The Luminous Fund
The Luminous Fund was created a decade ago by Kathy and Dave Carrier and their family. Their original motivation was to pass the foundation of giving and service to their four children and their significant others. Through The Luminous Fund, the family is setting the stage for generations of future philanthropy.
Luminous is funded through the financial success of Briljent, a consulting firm that Kathy created in 1998. (You’ll enjoy that website, so if you are interested in more information, check it out!) Briljent provides training, writing and change management solutions to government and corporate clients nationally. The Luminous Fund actively awards grants to the social service and arts agencies that are meaningful to Briljent employees and the Carrier and Odum families.
How to serve others with our wealth is a complicated issue. We’ve learned a lot from the National Center for Family Philanthropy. We’ll return to the 2024 Forum in the search of fresh ideas and best practices. We recently introduced a high school study abroad program for our extended family. We are working on an entrepreneur program and an improved Briljent employee emergency program. We are curious about buckets of giving and so, our children are also focused on their own donor advised funds. We are alert to those around us who need help with business growth, a blanket as they grieve, groceries after surgery and rides to chemo appointments. We’ve found our acts of service are where the rubber often hits the road.
Briljent employees actively use The Luminous Fund to support the nonprofits that matter to them. We give grants to agencies they support, we match their financial donations and we donate money to match their volunteer time. This gives our wonderful Briljent employees a direct way to serve others through the work that they do at Briljent.
The Luminous Fund is proud to partner with the Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne. We are a donor advised fund and we use the Community Foundation to streamline our investment process and the distribution of our grants. In all that we do and how we do it, we aim to be transparent and open. We are also lifelong learners, so each year we network with other families through the National Center for Family Philanthropy and we implement new ideas.
So… stay tuned! Certainly, we’ll ponder and implement changes after attending this fall’s Forum hosted by the National Center for Family Philanthropy. We are usually stick out like a zebra in this large conference; because we are First Generation, Funders, Founders. We will not leave our wealth to an unprepared family. Instead, we work as diligently on the distribution of our wealth as we do on creating it. Want to talk about this? Contact us. Enthusiastically, Kathy Carrier
Tom Carrier, President
Tom is an electrician with Genesis Electric, focused on wiring for new home construction.
He is an avid golfer, dog owner, a talented and gutsy chef and all-around handyman.
Dave Carrier, Vice President
Dave is the owner of DXD Furniture, a custom woodworking and furniture business. He enjoys spending time with his wife, kids and grandkids, particularly if it involves going out to breakfast or working on the world’s largest treehouse. He is a talented builder and craftsman with an interest in gaining new skills (and tools.)
Kathy Carrier, CPA
Kathy Carrier, Generation 1 Funder/Founder/Secretary/Treasurer, is also the founder and CEO of Briljent. She is learning how to positively impact the lives of others with wealth and her own talent. “As for me and my house, we will serve The Lord.” Joshua 24:15.
Behind every successful work endeavor is a knowledgeable team. Briljent specializes in helping people learn, improving their workplace performance and supporting individual growth. We have deep expertise in adult learning, instructional design and training delivery.
We began our business in 1998, and have grown continuously ever since, developing strong relationships with public and private sector clients and partners. While our business success is important, what really drives us is our commitment to helping others succeed.
We want to put our heads on the pillow each night knowing we’ve accomplished something worthwhile. We believe firmly that if this passion for making a contribution comes first, business success will follow.