Partner of the Month: Ron Eiseman

Ron Eiseman has been a highly engaged Partner of SVP Portland since 2014. He served as co-Lead Partner* for Children’s Book Bank (CBB) from 2014-2018, bringing his finance and real estate acumen to help the organization both deepen and expand its impact in a sustainable way. His investment in CBB’s success grew when he joined their Board of Directors in 2014. Since then, Ron has further leveraged his financial expertise to the benefit of SVP and our Community Partners. In 2019, he worked closely with a team of SVP Partners to develop and implement a comprehensive financial health assessment at Latino Network, and he recently joined the SVP Portland Finance Committee. In his spare time, Ron is an active outdoorsman. He enjoys tennis, downhill skiing, hiking, and gardening. When he’s not busy doing those activities, he can be found traveling the globe or relishing a good book. We are honored to have Ron Eiseman as a Partner and are thrilled to recognize him as our Partner of the Month! 

AN INTERVIEW WITH RON:

Why did you join SVP?

I had just retired and knew at the time that I wanted to do some volunteer work. What interested me was doing some things with children and / or education. A friend of mine (Boyce Smith, a founding SVP Partner) from high school suggested I talk to SVP, which I did. SVP’s approach and its focus on education and children was a “home run” for me.

How does capacity building address community problems?

I think it is a constructive way of leveraging community assets to address community issues.

What has been most rewarding thus far?

The most rewarding experience has been the success I have seen with CBB. I was very deeply involved with this engagement and to see now the success that CBB is having as far as growing and going deeper with children gives me much satisfaction.

What advice do you have for Partners new to venture philanthropy?

Be patient, thoughtful, willing to share your expertise and observations (that is why we are partnering with the nonprofit) and open to new ideas.*

A Lead Partner is the primary liaison between SVP and the Community Partner. S/he is responsible for developing and overseeing strategy and work plans, initial and annual assessments, communicating volunteer needs within SVP, and building a strong working relationship with the Community Partner leadership.