The Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman, who died this year, famously argued that businesses ought to stick to making money and leave it to shareholders to decide, individually, whether and how company profits should be distributed to charitable causes.
Let us give thanks this holiday season that the world did not follow Friedman's advice. It is not just that having corporations involved in philanthropy increases the amount of money given to worthy causes. It is also that companies can bring unique resources and expertise to these challenges and tap into the enthusiasm and creativity of their employees.
There are countless stories of extraordinary corporate philanthropy here in the Washington region, most of which go unheralded. Here are just a few:
The death of Josh Freeman in a helicopter accident last week didn't simply rob the region of a successful real estate developer and resort operator. Josh was also a hyperactive philanthropist whose company foundation regularly donated more than $1 million a year to local nonprofit groups. Arts institutions like the Olney Theatre Center and Strathmore Hall have been beneficiaries, as have the Olney Boys & Girls Club and Hospice Caring in Gaithersburg.
Reston-based Sallie Mae was presented with the annual Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership at a White House ceremony. The panel of judges cited Sallie Mae and its foundation for a $28 million grant establishing Building Hope, which provides construction funding for charter schools in the Washington area, along with a variety of programs designed to ensure that any D.C. high school graduate admitted to college will have the money to pay for it. This year alone, Sallie Mae invested more than $4 million in the region.
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