Editor’s Note: Catherine Curry Williams is on a mission to change the conventional concepts of philanthropy. Her book, Philanthropy on a Shoestring:  How to Make a Difference on $1.40 a Day is a call to action that urges us to make a difference, no matter the size of our contribution. It’s a wakeup call about the power of collective giving. As founder of She Angels Foundation, she is inspiring women everywhere to form giving circles. We were inspired by her mission to form The Three Tomatoes and Glow Magazine Giving Circle in partnership with She Angels Foundation. Her recent TEDx talk is much

Read the excerpt below from the best selling book, Philanthropy on a Shoestring: How to Make a Difference on $1.40 a Day by Catherine Curry Williams and enter below to win a signed copy of Catherine’s book.

Preface

My journey from despair to purposeful living

March 28, 1997 will forever be carved in my heart as a day of immense joy and profound sorrow. It was a day that began with endless possibilities, brimming with hope and anticipation. I had been married for a year and eagerly awaiting my first child’s arrival. When the news came that we were to have a boy, we were overjoyed.

We had meticulously prepared for his arrival, ensuring every detail was perfect. His clothes, carriage, and crib were all ready and waiting. We painted his bedroom multiple times, in various shades of blue. And as for his name, we had chosen Shane—a name that held deep meaning, signifying “God is gracious” in Irish and “Gift from God” in Hebrew.

I went into labor at thirty-nine weeks, and everything went pretty much as planned. Ice chips, breathing, and inspirational music in the background. After six hours and one final push, Shane entered the world.

But our joy quickly turned to confusion and fear as Shane struggled to take his first breath. The doctor’s efforts to stimulate him yielded no response, and, before we knew it, a team of nurses rushed in, whisking our precious baby away, leaving us reeling in shock.

For nine agonizing days, we watched helplessly as our beautiful six-pound, seven-ounce baby boy lay in the confines of the NICU, surrounded by a tangle of tubes and wires. Each day brought new uncertainties, new fears, and yet no answers. I pumped breast milk in hopes of nourishing him. I cradled him in my arms, dressed him, brushed his hair, and talked sweetly in his ear. He looked so perfect, and he smelled like honey. I barely left his side. I spent hours trying to understand why this was happening and, at the same time, loving him like I had never loved anyone in my whole life.

On the tenth day, Shane was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder—spinal muscular atrophy. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The best-case scenario was that Shane would spend his life in a wheelchair.

The worst-case scenario is what happened; Shane lived for only two weeks. It was incomprehensible; we were completely devastated. How could this be happening?

The news shattered us, leaving us adrift in grief and despair.

The aftermath of losing Shane is almost impossible to sum up in words. In my darkest moments, from the rocking chair of Shane’s empty bedroom, I wrote love letters to him in heaven and many furious letters to God. Somehow, I thought I could make sense of this and find meaning in the deep pain in my heart. Many days, I thought I would not be able to continue. I felt hopeless.

Six months after Shane had passed away, I received a letter from my sister-in-law Miriam, who lived three thousand miles away. She was reading a newspaper article when she saw a story about a woman whose child had recently passed from the same rare genetic disorder as Shane. I knew I had to talk to this woman. I did some research, found her number, and called her on the spot. We talked for hours, consoling each other. She told me about her son, who was nine months old when he passed away, and how she was inspired to do something good in his memory. At that moment, I felt my first glimmer of hope. It was like a tiny spark in the darkness, a possibility that urged me to keep going. The possibility of transforming this piercing pain into something meaningful, something that would help others and be a tribute to Shane’s memory.

I began to channel my pain into purpose.

With the unwavering support of my community, Shane’s Inspiration was founded—an organization dedicated to building the first universally accessible playground in the western United States. A place where children with disabilities and their able-bodied peers could play side by side, fostering inclusivity. A place where Shane would’ve been able to play alongside his friends in his wheelchair.

As Shane’s Inspiration blossomed, so did our mission. What began as a local endeavor burgeoned into a global inclusion movement, spanning continents and transcending boundaries. Today, we have over eighty playgrounds on five continents and education programs in thirty countries in five languages. Little did I know that this spark of hope would grow into a worldwide inclusion movement.

This was all beyond my wildest dreams. I never imagined this would be where I am today.

I knew nothing about philanthropy, building playgrounds, raising millions of dollars, or gathering teams of volunteers.

I was born in the heart of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, the youngest of four sisters. My dreams seemed distant, and the odds of realizing them seemed stacked against me. I didn’t excel in school like my sisters. I figuratively and literally danced as fast as possible to prove my worth. My parents were divorced by the time I was nine. My mom had multiple jobs to provide for us, and I became a latchkey kid. By age fourteen, I had a fake ID so I could get into bars. My main goal at the time was to be able to get into a disco and not get arrested.

I left Brooklyn and ventured to Hollywood to do what every eighteen-year-old girl without a plan does. I waited tables by day and went to acting classes at night. I found some success doing television commercials, but it was hardly the career I had envisioned. And, like many dreams, things materialized differently. Life had other plans for me.

Through the loss of my son and then the birth of my daughter, Grace, I began to see the world through new eyes.

In 2020, I was doing some research when I came upon a startling piece of information that shook me to my core; women and girls receive less than 1.8 percent of all US charitable giving. I searched and searched for information to disprove this data. Unfortunately, there was none. Women’s and girls’ initiatives were not even on the index charts until about 2016 when the Lilly family foundation did the first index. I was outraged. Where would I be without the support of the women in my life?

At this point, I realized that inclusion wasn’t only for playgrounds.

The information I learned about the inequity in the nonprofit sector about women and girls receiving less than animals made me angry. I thought, Where would I be today without the support of all those women in my life? But I knew full well that just being angry wouldn’t help. So, I got into action. The first thing I did was call several of my very close girlfriends to tell them. They also did some deep diving into the statistics and were surprised to learn this fact was true. At that point, we called a few more friends. And then, finally, the answer was apparent to us—we would need to start our own organization.

She Angels Foundation began in July 2020 during the pandemic—an organization empowering women and girls across diverse communities. We are a collective giving organization that raises funds specifically through our Collective Giving membership. A hundred percent of our membership donations go directly to our grant-awarding program, giving grants to a broad portfolio of women’s and girls’ foundations that provide mentorship, funding, and resources to women’s and girls’ causes.

In a short span of four years, She Angels Foundation has awarded more than forty-five $5,000 grants, which have impacted thousands of women across our country.

Each step forward we take is a step toward a more equitable world for women and girls.

In 2024, we began our second program. The Philanthropy Circles Program aims to educate and mentor young women across the United States on the effectiveness and impact of collective giving and to increase support for female-led nonprofits.

She Angels Foundation believes that teaching young women about collective giving, mentorship, and community engagement will create a swell of philanthropy for women and girls in our country.

Recognizing that everyone’s journey is different, it’s important to find what personally motivates us and where we can best channel our efforts for growth and transformation.

My life has been a series of twists and turns, guiding me to this very moment. Amid the challenges and setbacks, I unearthed a reservoir of inner strength.

Who would have imagined that the determination that once propelled a carefree teenager into the world of discos would later become my superpower, encouraging me to navigate through the depths of sorrow and emerge stronger than ever before?

 YES I WOULD LIKE TO WIN A SIGNED COPY OF CATHERINE’S BOOK.  ENTER HERE.