macy on October 22, 2008

If you are interested in hosting a GSGC wine tasting event, we have developed a “template” that will help make the event easy to organize. This is a wonderful way to have a get together with friends and educate them about Giving Circles in general, and ours in particular.

Please contact Linda Dee at 303-973-2928 or sandyandlinda@msn.com for more information.

Recent Events 09/08: Denver Wine Tasting

Posted by Priscilla Macy on

GSGC Denver members Amy Wood and Linda Dee hosted a wine tasting event in September when Priscilla was in town for a conference. Priscilla showed the wonderful, informative video explaining the Giving Circle, that was developed by GSGC member Heidi Bixby. All of the 30 people in attendance, including donor Denny Gray, were extremely interested in our Circle and asked plenty of questions. Donations from the event are still arriving at the Clarence Foundation’s office.

Recent Events 07/08: South African Wine Tasting

Posted by Priscilla Macy on

Wine tasting and Giving Circle discusion

Wine tasting and Giving Circle discusion

GSGC participant Sarah Williams hosted a South African wine tasting at her home in Danville, CA in July that was attended by GSGC founder Priscilla Macy, GSGC participant Angie Inchauspe and Clarence Foundation Executive Director Marc Manashil.

In total, 35 people attended the well received event that featured a video presentation about the GSGC’s May trip to Africa along with a slideshow about going on safari. The group also had fun tasting a few delicious South African wines. Over $1,500 was raised to support the Giving Circle’s efforts.