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Learn how fundholder Sarah Lang and her sons are continuing to follow in her family’s footsteps of charitable giving.

By Chris Garner, Communications Specialist

For Sarah Lang, giving is a family tradition – one she learned from her father and grandmother.

“My grandmother was an extremely generous person who thought a lot about other people,” Sarah said. “She wasn't trained medically, but she was involved with St. Paul Children's Hospital until she died.”

Much like his mother, Sarah’s father was also a philanthropist who was dedicated to supporting education.

“He served on a lot of boards and helped start a charter school in Saint Paul,” said Sarah. “He was also involved in his alma mater St. Paul Academy.”

A New Generation of Philanthropists

Their charitable giving inspired Sarah to carve out a path of her own. After their grandmother’s death in 2024, Sarah and her three siblings inherited a charitable giving trust at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, the Lang Family Foundation. The siblings decided to split the foundation’s assets into four quarters, establishing their own separate funds to support the causes they each cared about.

“I took my part and added it to a donor advised fund I had started at the Foundation, along with some proceeds from my grandmother's estate,” Sarah said. “I also took a portion and started donor advised funds for each of my three sons.”

Private and Family Foundation Support

Giving the next generation of family donors access to their own funds instead of naming them as successor advisors can give them more agency to explore their philanthropy, while previous generations are still here to guide them.

During that time, Sarah realized no one in her family had really talked to her about philanthropy or generational wealth. Her grandmother and father had shown her how to give but never explained financial logistics such as investment accounts, bonds and stocks.

“Wealth wasn’t something we talked about when I was younger, which I regret,” said Sarah. “I knew I didn’t want that for my kids because it had a detrimental effect on me.”

Sarah realized she had perpetuated the attitude she wanted to move away from when it came to philanthropy and generational wealth. So, when Sarah’s son suggested she set up a meeting with their philanthropic advisor Nina Graham, she jumped at the opportunity to find new ways to increase their engagement as donors.

“My son Aidan really initiated our last advisor meeting because he was feeling the need for a little advice and guidance on how he could give from his donor advised fund,” said Sarah. “He reached out to his two brothers and I and we all had the first of a series of conversations about philanthropy and what the financial landscape of our family looked like.”

“ I think generosity is something I really admire in people.”

Sarah, Fundholder

Together they have been exploring the complexities that come with inheriting familial wealth and the way it was made that doesn’t always align with their views, and making a lasting impact on the causes they care about most. While Sarah’s sons are still exploring their philanthropic paths, she has used her donor advised fund (DAF) to support environmental organizations, local and national. Organizations she’s supported include the Union of Concerned Scientists, the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and local environmental nonprofit Fresh Energy.

Like her grandmother, she is also a longtime supporter of healthcare, volunteering for Radio Talking Book and giving to organizations like Planned Parenthood. In addition, Sarah is an avid writer and gardener, but this is not all she wants to be remembered for.

“I think generosity is something I really admire in people,” Sarah said. This is a value that she hopes her family continues to pass on to the next generation.

Learn How You Can Give

If you are interested in opening a donor advised fund with the Foundation or learning about how we support private and family foundations, contact a member of our Philanthropic Services team.

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