Compassion in Action: Raising Philanthropic Kids with Lisa Parker (Ep. 11)
What if giving was as natural to kids as learning to walk or talk?
This week, Joline Godfrey welcomes Lisa Parker, President and Executive Director at Lawrence Welk Family Foundation and Principal at Family Circle Advisors.
Together, they explore how families can nurture generosity and compassion across generations. From creative family traditions to stories of impactful small gifts, they share practical ways to make giving joyful and meaningful. Lisa also addresses how philanthropy can counter today’s mental health struggles, proving that compassion isn’t just charity, it’s a powerful act of connection.
Lisa discusses:
- How milestones for nurturing generosity can be woven into childhood development
- Volunteerism as a tool for healing anxiety and depression, especially among teens
- A moving story of a $1,000 donation transforming lives in a Cambodian village
- How family giving projects, tailored to kids’ interests, foster both fun and purpose
- The importance of inviting people to the table, whether for business or philanthropy, to build true community
- And more!
Resources:
- Get your copy of Raising Financially Fit Kids!
- The Stories That Bind Us – The New York Times
- Reader, Come Home: The Reading Brain in a Digital World by Maryanne Wolf
Connect with Joline Godfrey:
Connect with Lisa Parker:
About our Guest:
Lisa Parker brings 30 years of experience in philanthropy and nonprofit management, to serve philanthropic families raising the next generation of savvy givers. For the past thirteen years she has been the President and Executive Director of the Lawrence Welk Family Foundation, leading the Foundation’s initiative to seed the youth giving movement and creating youth philanthropy programs for the family’s fourth generation.
Lisa is the founder and principal of San Francisco based Family Circle Advisors. This talented team works with philanthropic families by crafting deeply meaningful giving experiences to engage and inspire each generation. With the birth of her own children Lisa embarked on a decade of study into the childhood roots of altruism and compassion resulting in the creation of on-line resources, workshops and other tools to support parents in raising the “Generous Generation ™.”
Lisa is certified by 2164, a division of The Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies in New York, as a consultant to multi-generational families and has been trained as a legacy advisor by Inspired Legacies. In addition, Lisa serves as an advisor and board member to numerous organizations building and expanding the philanthropic sector. She writes and speaks extensively on raising The Generous Generation ™, youth philanthropy, new models of giving and family philanthropy throughout California, the US and the UK and has been quoted in multiple publications including Town & Country and Alliance Magazine.
After graduating from UCLA, Phi Beta Kappa, Lisa interned with the Council on Foundations in Washington D.C. and went on to become the Los Angeles Program Director of the Community for Education Foundation, a youth empowerment and entrepreneurship program in South Central Los Angeles.
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