Nonprofit Technology
Equitable | February 04, 2022
Equitable, a leading financial services organization and principal franchise of Equitable Holdings Inc. announced a free tool to help employees in the non-profit fields determine their eligibility for the Dept. of Education’s Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. The new tool is among several expanded services to help individuals in the non-profit sector manage student loan repayments ahead of the expected end to federal forbearance on May 1, 2022.
The new eligibility tool was created in conjunction with StudentLoan Tech, a firm focused on helping student loan borrowers access the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. After using the tool, individuals who qualify for PSLF will see the estimated loan balance that would be forgiven, detailed next steps for applying for forgiveness and information on how they may be able to further increase their savings by enrolling in a retirement plan. Individuals can also choose to connect with an Equitable Advisors financial professional who help can provide additional insights on maximizing their retirement savings.
The burden of student loan debt remains a structural barrier to financial wellness, particularly for those who dedicate their lives to public service. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program is tremendous benefit for those who qualify, but we recognized the challenges and complexities in navigating the PSFL eligibility and repayment criteria. We are excited to help more educators reduce their student loan debt by offering them a simple process to easily determine their eligibility, quickly enroll, and save more towards their financial goals.”
Jessica Baehr, Head of Group Retirement at Equitable
Nearly half of all educators have taken out loans to pay for their education, and more than half of those educators still have a balance of $58,700, on average, according to research from the National Education Association (NEA). Nearly 33% of all American students now go into debt to pay for college and collectively, students owe nearly $1.6 trillion in student loan debt according to research from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, respectively.
The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program offers debt relief to educators and public employees who qualify. Borrowers must work full time in public service, including in a nonprofit organization, the military, public schools, nonprofit hospitals, or government. In addition, borrowers must be enrolled in an income driven repayment plan or the 10-year standard repayment plan. After making 120 qualifying monthly payments, the remaining loan balance is forgiven.
Recent changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program simplified the application process and expanded eligibility enabling more borrowers to qualify including those who were previously turned down for the program.
“Managing student loans can be a daunting process. Although the resumption of payments may feel far away, now is a great time for borrowers to put a plan in place and determine what their payments will be when they are reinstated,” said Randy Lupi, Regional Vice President, Equitable Advisors. “In addition, one of the recent changes to Public Service Loan Forgiveness gives borrowers until October 2022 to potentially receive credit for past loan payments, making now a great time for borrowers to see if they are eligible, correctly enroll and potentially receive forgiveness sooner.”
About Equitable
Equitable, a principal franchise of Equitable Holdings, Inc., has been one of America’s leading financial services providers since 1859. With the mission to help clients secure their financial well-being, Equitable provides advice, protection and retirement strategies to individuals, families and small businesses. Equitable has more than 8,000 employees and Equitable Advisors financial professionals and serves 2.8 million clients across the country.
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Nonprofit Management
Bourbon Charity | January 25, 2022
Bourbon Charity, a non-profit organization which has raised nearly $1.5M for more than 30 charitable organizations by combining charity with bourbon to #drinkforachange, has added John Edwards to its Board of Directors. He joins the current Bourbon Charity Board of Directors which includes: Brandon Hunt (Chairman of the Board), Brian Hunt (Treasurer), Chris Adams (Secretary) and Charles Murrell (Director of Donor Relations). John will spearhead community relations for the organization.
In 2016, John combined his experience in technology and radio to co-found the popular Dads Drinking Bourbon podcast along with Zeke Baker. The podcast goes behind the labels, featuring honest and straightforward reviews and candid interviews with industry professionals in a casual news setting. Originally from Massachusetts, John now lives and works in Nashville in Technology. Prior to that, he served as Operations Manager for ESPN Radio and SuperTalk 96.1 in Lexington and was the Director of Operations and Affiliate Relations for the Horse Racing Radio Network.
"I’m excited to join the Bourbon Charity board and to use my knowledge of bourbon and the distilled spirits industry to raise funds for worthy charities and make a difference in people’s lives,” said Edwards.
We’re absolutely thrilled to have John join the leadership of Bourbon Charity. His extensive knowledge of the American whiskey industry and deep connections he has made through his podcasting platform will be an invaluable resource. John's eagerness and ability to help us grow our mission as a charity has our entire team inspired."
Brandon Hunt, Founder & Chairman of the Board of Bourbon Charity
Founded in 2019 when his “Pops” was diagnosed with prostate cancer, Brandon Hunt donated his bourbon collection to start the organization. Since then, Bourbon Charity has enlisted 20,000+ supporters whose passion for combining charity with bourbon to #drinkforachange has raised nearly $1.5M for more than 30 charitable causes, including: Prostate Cancer Foundation, Children's Tumor Foundation, Fisher House Foundation, Dare to Care, and charity: water. All donations are tax deductible. In 2021, Bourbon Charity became a 100% public donation charity, meaning every dollar pledged during fundraisers goes directly to the charitable organizations being supported.
The online fundraising model has served the organization well, especially given the current state of the world. In addition to barrel picks, Bourbon Charity hosts several online fundraising events throughout the year, featuring rare and allocated whiskey, such as Pappy Van Winkle, Eagle Rare, Weller, Sazerac, George T. Stagg and more.
Join the Bourbon Hood
Another way to get involved with Bourbon Charity is to join the Bourbon Hood, a passionate community of more than 650 monthly givers that help to ensure every public dollar donated goes to the supported charities. Bourbon Hood members receive ticket entries in each fundraiser as well as exclusive merchandise and discounts.
About Bourbon Charity
Bourbon Charity is a nonprofit organization of more than 20,000 supporters and growing that raises money for charity. Core supported charities include: Prostate Cancer Foundation, Children's Tumor Foundation, Fisher House Foundation, Dare to Care, and charity: water. Bourbon Charity is registered as Bourbon Charity. We are a tax exempt organization.
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Financial Management
Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation | January 21, 2022
The COVID-19 global pandemic created vast uncertainty and hardships for many American families, and in response, Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation announced that it is doubling down on charitable efforts through its affiliated non-profit organizations and company-wide volunteer initiatives to provide critically important services for local communities and those in need.
In 2020, Fairway Cares, the non-profit arm of top-10 mortgage lender Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation, provided comfort through the delivery of 1,355 care packages to those who faced a critical illness, sustained physical trauma, or lost a loved one. Those efforts nearly doubled in 2021 with volunteers at Fairway Cares packaging and delivering more than 2,400 care packages.
Additionally, Fairway supported health care professionals who are directly treating COVID-19 patients. Fairway Cares partnered with nutritional and well-being specialist Isagenix to provide 200 immune-boosting, dietary bundles to these vital, frontline workers. The care bundles were completely paid for by Fairway volunteer fundraising efforts and made available for any Fairway employee’s family member serving as a frontline health care professional.
As a non-profit that is totally funded by Fairway employees, we work hard to make every dollar count and to maximize the value of the package contents. Each week we have volunteers come to the office to gift wrap some of the items. When people receive these specially wrapped items it adds to the feeling that the gift was specially prepared for them. We had more than 14 volunteers log a total of 610 hours in 2021.”
Sherri Anderson, CEO of Fairway Cares
This year Fairway Cares is looking to build on the momentum and plans to double results through a new initiative, Fairway Cares Champions. The Fairway Cares Champions, who are the top volunteers at the nonprofit, will magnify the reach of the Fairway Cares Team and help all of Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation better understand the impact Fairway Cares is making.
In 2021, from April to September, Fairway Cares led related, additional fund-raising initiatives. The Pedal for Packages and Pound the Pavement campaigns encouraged employees to raise money for extra care packages.
Fairway encourages its employees to give back to their communities through its Volunteer Paid Time Off program through which teammates can be paid for up to a day’s volunteer work per year. Fairway volunteers contribute thousands of hours of time across the country in programs addressing issues from Education to Health to Hunger.
Furthermore, Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation is dedicated to serving our veterans through its nonprofit American Warrior Initiative (AWI). In 2021, AWI provided 101 service dogs to 101 deserving veterans, more than double the previous year. Fairway founded the non-profit AWI in 2015 as a way to give back to active-duty service members, veterans, and first responders, and to help local branch efforts to fund initiatives for these deserving heroes of America.
Fairway underwrites all expenses of the non-profit American Warrior Initiative and Fairway employees have donated millions of dollars to AWI, enabling the organization to provide funding for hundreds of service dogs for deserving veterans and active military members over the past five years. Their contributions also enabled AWI to donate more than 230 gift cards to veterans in 2021.
“We were honored to play a small part in helping military families this Christmas by gifting 150 gift cards, $100 each, to 150 military children,” said Louise Thaxton, the Director of American Warrior Initiative. “None of us can do everything but all of us can do one thing, and for us this Christmas, it was giving back to the kids!”
About Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation
Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation is a full-service mortgage lender with a wide array of innovative products that help make homeownership more affordable with the speed and service its clients deserve. Based in Madison, Wisconsin, Fairway is dedicated to finding great mortgage options and providing some of the fastest turn times for its borrowers.
Since opening our doors 26 years ago, our team has helped thousands of Americans achieve their dream of homeownership. We have been dedicated to providing unparalleled customer service. Fairway now employs nearly 11,000 team members, including more than 3,000 producers and over 600 branches nationwide. With a strong focus on purchase business, we continue to grow each year, funding more than $71 billion in 2021. Putting Americans in homes is what we do! #FairwayNation
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