The Parrish Foundation BUILT TO GIVE
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One million dollars โ€” to those who need it most.

What we're doing

The Parrish Foundation exists to raise money for children and families who grew up less fortunate โ€” the orphaned, the abandoned, and the ones who never got a fair start in life. Our first goal is to generate $1,000,000 for them, and every dollar of it is tracked in public, right here.

Why we're doing it

Some people are born far more fortunate than others. A good family. A safe home. Food on the table without ever wondering how it got there. People who show up for you, believe in you, and catch you when you fall. When you grow up with those things, it's easy to assume everyone does.

Millions of children don't. Not because of anything they did โ€” a kid doesn't choose the family they're born into, or the circumstances waiting for them when they arrive. The difference between a childhood full of love and a childhood spent alone comes down to fortune, and none of us earned our share of it.

We believe that kind of fortune isn't meant to be kept โ€” it's meant to be passed on, from the people who received it to the people who never did. That's what this foundation is: gratitude, made real. Not someday, not once we're big โ€” now, out in the open, one dollar at a time. The giving is the whole point, and the receipts are the proof.

The first goal: one million dollars.

Where we are right now

The Parrish Foundation isn't a fully established nonprofit yet. Building one the right way โ€” the legal structure, the accountability, the team โ€” takes real investment, and we won't cut corners or rush it. So for now, every dollar we raise goes directly to SOS Children's Villages USA. It never passes through our hands, and all of it is tracked in public, right here.

Why, and when we'll launch

The launch is held up by one thing: investment. Standing up a real foundation costs money we're still raising โ€” and we'd rather do it right than do it fast. The day we have what it takes to run it properly, the Foundation goes live on its own. Until then, the giving never waits; it just runs through the best partner in the world at this work.

The goal

$1,000,000 generated for children who need a loving home โ€” the orphaned and abandoned kids growing up with no one in their corner. That's the number on the front page, and every dollar toward it is counted in public.

It's the first of many. As the mission grows, the goals grow with it โ€” more raised, more good done, and one day the Parrish Foundation standing on its own. But it all starts here, with the first million.

The Parrish Foundation, fully established

When the Foundation stands on its own, the mission doesn't just continue โ€” it multiplies. This is the number we are ultimately building toward:

$1,000,000,000

One billion dollars raised for children and families who grew up less fortunate. The first million is only the starting line.

Coming Soon

The Parrish Foundation
is coming soon.

Unfortunately, the launch of The Parrish Foundation is backed up โ€” building a foundation the right way takes investment, and we won't rush it or cut corners.

But doing good doesn't wait for paperwork. So for now, 100% of every dollar we raise goes directly to SOS Children's Villages USA โ€” the world's largest organization caring for children without families.

Our goal: raise $1,000,000 for kids and families who grew up less fortunate.

More questions, answered

Who is Mr. Parrish?

J. R. Parrish is the selfless, loving man this foundation is named after. He started out as a milkman and went on to found J.R. Parrish Inc. in 1974, building it into one of the premier commercial real estate brokerages in Silicon Valley and Santa Cruz, California. He retired in 1999 and wrote You Don't Have to Learn the Hard Way โ€” a book written so the rest of us could skip the mistakes he didn't get to.

Today he spends his days reading, studying, and actively working to be the best version of himself โ€” and passing the secrets of a well-lived life on to the people he mentors. He teaches that the meaning of life is love, and that to love someone is to do something for them and ask for nothing in return. Anyone can say those words โ€” Mr. Parrish represents them perfectly, every single day, in everything he does. This foundation grew from that seed.

Quotes J. R. Parrish lives by

"The meaning of life is love."

"You become what you think about โ€” your thoughts turn into actions, and your actions turn into results."

"Virtue is the center of all happiness."

"All you give is given to yourself."

Who's on the board of the foundation?

The Executive Board of The Parrish Foundation was founded by Sam G. Duffy, and includes J. R. Parrish, Owen G. Smyth, Sebastian C. Arnold, Nathan D. Goodman, and Collin N. Davis. You'll find them listed at the bottom of every page.

Talk to us.

Questions, ideas, press, or you just want to be part of the mission โ€” our inbox is open.

contact@theparrishfoundation.org Email us โ†’