WINSTON-SALEM—Linsey Mills, a 36-year-old African American financial planner, isn't your Daddy Warbucks level philanthropist. But he is a philanthropist, and he's making more.
"My parents were always helping, working in the church," he explains. "I was working at First Union Bank here and I worked with some very wealthy clients who had foundations."
The Davidson College graduate was thinking about these things when he talked with a friend in Atlanta who helped athletes and entertainers set up foundations. Mills himself had benefited from a privately funded scholarship at college.
He says, "I decided to have my own foundation."
Mills was one of about 300 people who gathered recently in the Research Triangle Park at a state-wide conference of small "givers" and philanthropists. The meeting was sponsored by NCGives, an initiative based in Raleigh.
Using information provided by his Atlanta friend and support from NGAAP (Next Generation of African American Philanthropists), a Durham non-profit, Mills and his wife Michelle, contacted the National Heritage Foundation in northern Virginia. It helps individuals establish their own funds and manages the paperwork.
Mills received a one—page application, paid a $285 fee, and a few weeks later became the proud owner of The Linsey and Michelle Mills Foundation.
"I put in $500 and wrote a check," he laughs, "just to see if it worked!"
Since then, Mills and his wife, a financial analyst, regularly contribute to the fund, and they have paid for a college students' books, small community projects and other local needs.
They also conduct classes on "financial literacy" in African American communities, which has become their focus.
They've developed an interactive game Mills calls "Traders" in which he teaches young people about stocks and investments. "I've been to nine or 10 colleges, middle and high schools," he says.
A college friend who taught at a Charlotte alternative school invited Mills to play his game with students there. It was a tough audience, but once engaged, says Mills, "Their eyes lit up! They were really excited."
He describes his giving experience this way: "My grandmother who was on public assistance saved $10 a month for me to go to college. I believe in ‘paying it forward.' My wife and I want to be a catalyst. We've helped start 25 other foundations, mostly for African Americans. The great thing is that some are doing more than what we're doing. It's important for people to see what they can do."
So, you want to be a philanthropist
