“We need more volunteers.”

But after speaking with Karen Knight, it’s clear: that’s usually not true.

You don’t have a recruitment problem.

You have a retention problem.
Or a systems problem.
Or a volunteer experience problem.

Here’s what’s actually happening:

People are showing up.

They apply.
They respond.
They’re interested.

And then…

• No one replies to their email

• They arrive and no one knows who they are

• They’re given meaningless tasks

• They don’t understand how their work connects to the mission

So they leave.

And the organization concludes: “We need more volunteers.” And the cycle continues.

The real issue isn’t supply. It’s design.

Karen shared a simple but powerful shift:

Stop designing roles for what you need.
Start designing experiences for how people actually give today.

That means:

• Not everyone will commit to 10 hours a week

• Some people can give 15 minutes — and that still matters

• Flexibility isn’t optional — it’s expected

One example:

A volunteer who gives just 15 minutes a day calling donors to say thank you.

That’s it.

No onboarding marathon.
No committee.
No weekly shift.

And over time?

That role has helped generate significant dollars in support.

A better starting point

Before launching your next recruitment push, do this:

Talk to one volunteer.

Ask:
“What has your experience really been like?”

Not the polite version.
The real one.

Because if you don’t understand what it feels like to volunteer in your organization, then you’re building systems in the dark

This isn’t about adding more volunteers.

It’s about honoring the ones who already showed up.

And building something worth coming back to.

Children in their own communities sleeping on the floor.
No bed. No mattress. Nothing.

Not because their parents don’t care.
Because they can’t afford one.

That’s bedlessness.

Luke Mickelson didn’t set out to solve poverty.

He didn’t launch a broad campaign.
He didn’t write a five-year strategy.

He saw one problem, and stayed with it.

Kids need beds.

So he started building them.

Here’s what’s worth paying attention to:

He didn’t lose focus of the mission.

He didn’t say:

• “Let’s fix housing”

• “Let’s tackle education”

• “Let’s address poverty as a whole”

He kept it simple:

Build beds. Deliver them. Repeat.

That clarity made everything easier:

• Volunteers knew exactly what they were doing

• Donors understood exactly what they were funding

• Communities could actually participate

• The outcome was measurable

One bed = one child off the floor.

And that’s how it scaled.

Not through complexity.
Through repetition.

Today, that work has reached hundreds of thousands of children.

There’s a practical takeaway here:

When giving feels overwhelming, it’s usually because it’s too broad.

Instead of asking: “Where should I help?”

Ask: “What is one problem I can solve?”

Not theoretically. Practically.

You don’t need a movement to start. You need a clear problem and a concrete action.

That’s what people can join.
That’s what people can support.
That’s what actually grows.

Luke did that. And that’s why it worked.

Check out the full conversation on your preferred platforms:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

YouTube

Amazon Music

People don’t just want to give from a distance anymore.
They want to go. To help. To be present.

But here’s the hard truth: showing up may or may not create value.

In my conversation with Erin Hempen, she drew a line that more nonprofits and donors need to understand: not all volunteer travel is service.

Some of it is short-term and disconnected from what communities actually need.

In those cases, the question isn’t “Did this help?” It’s “who was this really for?”

That’s the tension behind what people call voluntourism.

Erin’s work is built around a thoughtful, effective model. Not “come help” but:

Come prepared.
Come aligned.
Come in a way that leaves something behind, not just a memory.

That applies whether you’re traveling across the world to Africa, or supporting communities in Israel or Iran during the current war. And, of course, the same principles are relevant to engaging with your own community at home.

Global giving isn’t about good intentions. It’s about lasting impact.

Watch or listen to the conversation on your preferred platforms:

Spotify

YouTube

Apple Podcasts

Amazon Music

Missiles. Retaliation. War.

But there’s another story unfolding beneath those headlines. It’s the story of the Iranian people who want to decide their own future.

This week on You Are What You Give, I spoke with Zolal Habibi, an Iranian-American activist whose life has been shaped by that struggle.

Her father was executed by the Iranian regime during the mass killings of political prisoners in 1988. Since then, she has dedicated her life to advocating for a democratic future for Iran.

We recorded our conversation from Israel during the current conflict. At one point, the interview was interrupted by an air-raid siren, a clear reminder that these conversations are happening in real time.

Zolal’s message:

Whatever comes next for Iran cannot be imposed from the outside. The Iranian people want to shape their own future, by the people, for the people.

In our conversation we discuss:

• What many Iranians actually want right now
• Why they reject both war and appeasement
• The long history of resistance inside Iran
• Why women have become a leading force in the movement
• What people outside Iran should understand about this moment

At its core, this episode asks a question that runs through many conversations on the You Are What You Give podcast:

What does it mean to stand on the right side of history?

Watch or listen to the conversation here:

Spotify

Apple Podcasts

Amazon Music

YouTube

Thank you for joining us for the journey.

— Avi

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It is a holiday about hidden danger and revealed courage. About vulnerability, and mutual responsibility.

And this year, those themes feel less symbolic and more immediate.

Israel is navigating extraordinary security tensions while families across the country continue to carry the daily weight of uncertainty. In moments like these, resilience is not abstract. It is practical. It is local. It is personal.

In this week’s episode of You Are What You Give, I sit down with Joseph Gitler, founder and chairman of Leket Israel, the country’s leading food rescue and redistribution organization.

What began as a simple awareness - that enormous amounts of food were being wasted while families struggled - has grown into a national infrastructure serving hundreds of thousands of Israelis.

This conversation - which we recorded in advance of the current war - is about scale. But it is also about focus.

Joseph did not try to solve every social problem. He identified one gap - food waste meeting food insecurity - and built systems to close it.

We discuss:

• The early grit required to launch Leket

• How to build disciplined systems that allow compassion to scale

• Leading through crisis without losing operational clarity

• Why food rescue is about logistics and dignity

• And what Purim teaches us about showing up for one another

As Purim approaches, Leket is mobilizing to distribute significant food packages across Israel, ensuring families can celebrate with dignity.

Because when life is uncertain, meals must be prepared.
Children must eat.
Holidays must be marked.

For nonprofit leaders, founders, and fundraisers, this episode is a reminder:

Mission does not pause during crisis.
It becomes clearer.

🎧 Watch or listen to the full episode here:
YouTube
Spotify

Apple Podcasts

Wishing you a Purim of strength, security, and mutual support.

— Avi

Subscribe now

What should I be giving?

In this week’s episode of You Are What You Give, I sit down with Dr. Zev Gershon - lawyer, physician, rabbi, philanthropist - to explore how someone discerns a life of generosity across professions… and how he ultimately decided to give something that was truly part of himself.

We discuss:

• Why he chose two “giving professions” - and whether that’s even the right framing

• The difference between giving resources and giving yourself

• How to know when a certain kind of giving is yours to do

• Whether he has ever second-guessed something he’s given

• And how he measures the success of his generosity

At one point, the conversation turns to a critical idea:

Giving where someone else has so much more to gain, and you have so much less to lose.

For nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and thoughtful donors, this episode isn’t just about organ donation. It’s about discernment. It’s about purpose. It’s about understanding what is uniquely yours to give.

Watch or listen to the full episode here:
YouTube
Spotify

Apple Podcasts

As always, thank you for being part of this growing community, as we ask a thought provoking question:

What is your second kidney?

With gratitude,
Avi

In this conversation, I sit down with Congressman Michael Cloud to talk about something rarely discussed in public life:

How do you serve the public without losing focus?

This is a conversation about responsibility, values, and overcoming Washington’s center of gravity to serve with integrity.

Michael reflects candidly on what it means to step into public service while remaining grounded in faith, family, and personal commitment, especially in an environment shaped by pressure, ambition, and constant scrutiny.

In this episode, we explore:

• The difference between seeking power and being willing to carry responsibility

• Why trust becomes the real currency of leadership (echoing themes from my conversation with Cathy McMorris Rodgers)

• How to stay anchored when decisions affect people you may never meet

• Why giving isn’t only about what you do on behalf of others, but what you give of yourself

This episode fits squarely within the How Texans Give series, examining what people give when they step into responsibility:
time, attention, integrity, and trust.

Not politics.
Stewardship.

As with every episode in this series, special thanks to Victoria Hearst for her continued support and belief in creating space for these deeper conversations about leadership and generosity.

🎧 Watch or listen to the full episode here:
YouTube
Spotify

Apple Podcasts

We’ll be unpacking the ideas from this conversation, including this week’s Giving Challenge, throughout the days ahead.

— Avi

Behind the scenes, they’re often about choosing people.

In this week’s episode of How Texans Give, we go behind the curtain of philanthropic foundations to explore how decisions are actually made, how trust is built, how systems matter, and how vision moves from paper to real-world impact.

My guest is Dr. Victoria Sarvadi, who together with her husband leads the Nathaniel Foundation. What she shares in this conversation is rare and refreshingly honest:

• Why foundations often invest in people before programs

• How internal systems support discernment and accountability

• What it really means to “sponsor” someone else’s vision

• Why some ideas gain momentum quickly, and others stall

This conversation isn’t about pitch decks or fundraising tactics.
It’s about stewardship.
It’s about trust.
And it’s about the quiet responsibility that comes with deciding where generosity grows.

Watch or listen to the full episode here:

• YouTube

• Spotify

• Apple Podcasts

As always, thank you for being part of this community as we continue discovering how we can give better, more meaningfully, more mindfully, and more measurably.

With gratitude,
Avi

Subscribe now

Decades later, that same land became the setting for a very different kind of mission.

In this episode of You Are What You Give, I sat down onsite with Angel Poorman, who, together with her husband Norman, transformed this former Camp Barkley Army base into the operational heart of the United Rescue Alliance, supporting disaster response and leadership training across more than two dozen countries.

This is the second episode in our How Texans Give miniseries, where we explore generosity through the cultural lens of Texas, a place shaped by land, faith, responsibility, and straight talk.

Angel is deeply faithful, and what she says - and how she says it - flows from that place. Some listeners may not share her worldview or language. But listening carefully offers a rare window into how conviction, humility, and long-term commitment translate into real-world action.

This conversation was filmed onsite, and we’ve included the landscape, history, and atmosphere of Camp Barkley to give you a tangible sense of place.

🎧 Watch / Listen here:
YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts

Let’s jump in.

— Avi

This episode is the first in a short series we’re calling How Texans Give. It’s a set of conversations that explore generosity as a culture shaped by place, history, and lived experience.

Texas is big. But what struck me most in these conversations isn’t scale but depth.

Depth of responsibility.
Depth of community.
Depth of commitment that stretches across generations.

Our first episode features Revis Daggett and Lashawn Wardlaw McIvor, the Lone Star Ladies (no spoilers - you’ll have to tune in for more about that). Both are ranchers. Both are businesswomen. And both come from families where giving is simply how life works.

In this conversation, we talk about:

• Ranching as stewardship

• Small-town generosity

• What it means to carry responsibility for land, people, and future generations

• Why trust, showing up, and consistency matter more than visibility

• How giving looks when it’s part of daily life

Join me for an encounter with a way of seeing the world where generosity is relational, practical, and deeply rooted.

Listen on your preferred podcast platform:
Spotify:

Apple Podcasts:

This series will continue to explore generosity through the cultural lens of Texas: faith, family, land, service, and straight talk included. Each of our guests tells a fascinating personal story. Together, they give us an appreciation of how one of America’s singular cultures shares its gifts with the rest of us.

With that, let’s begin y’all!

- Avi

Subscribe now

She pointed to trust.

That insight sits at the heart of this week’s episode of You Are What You Give—and it reframes how we think about leadership, generosity, and public service.

Over two decades in office, Cathy worked with people across industries, communities, and ideologies. What consistently made progress possible wasn’t about scoring points - it was being trusted: trusted to listen, trusted to show up honestly, and trusted to keep commitments even when outcomes were uncertain.

And trust, as we explored, is a form of giving.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why trust may be the most undervalued currency in leadership

• Giving time, attention, and responsibility

• Business as a values-driven contribution, not a moral compromise

• Public service as stewardship rather than status

• Why generosity that lasts is almost always relational

Cathy also reflects on what it means to step away from public office. Family, community engagement, mentoring, and civic education now shape her giving in this season, including her work through the Cathy McMorris Rodgers Leadership Institute.

This episode is a reminder that:

• We are not remembered for what we accumulate

• Leadership is measured in consistency

• Giving that matters is built over time

The episode is now live. Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Watch on YouTube.

I’m looking forward to unpacking its insights together throughout the week.

— Avi

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This is a conversation about faith, responsibility, leadership, and long-term commitment.

Why do Christians choose to support Israel, and what sits at the heart of that commitment?

Heather Johnston is a pioneering Christian leader whose work has shaped leadership education in Israel and influenced how senior U.S. lawmakers understand the region.

Heather is a woman of deep faith, and her faith infuses her worldview. Her language and frames of reference are drawn directly from scripture. For listeners who do not share that worldview, some of her terminology may sound unfamiliar. But listening carefully offers rare insight into how millions of people think, decide, and act.

What This Episode Explores

• Why Christian support for Israel is rooted in a personal and communal calling

• How faith and pragmatism work together rather than in opposition

• How giving can reflect the purpose of the giver more than the needs of the recipient

• What long-term commitment looks like when it’s driven by belief rather than trends

Work Highlighted in This Episode

• The Ariel National Leadership Center, which has hosted more than 130,000 participants, cultivating leadership grounded in responsibility, values, and service
  Supported by JHI: https://jhisrael.com/

• The U.S.–Israel Education Association, which brings senior Members of Congress to Israel on both sides of the Green Line to engage directly with Israel’s leadership, security, and societal realities: https://usieducation.org/

Additional Resource

Heather’s book, Uncommon Favor, explores the themes of calling, faith, and responsibility that shape her life and work: https://www.heatherjohnston.org/

A Core Takeaway

Giving isn’t always about meeting the needs of the beneficiary.
Often, it’s about living out the purpose of the benefactor.

We give because life is bigger than us.
Because responsibility doesn’t end where comfort begins.
Because, in the end, we are what we give.

This Episode’s Giving Challenge

Pause and ask yourself why you give.

Not where your giving goes, but what within you compels it.
Then take one small step that aligns your giving more clearly with your sense of purpose.

Thanks

Special thanks to Victoria Hearst for supporting You Are What You Give and making these conversations possible.

If this episode gave you a new lens on giving, consider sharing it with someone else. Expanding the conversation is itself an act of generosity.

Listen On Spotify:

Listen on Apple Podcasts:

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This episode was recorded before this week’s horrific attack in Australia. Listening again in light of that tragedy, this conversation has only become more poignant. It reminds us of the extraordinary work of Chabad around the world, and of individuals like our guest, Tzvi Grinhaim, who bring presence, strength, and comfort to people when they need it most.

Who Is Tzvi Grinhaim?

A Chabad cantor.
A former Golani soldier.
A reservist called back into service on October 7th.
A man diagnosed with PTSD after carrying families through the most devastating moments imaginable.

In the aftermath of the attacks, Tzvi served at the IDF’s Shura base, conducting funeral after funeral. He stood with grieving parents, widows, fiancés, and children, sometimes many times a day. He held himself together as a professional, only to break down at home. The emotional toll finally caught up with him.

And then something remarkable happened.

Turning Pain Into Purpose

Instead of shutting down, Tzvi redirected his pain into giving.
He began showing up, every week and often every day, to lift others back onto their feet.

He organizes barbecues for soldiers on the front lines.
Concerts in hospitals.
Visits with wounded warriors at Sheba.
Hugs, listening, presence, encouragement.
A reminder to every soldier: you are not forgotten.

The scale of what he does is astounding.
But the heart of it is simple: he brings light where darkness insists it should not exist.

A Hanukkah Story, Reimagined

Hanukkah is the holiday of light. But Tzvi forces us to ask what light truly means.

Not brightness.
Not celebration.
Not a warm feeling.

Light, in this conversation, is action.
It is showing up for someone even when you’re barely standing yourself.
It is choosing to be present when it would be easier to disappear.
It is refusing to let suffering have the last word.

Why This Conversation Matters Right Now

After the attack in Australia, the Jewish world is once again reminded how much strength we draw from one another. Chabad’s global network has always embodied this courage.

Tzvi is part of that tradition.
His work is a living expression of the Hanukkah message:
You do not need to erase the darkness, only to overwhelm it with light.

Listen to or Watch the Full Conversation

Listen on Spotify:

Watch on YouTube:

Listen on Apple Podcasts:

Later this week, I’ll share:

• Key takeaways from Tzvi’s story that can sharpen our own giving,

• This week’s Giving Challenge, inspired directly by Tzvi.

For now, I invite you to sit with this conversation.

Happy Hanukkah,
Avi

This conversation was recorded shortly before Bruce announced his retirement, at a moment when he was still fully in the arena, while also considering his legacy with unusual clarity. That timing gave us something rare: a window into how a lifelong coach thinks about giving, not just as charity but as responsibility, purpose, and identity.

A Quick Heads Up

Bruce speaks openly about faith. He weaves Jewish identity and Christian language together in a way that might be surprising to some of our audience. As a Torah-observant Jew, I understand how this might catch some off guard.

Just to clarify, You Are What You Give is here to explore honest portraits of how people live, lead, and give. This is Bruce’s portrait, unchanged and unedited.

What This Episode Is Really About

This isn’t a sports overview.
It’s a giving interview.

It’s about what it means to give:

• For the young people who trust you to lead them
Wins and losses, and the choices that shape who they become.

• For a community that watches, hopes, and holds you accountable
Especially when your voice resonates beyond your platform.

• For your own sense of calling
Leadership, as Bruce practices it, is a form of giving that requires soul searching.

• For the people closest to you
Family, friendships, and quiet personal commitments.

Bruce is passionate. Whether on the hardwood or in a hospital room, on a national stage or at a kitchen table, the message is the same: show up and commit yourself fully to the moment in front of you.

Why This Conversation Matters

Whether you love college ball, or simply love the people around you, the questions at the heart of today’s conversation are universal:

How do we give with integrity?
How do we lead?
How do we use whatever influence we have, large or small, to serve something beyond ourselves?

This episode sits right at that intersection.

That much you can learn from a short biography.

But what you can’t learn from a biography is what drives her.
And that is where this conversation begins to reveal something deeper.

When Tila walked into the studio, her public profile had begun to skyrocket. She was invited to lead international media events for Israel’s largest English speaking news outlets. Her name was appearing more and more in social media. She was carrying the weight and visibility of someone emerging into a new phase of leadership.

Yet when we sat down to talk, none of the media veneer explained the way she gives.

Instead, she spoke about her childhood. About a home where giving was an essential fact of life. About a mother who showed up for people. About the little choices and habits that, over time, formed a worldview. She talked about responsibility, not reputation, and about paying attention, not performing.

She also talked about raising children in that same spirit. How each of her kids has a “giving identity”, interests and instincts that she and her support and encourage. She told stories about turning family milestones into opportunities to help others, and about inviting children to choose causes that matter to them.

It became clear that Tila’s approach to giving is deeply intentional and structured. She believes that generosity should be grounded in values, in community, and in a sense of what genuinely needs to be done.

Tila also described a shift that happened after October 7. She found herself responding not with large scale organizations but with people - widows, orphans, soldiers, families. The lens widened and intensified at the same time.

What emerged from the conversation is a portrait of someone who doesn’t just give, but builds givers. Someone who treats generosity as a calling, a responsibility, and a legacy.

And that’s why I’m excited to share this episode with you.

Whether or not you’ve heard her name before, whether or not your own giving focuses on the same communities, there is something powerful in the clarity and discipline of how Tila lives her life. It offers a model that any of us - parents, mentors, friends, community members - can adapt in our own way.

Here is the full conversation:

Our first guest is Rob Adams, whose life of service and philanthropy began with a simple but powerful moment: a promise he made at the age of 11.

That promise became the thread that runs through everything he’s built with the Thanksgiving Heroes organization and beyond. It’s a story of personal commitment, accountability, and the quiet heroism that defines so much of real giving.

And it’s the perfect way to begin our You Are What You Give podcast.

Listen to the Conversation

Gratitude and Giving: Two Sides of the Same Coin

As we launch this podcast, and as we head into Thanksgiving, Rob’s story offers a simple truth:

Gratitude alone is incomplete.
Gratitude that moves us becomes giving.

Rob’s promise to his mother came from a place of gratitude. And that gratitude became a life devoted to building, improving and giving.

Gratitude and giving are two side to the same coin. Through the giving exchange, we learn to give thanks.

A Thanksgiving Thought

As you listen to Rob’s story, take a moment to ask yourself:

Who am I grateful for?
And how might that gratitude shape what I give, and who I become?

The answer may be the beginning of your own giving promise.

If this conversation resonates

Please share it with someone who might want to approach Thanksgiving with a story that inspires sincere gratitude and meaningful actions. Early support helps this community grow, one thoughtful listener at a time.

Thank you for beginning this journey with me.
Avi

PS - If you’d like to support Rob Adams phenomenal work with Thanksgiving Heroes, click here.