The New Department of Philanthropy
This article was originally published in the March 2010 Tar Valon Times. It was written by Yelenia Hylraren.
As the newest department in our organization, the Philanthropy department has some exciting plans for the future. Charity work is something TarValon.net has been excited to participate in both on a membership level and as a group with international charities. In a short interview, both Kariada, Director of Philanthropy and Eleyan, Amyrlin Seat, were able to give us some insight as to the evolution of the department and how they hope it will grow.
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How long as TarValon.net been participating in fundraisers and what are some of the previous charities that have been highlighted?
Kariada: This past year's Feast of Lights charity drive, supporting Doctors Without Borders, was run for the month of December. We've contributed to a number of other charities in the past. Most recently, we ran drives for Heifer International and Ziggurat Con in 2007, and made a donation to the Mayo Clinic in honor of James Oliver Rigney in 2006. In 2008 we hosted a fundraiser with the greater Wheel of Time Community to benefit Heifer International.
Mother: TarValon.Net does not have one single charity drive. The community raises funds both within its own membership, and runs fundraisers for Wheel of Time fans at large for a variety of charities and charitable causes. We also participate in blood drives, coat and toy drives, and community service drives. The tradition of service in this community began from our very first year in existence. It continues to grow and evolve as our resources (both in numbers and in talent) grows and evolves.
Why did you choose Doctors Without Borders this time around?
Kariada: Doctors Without Borders is a great charity for us to promote because of its international presence and the causes it supports. In addition, Doctors Without Borders allocates over 85% of donations to program services, which exceeds the expectations for a charity of this kind.
There's been a lot going on with the Philanthropy Department this past year, would you mind letting us in on the behind the scenes bits?
Kariada: There is a lot in the works for 2010! Some of the larger projects I'm working on right now include promoting charity at our real-life events, creating a new Servant of All system to track and reward members' charitable acts, and creating a way to more officially and permanently acknowledge members who contribute monetarily to the site. My goal is for members to start seeing the results of these efforts in the first half of the year. We also have plans to host another fundraiser within the greater Wheel of Time community after the success of the Wheel of Time Fundraiser we held last year sponsored by the Robert Jordan estate and Brandon Sanderson.
Is there a record of how much we've cumulatively donated to charities in the Tower's history?
Mother: We have always looked for multiple ways to help our communities, and fundraising is only one of those methods. With the assistance of Brandon Sanderson, we were able to raise around $45,000 for Heifer International over the summer with the help of the WoT Fandom. In truly astounding form, we raised the majority of those funds through donations totaling less than $50. We were the third largest donating group at the time, and among those groups, we had the highest numbers of participants. That was very exciting! We also hosted another fundraiser with WoT fans for Doctor's Without Borders, bringing in almost $2,500. Within our community, we awarded a $500 "Robert Jordan Memorial Scholarship" to Chris England who is in University to become a teacher. We have also helped other members in need in smaller, less measurable ways. It is important to note that many of our Ajahs, Companies, and other groups within TarValon.Net also get together to provide community service or other acts of charity. In the past we have raised funds for other organizations including the Mayo Clinic, and the Salvation Army, among others. We were also one of the primary sponsors for Ziggurat Con, the first (albeit small) gaming convention to ever be held in a War Zone.
Some members have voiced the sentiment that TV.Net charity drives should focus on members in need and/or poorer people 'closer to home' so to speak. Do you have an opinion about that?
Kariada: Helping our members is not limited to annual drives. Every year, throughout the year, members in need are assisted by others, both through private arrangements and through administration. Our emergency funds and Helping Hands projects see that our members are taken care of when it is truly needed. In some cases, we do a site-wide drive to help members. In others, the contributions of a few are all that is required. Because of this, all members may not be aware of every time we give to our members in need, but I can say that not a year has gone by that we have not provided assistance when necessary. Besides, we strive to be Servants of All, and it is by giving to others outside of our community, in addition to helping our own, that we show the depth of our philanthropic spirit.
Mother: Where is "closer to home?" While the majority of our members are North American or European, we have members on every continent with the exception of Antarctica. We are part of a world community. Wherever we put our efforts will be "closer to home" to someone in our community.
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TarValon.Net participates in and hosts several types of charity and service drives a year, people join in when they can or when something speaks to them. Members often bring in charities themselves that are important to them. I know members who have asked for sponsors for their Walk for Diabetes or Breast Cancer. I know members who have raised funds among friends for another friend that they know is in need. I know members who have taken others into their homes for a short while when there was nowhere else to go. There are a lot of ways to give of oneself. As a community, we embrace many different ways of giving.
TarValon.Net currently has 757 members from Citizen to Senior Member status. How do you think the contributions compare to drives run when the site was smaller?
Kariada: Our drives have definitely expanded throughout the years: in frequency, complexity, and contributions. Raw numbers cannot justify this increase, however. Philanthropy takes many forms, and monetary donations are only a small part. For example, today we are able to host a fundraiser benefiting an outside organization, run some Helping Hands projects for members in need, award a scholarship to a member, and raise funds for our community at real-life events, all at the same time. Years ago, this would not have been possible.
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I’m positive we will see great things from this department both for members, the site, as well as in collaboration with the Wheel of Time community at-large. Kariada is welcome to questions and suggestions (philanthropy@tarvalon.net) and her team is working hard to bring about programs to get the members more involved in the site as well as their own community.
