Martha A. Taylor

 

Martha A. Taylor is one of the pioneers and leaders of the women's philanthropy movement nationally.

As a vice president of the University of Wisconsin Foundation, Martha A. Taylor has been a key player in the growth of one of the most successful institutionally related foundations.

In her more than thirty-year tenure at the Foundation, she has worked in major gifts and philanthropy advising. In 1988 Martha founded the Foundation's Women's Philanthropy Council, the first women's major gift council at a large coed university.

Envisioning the need to take the women's philanthropy message to a national audience, in 1991 she co-founded, with Sondra Shaw-Hardy, the Women's Philanthropy Institute; now at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.

Inspired by the hundreds of women nationally seeking to make change in a different way, in 1995 Sondra and Martha wrote the field’s bible, Reinventing Fundraising: Realizing the Potential of Women’s Philanthropy.  In 2006 they coedited The Transformative Power of Women’s Philanthropy and have written approximately thirty articles about women’s philanthropy and been widely quoted in most leading newspapers and women’s magazines.  

Martha has presented her keynotes and workshops across the United States and abroad to donors and development officers. She has inspired hundreds of women to benefit the world by increasing and prioritizing their philanthropy.

She chaired the first three national conferences on women's philanthropy for the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and served as faculty member for others. Her work has been recognized with many awards including an award named for her and Shaw-Hardy by the Women's Philanthropy Institute.

As a philanthropist, Martha has served in leadership positions on many non profit boards and religious organizations at the local, state and national levels including the Division of Higher Education for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. She is a charter member of Madison's, A  Fund for Women and Womenade.

Martha is a third-generation graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She received her master's degree at West Virginia University with her thesis on philanthropy in higher education, is married to Gary Antoniewicz and has two grown sons.
 

Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz

Buffy is also the coauthor of A Plan of One’s Own: A Woman’s Guide to Philanthropy and Growing Philanthropy Through Giving Circles; and a chapter in The Transformative Power of Women’s Philanthropy.

Buffy was chosen as one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women in 2003, 2008 and 2010 by the Daily Record newspaper, an “Innovator of the Year” in 2004 by the Daily Record for her work with giving circles, and one of “40 Under 40” in 2004 by the Baltimore Business Journal.

In addition, she's an active community volunteer and currently serves as a trustee of the Columbia Foundation.  

 

Buffy has a BA in Russian History from the University of Maryland, lives in Howard County, Maryland, is married to Howard Schwartz, and has four children.