Janet Ginn

Janet Ginn was so dedicated to helping end hunger and poverty that she was willing to start as an administrative assistant at the Heifer Foundation nine years ago, despite having had leadership roles at both the Arkansas and Oklahoma Baptist Foundations.

“I was not looking to work for Heifer. I was looking to find an opportunity to be involved in ending hunger and poverty,” she said.

She found her opportunity, and by 2001, she’d worked her way up to president of the Heifer Foundation. Ginn and the 17-employee foundation educate people about planned charitable giving, such as trusts, annuities and bequests.

The foundation manages the donations made to it, working to expand an endowment to support Heifer International. The foundation has seen revenue grow 16.7 percent over the last four years.

Asked for an anecdote to illustrate her work and her commitment to it, Ginn related the story of Edwin, a longtime donor from Ohio who had provided eggs for Heifer recipients. “I had the opportunity to meet with him and his wife regarding their estate,” Ginn said. “We completed the will, and Heifer Foundation, of course, was in it to create an endowment after he passed away. Three weeks later I was in Anaheim, Calif., and received a phone call at 2:30 in the morning from his wife sharing with me that he had passed away just a few hours before.” Edwin’s wife told Ginn: “’Janet, I just had to find you and thank you.’ She said, ‘The last three weeks have been the happiest of Edwin’s life because you gave him peace that his desires would be carried out, and you reminded him of how much he has helped to change a world in great need.’”

“That was probably the most humbling experience of my career,” Ginn said. “But it was also the time when I realized that through this organization and the decisions I make, there are people all over the United States relying upon me to make those right decisions.”

Previous Honorees