Our celebration of Nonprofit Day Dinner was a resounding success. Over 100 nonprofit colleagues joined us to express appreciation for our sector and ourselves. See National Nonprofit Day Celebration 2026: Event Recap for more details.
At the time, I reflected on What actually brings all of us together?
Our organizations have different missions. We serve different populations. We have different histories, different sizes and different approaches.
But underneath all of that, I believe we share some fundamental convictions.
We believe in the common good—that our obligations extend beyond ourselves.
We believe in pluralism—that people should be free to come together around shared purposes.
We believe in compassion and human dignity—that suffering, inequality and unmet human need require a response.
We believe in civic participation—that people strengthen communities when they volunteer, serve on boards, organize, educate, donate and participate.
We believe in trust, integrity and accountability.
And perhaps most remarkably in our increasingly transactional world, we believe that sometimes people should share their time, talent and resources without expecting an equivalent economic return. This is a rather radical idea when you think about it, yet it is at the heart of what we do.
Thank you, dear fellow nonprofit practitioners for what you do every day!
