BOLDFACERS

How to commit to a cause

“To have the greatest impact on a charity you need to be passionate about their mission,” says nonprofit advisor Corinne Grousbeck. “Is there a non-profit that has touched your life? That’s a logical place to look for an opportunity to give back. I didn’t seek out my causes, they all found me. You may not have as direct a connection as I do with Perkins School for the Blind, but chances are there is a non-profit whose services you benefit from, or whose mission deeply resonates with you, that could really use your help. Now, more than ever.”

Giving where it counts

“You would be amazed at how much you can bring to an organization,” Nonprofit advisor Corinne Grousbeck says. “I guarantee that everyone has something to contribute that a charity would happily accept! It isn’t all about money. Take an inventory of your skill set. Are you incredibly organized? A financial whiz? Or do you enjoy working directly with people? Whatever your skills are you should select the talent you enjoy using the most. Next, evaluate how much time you realistically have to devote. Can you help a little each week, or would your rather work on one big project? Google and reach out to the organization (start with the Director or someone in Development) and let them know you want to help and in what capacity. Once you find your role, be willing to help spread the word. Awareness is key to the growth and survival of any organization.”

Why bother?

Nonprofit advisor Corinne Grousbeck has found her calling: helping others. “Reaching out to improve someone else’s lot in life is about the most humbling and amazing thing I have ever been given the opportunity to do. I never felt as successful in business as I do helping raise $1 million for a worthy cause. Even the simplest of gestures has the potential to change someone’s life. What are we here for if not to try to help make the world we share a better, more loving place? The question isn’t why give back it’s how can I not?”

Charities for the rolodex

Nonprofit advisor Corinne Grousbeck rolls up her sleeves for a variety of charities. Here are a few she’d like to share:

“Perkins School for the Blind (www.Perkins.org): This nonprofit offers many volunteer opportunities…everything from holding infants while their mothers attend support groups to coaching the cheerleaders.

Children’s Hospital Boston (www.childrenshospital.org) is a large and well-run organization that has opportunities for everything from fundraising to donating blood to high-level strategic committee work.

Lovelane Special Needs Horseback Riding Program (www.lovelane.org) has an active and well organized volunteer program. Great for anyone who loves children and horses.

Cradles to Crayons (www.cradlestocrayons.org) is a unique place where families can perform a day of service and make a meaningful effort to help needy children. Great for community organizers, religious groups and schools.”

Stylin’ for real

While nonprofit advisor Corinne is known for her work with charities, she’s also recognized as a true stylemaker. “My guilty pleasure is fashion and attending 50+ home games gives me an excuse to indulge in my hobby. I am a big browser, but like to buy a few key pieces to mix with what I already own. My favorite stores all have one thing in common—friendly service, no attitude and they love fashion as much as I do!”

Gretta Luxe (www.grettaluxe.com): “What’s not to love about a Western Suburb boutique that carries Chloe, Stella McCartney and Yigal, with the occasional Jimmy Choo shoe? Katie and Kelly will never sell you anything you don’t look great in.”

Portobello Road (47 Boylston St, Chestnut Hill): “The ideal spot for a hostess gift, but that’s just an excuse to peruse the racks of boho-chic clothing and jewelry. Kristina and Marina created the perfect vibe…part St. Barth’s, part Vineyard.”

Barney’s New York Copley (www.barneys.com): “When I need that go-to dress for a function I head straight to Mary at Barney’s. Brutally honest, she has the best eye in town.”

Neiman Marcus Natick (www.neimanmarcus.com): “The corporate Gods in Dallas smiled upon us suburbanites when they opened this beautiful store. I feel special just buying a tube of lipstick. Friendliest staff ever to grace a Neiman Marcus.”

Keywords: Entrepreneur

Philanthropists

Education

Corinne Grousbeck dazzles at courtside with her potpourri wardrobe of metallic blouses, perfectly fitting jeans and gnarly motorcycle boots (the parquet floor is cold with the Bruins’ ice underneath, she says). But the wife of Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck is more than just the First Lady of Celtics basketball: the former marketing executive at Saatchi & Saatchi is also a powerful advocate for charitable causes who uses her platform and her personal story to help people most in need.

Corinne sits on the board of Watertown’s Perkins School for the Blind, where her son, Campbell, 16 and blind since birth, is a student. She’s also on the board for the trust at Children’s Hospital, on the honorary board of the Lovelane Special Needs Horseback Riding Program, in Lincoln, and she helped support the launch of the Cradles to Crayons initiative. She’s no sideline supporter, either. Each year at Perkins she hosts a gala for the school, and last year made it her personal mission to raise enough money to supply each student with a personal computer/communications device, tailor-made for blind students. She succeeded. She’s kind of like Kevin Garnett—minus the colorful vocabulary—in her tenaciousness.

Corinne believes in the power of positive attitude, and hers has been tragically tested. At 22, when she was about to marry her long-time sweetheart, her fiancé died in a car accident—on the day of the engagement party. A few years later, Corinne met Wyc Grousbeck at a University of Michigan football game. He was a senior law student and she had just graduated. Says Corinne, it took Wyc about 41 seconds to fall in love with her and it didn’t take her much longer to reciprocate. They moved to California, had a daughter, then a son, Campbell. When Campbell was an infant, doctors discovered he was blind, so Wyc left a successful firm. They sold they house they had just renovated, and moved to Massachusetts so Campbell could attend Perkins, which is considered the nation’s premier school for blind children. She knows her priorities. True success means Campbell having the best education possible.

Eventually, Wyc and his business partners bought the Celtics. The storied franchise had become the joke of the NBA, a very painful and completely unfunny joke for Bostonians. The new ownership, along with coach Doc Rivers and General Manager Danny Ainge, slowly and surely built up the team again, and now it’s where the Celtics are supposed to be: on top. But Corinne says other priorities transcend basketball. She’s impressed, for instance, with the gentleness and sensitivity that players like Paul Pierce, Kendrick Perkins and several other Celtics display as proud papas of newborns. Corinne Grousbeck certainly looks the part of a woman who has it all, but it’s what is underneath her appearance that defines her real role: a soul dedicated to helping those around her, courtside or elsewhere.

To reach some of Corinne’s causes:
www.perkins.org (Perkins School for the Blind)
www.lovelane.org (Lovelane Special Needs Horseback Riding Program)
www.cradlestocrayons.org (Cradles to Crayons)
www.chtrust.org (Children’s Hospital Trust)