Hillel Peter Karoff (1913-2017) was born in Brockton, MA in 1937. He graduated from Brandeis University in 1959, earned an M.F.A. from Columbia University in 1988, and received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Lesley University in 2002. He practiced poetry in speeches around the country and abroad and taught poetry and philanthropy at Tufts University, Boston University, and the University of California, Santa Barbara. His poetry has been widely published and anthologized over the years.
Beginning with his early work as a founding member of the Foundation for Urban Negro Development in Boston, Karoff was a champion of civil rights and social justice. He was founder and president of The Philanthropic Initiative, a pioneering non-profit consulting firm dedicated to increasing the impact of philanthropy in society, which became a leading influence in the world of philanthropy. He also frequently spoke and wrote on philanthropic and social issues. Over the years, Karoff was on the board of more than 30 nonprofit organizations, a Fellow of MacDowell, and a 2006 Purpose Prize Fellow.
