Lemonade stands are usually an eight-year-old’s way of making pocket money for a new Lego set or a Twix bar. But for the kids reading Jessica Carbone’s children’s book Philanthropy Means Love, a lemonade stand is a means of giving back.
“I can still make an impact with my 20 dollars, especially knowing that hopefully everyone else is doing the same,” Carbone, BC ’14, said.
The book aims to help children understand the idea of philanthropy. By following along the protagonist as she investigates the many causes to which she could pledge her $20, Carbone debunks the idea that only adults or those with unlimited resources can make a difference.
The word philanthropy begins as a word that the main character can hardly pronounce, let alone understand. But as the story treks on, she begins to comprehend and appreciate the concept.
“She learns that it comes from the Greek word for love—sort of this idea of supporting the causes you care about is really a loving act,” Carbone said.
Carbone said her interest in serving others developed during her time at Boston College, where she was involved in Appa, Arrupe, Jamaica Mustard Seed, and 4Boston.
These experiences not only deepened her understanding of philanthropy but also opened her eyes to the fact that many young generations are unaware of or don’t actively participate in it, she said.
But after her time at BC, Carbone’s post-grad work in philanthropy was not a linear one. Her first job landed her at Tripadvisor, sitting behind a desk and working in sales.
“A year into doing that I was like, ‘This is not at all what I am passionate about,’” Carbone said.
Drawing on her experiences with Campus Ministry, Carbone decided to join a nonprofit, Partners in Health, which brings health care services to impoverished countries.
While she enjoyed returning to a role that allowed her to give back, Carbone found herself yearning for a return to the world of education, having originally majored in applied psychology at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development.
“I realized I can kind of marry my interest in nonprofits and my interest in education,” Carbone said.
Carbone began studying for her master’s in education policy at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. From there, she began her first fundraising job at the University of Colorado Boulder, where she attended a workshop that exposed her to the human side of philanthropy.
“That was when I first learned that the word philanthropy comes from the Greek word for love,” Carbone said. “That was a really nice reframe for me, because I was sick of people being like, ‘All you do is ask people for money all day long—your job sucks.’”
That wasn’t the case, according to Carbone.
“[It’s] really an act of love,” Carbone said. “We get to meet with people one-on-one all day who tell us what they value, what they care about, and how they want to make a difference in the world.”
Once that inspiration struck, Carbone immediately put it down on paper and wrote a poem about philanthropy. Of course, her only intentions were to keep it for herself, at the time.
But after her friends and family read her work and shared their thoughts, Carbone changed her mind on keeping it private.
“They had this kind of really positive reaction where they were like, ‘This is really good, and maybe you should think about publishing,’” Carbone said.
Carbone’s husband, Zach Hagopian, BC ’12, helped edit the poem to make it more fluid and rhythmic. While philanthropy is difficult to understand, especially for children, Carbone did it well, Hagopian said—and in just a couple of pages.
“Jessica did a really good job of conveying a pretty complex message for young people really simply so that it’s super digestible and easy to understand,” Hagopian said.
Hagopian said the book draws directly on values that are integral to Carbone’s life.
“Thinking a lot and caring for others is really important to her and a really big part of her life, which I think is why you see that theme in the book that she wrote—trying to get that message across to a lot of people,” Hagopian said.
Carbone hired an illustrator to help her transform her written work into a picture book. The two went back and forth on the placement of the words on each page, color theme, and cover art until deciding on the final product Carbone had envisioned.
With the illustrations complete, the last thing left to do was publish the book. Carbone began listening to podcasts on self-publishing and decided that would be the easier way to get her story in print fast.
Philanthropy Means Love went on sale through Amazon in September and has gained traction for its unique message and engaging illustrations, Carbone said.
While she eventually wants to expand the book’s reach and get it in bookstores and school libraries, for now, Carbone said she is satisfied with being able to share her ideas in print.
“It is fun to set a goal and see it come to fruition, and be in print, and make a little money on the side,” Carbone said.
While she was proud of the work she put into the book on its own, Philanthropy Means Love turned out to be a much larger success than Carbone anticipated, opening a slew of unexpected opportunities.
One of these opportunities was being asked to read her book at local schools.
Marisa Nucci, a first grade teacher at Ambrose Elementary School, said she saw something special in Carbone’s message.
“I just think it did a really nice job of realigning and mapping out what it looks like to help others in your community and giving examples they can connect to, like the lemonade stand,” Nucci said. “It really helped them get it.”
Some kids were so excited about the book’s ideas that they are bringing its message alive through a donation Read-a-Thon, where parents pledge money contingent on their children reading a certain amount.
Then, Carbone’s goal of philanthropy comes to life—children donate the money to the classes’ charity fund.
“We kind of talked about different people that we could maybe help in our community,” Nucci said. “So we’re in the process of setting up a Read-a-Thon, and we’re gonna pick a local charity to donate to, so it was a nice kind of kickoff for that.”
Carbone’s experience sharing the message of philanthropy has only strengthened her dedication to helping others, she said. She currently works at BC’s advancement office as a philanthropic advisor.
“I try to practice what I preach and be supportive of … different qualities or causes that I personally care about,” Carbone said. “And I think the best way we support those causes is by being a donor, and that can mean a dollar.”
Carbone said there is always something we can do to make a change, whether that be making a donation, joining a volunteer club, or writing articles about the things we care about.
“We all have the sort of power to make a collective impact,” Carbone said.
