In The News

On June 15, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos made the unusual move of tweeting a “request for ideas” about how to direct his charitable giving. The tweet received ample media coverage and more than 40,000 replies on Twitter. In this open letter, leaders of 18 community foundations from around the United States, including The Pittsburgh Foundation President and CEO Maxwell King, respond.

With the state facing a $3 billion deficit, providers of essential human services are preparing for significant cuts, and several million Pennsylvania families who depend on them are fearing the worst. That is why we, as leaders of community philanthropies deeply engaged in funding essential human services, have developed #FamilyFirstPA, a statewide campaign to let legislators and Gov. Tom Wolf know that vital human services must remain a priority in the next budget.

The Allegheny County Homeless Advisory Board has a new plan to fight homelessness. The board’s plan is aimed to make the condition of homelessness “rare, brief and nonrecurring” in Allegheny County, and to ensure that various systems and social service groups are working together well. But before the plan is approved, the board is requesting feedback from the community.

It’s 11 a.m. in Judge Jeffery Manning’s courtroom. The attorneys are ready. The Allegheny County Common Pleas Court president judge is on the bench. The video screen comes alive to reveal the business of the morning, a series of people in orange, jail-​issue jumpsuits: One young man with a retail…  

A decade ago, the Promise was barely a dream. Now, executive director Saleem Ghubril said recently that he and his staff are working on a plan for the program’s next 10 years.

An online fundraiser to assist the region’s needy has generated nearly $1.3 million for agencies that provide basic needs including food, shelter and medical care. The Pittsburgh Foundation said #SafetyNetPGH, held Tuesday as one in a series of Critical Needs Alerts it has sponsored in recent years, raised $616,000 in public donations. The remaining $657,000 was pre-committed matching funds from the foundation and other donors.

The Pittsburgh Foundation said its Critical Needs Alert fundraiser received $616,000 in pledges Tuesday. Combined with $657,000 in matching funds from the foundation, the first-year event raised nearly $1.3 million to help about 100 nonprofits in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties that directly support people with needs related to child care, food and nutrition, physical and mental health, housing and transportation.

The Pittsburgh Foundation is narrowing the focus of its former Day of Giving fundraiser to raise money for more than 100 nonprofits in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties that directly support people with needs in five areas.

This year, The Pittsburgh Foundation is suspending Day of Giving and focusing instead on what they call #SafetyNetPGH Critical Needs Alert—a full day of online donating for the most vital services, for those most deeply in need. On Tuesday, May 23, starting at 8 a.m. and continuing until midnight, The Pittsburgh Foundation is asking the public to donate to nonprofits of their choice at PittsburghGives. Donations between $25 and $1000 will be eligible for matching funds.

The Pittsburgh Foundation has raised a call to arms – or at least a call to pocketbooks – for Tuesday, May 23. That’s the day you can make a difference in children’s lives across Allegheny County by participating in the Critical Needs Alert fundraising event.