Many Hands was founded in 2003 by Susie Berenson, who was inspired to start a giving circle after learning about Impact 100 (now Impact 100 Cincinnati), which brought together 100 women, each donating $100,000, to make a grant of $100,000 to a local nonprofit. She rallied six like-minded women—Sydney Bath, Ana Collins, Regina Hall, Leslie Lawley, Betsy Marmet, and Madeleine Said—to become the founding Board members of Many Hands, which was granted 501(c)3 status in early 2004. In its first year, the Board raised $108,000 while also researching prospective grantees serving women and children in three focus areas: education, health, and housing. 

Many Hands made its first $100,000 grant in 2004 to Our Place DC, a nonprofit that helped women who had been in the criminal justice system obtain housing and other services. Two other organizations—Mary’s Center, which provides healthcare, education, and social services to low-income Washington-area residents, and Heads Up, a provider of out-of-school-time programs for low-income students in DC—each received $4,000. 

From 2004 to 2012, Many Hands made biennial grants in three areas: education, health, and housing. In 2014, we added a fourth focus area, job readiness. Two years later, recognizing both the scope of the challenges facing our region and the depth of philanthropic interest in our community, we decided to raise funds and make grants annually. Since then, the annual grant fund has grown to over $300,000.

Over the same period, we have focused on diversifying our membership. In 2016, we formed a Membership Committee to organize education events open to the entire community. Our popular panel discussions and book events, on topics ranging from gentrification in DC to mass incarceration and the long-term effects of childhood trauma, have helped us reach a broader cross-section of our community while providing more opportunities for members to learn and interact both with one another and with nonprofit leaders. In addition, our Young Member program, introduced in 2018, has made Many Hands more accessible to women below 35. 

As we look to the future, we are deeply grateful for the generosity of all our contributors and partners and strongly committed to continuing to grow and evolve to better support our mission and members.

In the News

Kathleen Day, “More donors turning to grass-roots charities,” The Seattle Post, December 10, 2006.

Interview with Susie Berenson, All About Giving Circles, 2012.