The drive to give

DAFgiving360™ clients Laura and Royce share their story about how they were able to impact a charity near and dear to their hearts.

Couples sometimes disagree about how to manage their finances and where to spend their money. But for Laura and Royce, it’s one of the things in life that has brought them even closer together.

Royce and Laura enjoy donating their time and resources to charities where they feel like they can really make an impact. Not only do they help people in need, but Laura and Royce say that their volunteer work has been life-changing for the two of them as well.

Laura said it may be surprising but sometimes it seems like charities just need someone there—anyone who can help. It was one of those times that Laura and Royce were on site working at a foster home that they observed an opportunity to make an immediate difference.

“We were volunteering at an organization here in the Phoenix area called Mulligan's Manor,” explained Laura. “It's a group home for LGBTQ kids, a foster situation, and it's one of the very few in the country that provides a safe place for kids to come in. One time we went over and we saw them trying to cram all the kids into a couple of vehicles, and it just wasn't happening.”

Royce and Laura said it dawned on them in that moment this is something they could help with— they could use some of the money they had set aside for charity in their donor-advised fund (DAF) account at DAFgiving360™ to make a one-time grant to fund a van purchase.

Laura and Royce met in Munich, Germany, where Royce was stationed in the Air Force. After the Air Force, Royce worked in many areas related to health care, but he says it’s one consulting firm in particular that really changed the path forward for him.

“The owner of the firm was a very generous person throughout the entire time I knew him,” shared Royce. “And the message that he lived by was ‘Do the right thing, be generous, be truthful’ and it created a family like environment amongst those of us that worked with him.”

Royce said that experience in his life was a major part of his journey towards philanthropy.

Laura, a talented glass artist, said she considers herself a professional volunteer and grew up in a family where philanthropy was a part of life. She shared how her mother always left an imprint on the communities where they lived.

“My mom was always volunteering and very much participating in any city we lived in,” said Laura. “We moved a lot and each time we moved, she would get involved in the new community. She was an artist herself and did a lot of mosaicking.”

Having both been influenced in their lives by others living a philanthropic life, Laura and Royce now continue to pay it forward to help their own communities, improve quality of life for people in need, and make the world a better place.