National Philanthropy Day celebrates nonprofits' impact

Lisa Intagliata called the National Philanthropy Day celebration a bright light for those nonprofits that may not be able to afford such a ceremony on their own.

“It’s their one time of year to be able to do that in a bigger forum,” she said. 

Intagliata is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Southwest Florida Chapter, which held its 38th Annual National Philanthropy Day Celebration on Nov. 14 at Michael's On East. 

The event celebrated 30 honorees, including both individuals and corporations, in Sarasota’s community. 

The event also featured two youth honorees.

It recognized Pine View School senior Hayley Peace, who is a facilitator for the monthly creative writing workshop series at Neuro Challenge Foundation for Parkinson's, and Jackson Carney, a Booker High School student who helped lead the initiative to repair the damage to the Venice Theatre following Hurricane Ian.

“I just want it to be known that Neuro Challenge is a very impactful organization, and I am so incredibly honored to be a part of it, and of course, I'm honored to be sharing the stage with some incredible philanthropists,” Peace told the crowd.

As its keynote speaker, the event hosted Karen Osborne, a New York City philanthropist who is senior strategist at The Osborne Group. 

Osborne discussed the concept of generosity.

“Generosity is about doing more than what is expected,” she said. “Generosity is about doing it without expecting anything in return. … Generosity comes in all shapes and sizes, all colors, all ways, and is a powerful, powerful force.”

Intagliata said the event is important in the community for a number of reasons.

“We honor our honorees to thank and inspire them to give; inspire others in the room to be generous and to acknowledge them, and thank them, and steward them to the next gift; and also to show how we work well together from nonprofit to nonprofit," she said.