“For there to be a change in consciousness” – Linda Fabe

The act of charitable giving is, undoubtedly, a fiscal decision and many donors take advantage of the tax benefits afforded by various giving methods. Donors can also be motivated by less rational (even not very noble) reasons, from burnishing one’s reputation to assuaging guilt. But after a lifetime of working in the nonprofit sector, I can tell you that charitable giving is fundamentally an act of the heart.

Not surprisingly then, people donate to causes with which they have a personal connection through experience and/or ideals. Such was the case for Linda Fabe, MEd, LPCC. An IFS-trained counselor and coach, Linda was looking for an organization where her contributions might have the biggest impact on the social concerns most important to her: climate change and socio-economic disparities.

I believe the only possible way we can have sustainable change in our world is for there to be a change in consciousness

says Linda. “If you think about it, the climate crisis and social justice issues really stem from the same hierarchical view of the world: from self-interested Parts wanting to be on top. IFS and the work of the Foundation is as impactful as anything I could imagine. You affect one person and it just ripples out from there.”

So, Linda decided to support the IFS Leadership Fellows program (a new initiative by the Foundation for Self Leadership, funded solely through private donations), which is giving leaders from marginalized communities the training and mentoring to take notions of Self-leadership back to their congregations, agencies and groups.

“As a young person, I was taught that charity was an obligation. But even when I say that now, a Part of me wants to retract,” Linda paused. “I think my innate Self has a strong sense of what is right, of what is fair, which has nothing to do with obligation.”

In other words, Linda had the courage to discover a path for positive change, aligned with her core values, simply by connecting with Self. Her charitable giving, then, is an outcome of compassion and connectedness and other qualities of Self.

Linda explains:

I want to be part of imagining the IFS way of thinking—Self, Parts, unburdening—as a global vision for the healing of our planet and flourishing of human beings.

Learn more about charitable giving to the Foundation for Self Leadership.