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While the Sunday night reality show, “Oprah’s Big Give,” attracts viewers in need of a dose of altruism, Atlantans can claim their very own philanthropist, Deborah Richardson, CEO of the Atlanta Women’s Foundation. Richardson, who was recently honored by the Siegel Institute at Kennesaw State University, stated that AWF is “The only public foundation in Atlanta which focuses on transforming the lives of women and girls.”

Richardson is a role model with a big heart. The Atlanta native is driven by her passion to assist women. “We are a catalyst for change,” she says. “We provide strategic grant making to those organizations [that] are doing their very best work on behalf of advancing the lives of women and girls. We believe that as a women’s fund, we [must] invest our grant dollars in those programs that are providing ... real change in a woman’s life.” To date, AWF has awarded more than 250 grants totaling nine million dollars to community organizations and will provide one million more to nonprofits this year.

AWF makes grants to organizations involved in transforming and improving the lives of economically vulnerable families by investing in projects that generate income and increase opportunities for child care. According to a study by the Economic Policy Institute, the average income for a single woman with one child living in Atlanta is just under $20,000 annually, significantly less than the minimum budget requirement of $40,000 to adequately cover basic costs.

In addition, the 20-year-old foundation trains women to serve on nonprofit boards in leadership capacities and deploys them to organizations that match their skills, interests and passion. AWF’s leadership program, The Destiny Fund, targets women between the ages of 25 and 40 for philanthropic education and action. -yvette caslin

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