HOW WE GIVE: Consistent Giving Adds Up

Generations of donor partners have created significant impact in our community through gifts of all shapes and sizes to Grand Rapids Community Foundation. In the “How We Give” series, we highlight donor partners who are committed to carrying this legacy into the next 100 years by making gifts that accomplish their specific philanthropic goals. The variety of donor partners and gifts come together to create change and improve West Michigan. This is community at work and love in action!

This is our community. We can shape it how we want it to look. Grand Rapids is so diverse in general, and we can all support each other in our different ways.

-Stacey Hongsyvilay-Thayer

MEET STACEY HONGSYVILAY-THAYER

Stacey Hongsyvilay-Thayer has lived all over the United States, spending time in Michigan during high school and living in places as far away as Utah. Eventually, she found her way back to West Michigan for a fresh change. Now Stacey lives in Grand Rapids with her husband, infant son and cat. She works as a software engineer and enjoys playing volleyball and video games.

Stacey might be shy to admit it, but her friends describe her as the altruistic one in the group. She believes it is important to give back and encourages others to find ways to make even a small impact to change the world around them. As a student, Stacey overcame challenges and setbacks, eventually earning a degree from Grand Valley State University. She understands the pressure of navigating college and career training while also working and received a scholarship from the Community Foundation to help offset her college costs. Now, she makes a difference for current students by volunteering her time and giving back through monthly donations to Challenge Scholars.

Stacey recently talked with Jenine Torres, development director, about how she makes decisions as a young professional committed to giving back to community while building a career and family.

JENINE: Why is giving back to our community important to you?

STACEY: I think it's just fundamentally important to give back what I can. I've come up from a poor background. I just know if I can give back, it'll hopefully help other kids. It's really the gist of it. Nothing too extravagant.

JENINE: How do you make giving decisions?

STACEY: I give based on the organizations that have helped me. If I’ve been touched, if they’ve helped me, I try to give back. I give $25 a month maybe, which I’m like, ‘That's a Planet Fitness membership for me.’ I can afford that. We’re monthly budgeters, so we fit that into our budget. When you said that we’d given almost a thousand dollars since starting I was surprised. It really adds up over time!

JENINE: Why did you choose Challenge Scholars to contribute monthly gifts to?

STACEY: I didn't know much about it until I donated. Honestly, I just heard about it because of the drop-down list of options. But I thought, ‘This seems like such a cool opportunity even if you're in sixth grade, so why not?’ That would've been such a big driver for me, if that was something I could do. Getting to help fund that vision is cool to see—there's a kid out there that could go to college without the pressure of having to have three part-time jobs.

JENINE: How would you encourage other young professionals to think about their giving as they are building careers and/or families?

STACEY: I know my generation, it can feel like, ‘Oh, the world is coming to an end. There's no point.’ But you can make that small impact just by doing a small donation every month. You can change your community, what you see around you, slowly doing it that way. If you wanna see kids out around playing, feeling safe, you have to be a part of making that safety net for everyone. I hope that my giving inspires others to do more giving.

JENINE: Why do you choose to partner with Grand Rapids Community Foundation for your philanthropic goals?

STACEY: I wanted to choose a bigger organization, because I know there's more opportunity for if I wanna change something, I know I can make an impact somewhere else. It's an easy switch and I don't have to worry about finding another organization for that.

The Community Foundation is honored to support donor partners in discussing, establishing or adapting their philanthropic investments. To start a conversation, contact the development team at 616.454.1751