Smart, strategic philanthropy is difficult work, and involves thorough research and close interaction with the grant recipient. The Ms. Foundation has the skilled staff and on-the-ground knowledge to find those organizations around the nation that are doing excellent work with tiny staffs and budgets...Read more

As a passionate supporter of the Ms. Foundation, I realize I'm drawn to the foundation's work because it doesn't force me to make a false choice between two parts of my very being. My race and gender are so intertwined within me that I don't know where one begins and the other ends. I'm a black woman and I don't really give a hoot why folks might choose to discriminate against me….I just know as Ms. knows, that discrimination in any form is painful, dehumanizing and can turn an otherwise gentle soul into an angry black woman within seconds. Read more

That the Ms. Foundation would be the beneficiary of my first million-dollar gift seemed only natural. Over the years, as a donor, I grew to learn the importance of the foundation, not only the people who worked there but also those it helped benefit...I saw the genius of the cross-race, cross-class approach to grant-making...that places at the decision-making table not just the women with money but also women who may have little money but who, as grassroots activists, know just how it can be best invested in the community. Read more