SIGGiving was established by Ronnyjane Goldsmith in 1998, the year she left public service to become an entrepreneur. It began with Goldsmith making a $100 donation to charity for each client referred to her.

Over the decades, Goldsmith’s donations have grown to include programs providing medical assistance to children without hope; programs improving access to higher education for children without family support or financial resources; and programs to preserve our national heritage.

Providing Medical Assistance to Children without Hope

In 2006, Goldsmith established The SIG Fund at the Smile Train. As a result of her donations, over 300 children received cleft palate operations, giving them new smiles and a second chance at life.

In 2012, Goldsmith became a founding donor of Wonderwork. Through her support each month three children received life changing medical assistance. As a result, by December 2017, over 175 children received the gift of sight.

In 2020, Goldsmith became a Ronald McDonald House sponsor. Ronald McDonald House provides room and board for families so they may remain close to their children hospitalized due to catastrophic illness.

Improving Access to Higher Education 

In 2007, Goldsmith established The SIG Scholarship at Temple University so that the dreams and professional aspirations of outstanding students who lost their parents might come true. If it wasn’t for the financial assistance Temple University provided to her over 5 decades ago, Goldsmith could not have attended college. Nor would she have been able to take advantage of the professional opportunities she could only dream about as a 17 year old without financial resources or family support. In 2011, Goldsmith endowed The SIG II Scholarship at Temple University.

In memory of her father, Goldsmith established The Abraham D. Goldsmith SIG Scholarship at the City College of New York in 2010. The scholarship is awarded to outstanding students whose parents came to America seeking a better life for their children. In 2011, Goldsmith established The Abraham D.Goldsmith SIG Endowed Scholarship at The City College of New York.

As of 2022, 42 SIG Scholarships have been awarded.

In 2011, Goldsmith established The 57 Cent Fund at Temple University. The fund is named in memory of Hattie May Wiatt, who died in 1886 at 5 years of age and left Dr. Russell Conwell 57 cents, the seed money used to establish Temple University. In 2018, Goldsmith established The Delancey Street Fund at The City College of New York. The fund is named after the street of the same name in New York City that gave immigrants to America a chance for a better life. The Delancey Street Fund like The 57 Cent Fund provides assistance to students without financial resources who are facing catastrophic life events.

In 2018, Goldsmith contracted to write Temple Made. Profiles in Grit, the first in a series of books profiling alumni who have reached the pinnacle of their professions. Proceeds from Temple Made. Proceeds in Grit, published in 2021, are dedicated to The Temple University Alumni Scholarship Fund endowed by Goldsmith. Publication of the second book in the Made Series, CCNY Made. Profiles in Grit, is anticipated in 2022. Proceeds from CCNY Made. Profiles in Grit are dedicated to The Delancey Street Fund at The City College of New York.

Preserving Our National Heritage

Goldsmith’s affiliation with The National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. began in 2012 when she adopted the portrait of Lucretia Mott on display at The Gallery. Lucretia Mott, abolitionist, suffragette and founder of Swarthmore College, established the Village of La Mott in Montgomery County PA where Mott donated the land and built homes for slaves escaping from the South through the Underground Railroad. La Mott is located in the former 154th Legislative District, where in her youth, Goldsmith was a candidate for the State Legislature.

In 2014, Goldsmith adopted the Rembrandt Peale portrait of George Washington, the first President of the United States, patriot and philanthropist.

In 2016, Goldsmith adopted the portrait of Alexander Hamilton, author of the Federalist Papers and the first Secretary of the U.S. Treasury. Hamilton’s portrait is on the front of the $10 bill.

In 2021, Goldsmith adopted the portraits of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. In 1848, Anthony along with Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott officially launched the women’s rights movement in the United States. In 2016, it was announced that Lucretia Mott. Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton are three of the five women whose faces will grace the back of the $10 bill. A monument of the 3 women is on permanent display in the Capitol Rotunda.

Goldsmith has sponsored several exhibits at the National Portrait Gallery including: The Art of Elaine de Kooning (2015), The Face of Battle (2017), The Sweat of Their Face (2017); The American Presidents Gallery (2018) , Votes For Women (2019) and Every Eye is Upon Me: First Ladies of the United States (2020). In 2018, Goldsmith provided support for the acquisition of the earliest known photograph of a U.S. President,  John Quincy Adams, for the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery.

In 2022 Goldsmith donated her collection of Arion Press books to the Smithsonian Library. The collection of 103 Arion titles became part of the Smithsonian’s American Art and Portrait Gallery Library. With the gift, the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives has one of the most complete public collections of Arion Press’s work in the Washington D.C. area.

In 2017, Goldsmith was named to the Regional Council of the Smithsonian representing the National Portrait Gallery.

One thought on “”

  1. This is wonderful summary of your heartfelt generosity as well as your gratitude for what has been given to you. Thank you for sharing it.

    Like

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