Putting Faith Into Practice Through Giving

The Pope Foundation’s new Liberty Leader focuses on Jim Anthony, a businessman in commercial real estate who uses his wealth to help others and advance the values he holds dear:

For Jim Anthony, it all began in 1983.

An MBA graduate from Duke University, Jim had spent the last four years working as a brokerage professional in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles when he decided to move his family back to North Carolina.

He took a job with a local commercial real estate firm, Carolantic Realty, and that’s when he “woke up” to the importance of personal philanthropy.

“Up until then, I was politically disconnected,” Jim said. “In my Christian faith, I was nominal. Then Steve Stroud, my boss, showed me the importance of investing in our community, both through political involvement and personal giving.”

That, plus some financial wake-up calls in the last real estate collapse in the late 1980s, set Jim on a three-decade course of philanthropic commitment, consisting of political engagement with candidates, public policy organizations, as well as faith groups that share his values.

Along the way, Jim founded his own commercial real estate business in Raleigh. Today, he serves as CEO of Colliers International Raleigh/Durham and still uses his success to bless others when and where he can.

“My goal is to see the results of my philanthropy while I’m still living,” Jim said. “Generosity is for now — today. I want to see where the money goes and ensure that it’s helping people and supporting good values.”

Read more here.