The Gift Trust’s origin story is little-known, but speaks to the innovation and principles we’ve always cared about.
In the 1990s, Jessica immigrated to New Zealand from the United States, with her teenage children and a desire to continue her philanthropic giving. She had been managing her giving through a donor-advised fund (DAF) – the most common model for structured giving in the U.S. – and wanted to set one up in her new home. Unfortunately, at that time, there weren’t any DAF providers operating in New Zealand.
Jessica approached Prometheus Finance, a pioneering socially-responsible lender that provided Kiwis with ethical and sustainable savings and loan choices. They worked together to develop a unique idea: New Zealand’s first donor-advised fund.
On 28 May 2009, The Prometheus Gift Trust was formed, an independent charitable entity under the branding umbrella of Prometheus Finance. Its board was composed of experts in philanthropy and finance, chaired by Glen Saunders. Jessica, of course, was one of its first donors. In 2015, it separated from Prometheus and took on its current name: The Gift Trust.
Jessica sadly passed away not long after establishing her Gift Account, but had involved her children in her giving, and her son and his family now continue her legacy of generosity. The Kererū Fund, as it is now named, has since gifted more than $1.5 million to charitable causes in areas as diverse as the environment, food security, social welfare, educational scholarships, and disability.
The principles behind our founding, exemplified by Jessica and her family’s story, are still clear in the work we do every day at The Gift Trust. We work closely with our donors to help them plan their philanthropic strategy and to introduce them to potential causes. We encourage people to involve the next generation in their giving. We facilitate cross-border giving and care about sustainable finance. Most importantly, we embrace new ideas that make giving simple, strategic and impactful.
We’re thankful to Jessica, her family, and to everyone involved in our founding (especially Glen Saunders, Phil McKinstry, and our other founding trustees), for inspiring us to this day. We may have gifted more than $100 million since we started, but we’ve never forgotten where our first dollar came from.
