By Janet C. Wetzel
Enquirer contributor

The remaining founders of the Friday Night Philanthropists - Dave Nieter (left), Brian P. Downing and Forrest Griffen are pictured at Neon's on 12th Street. (Jeff Swinger photo) | ZOOM |

There was nothing novel about the plan - raising money to help others. But the method devised by four close friends, who dubbed themselves the Friday Night Philanthropists, was quite unusual.

They each invited eight friends to gather at a neighborhood bar, have a few drinks and a lot of laughs. During the evening one of the group, chosen in advance, gave a short presentation about the needs and deeds of a local charity.

Then the organizers passed the bucket and asked people to dig deep into their hearts and their pockets.

It worked. It's still working. That simple plan the Philanthropists launched 2 ‡ years ago proved to be magical. Since that first evening, the group has met every third Friday of the month, and raised more than $17,000 for 26 organizations. The leaders pay expenses, so every dime goes to the charities, said Brian Downing, a founder.

"It's amazing how easy it is to get people to help out,'' said Downing, owner of Daniels Pub in Corryville. "I never, in my wildest dreams, knew it would be like this."

It began with the four friends discussing how they needed to be more socially conscious, Downing said. None had been involved with charities and they had little time to volunteer regularly. But they felt compelled to help others and encourage friends to so.

"We had no idea how to do that," Downing said. "We went out and found small local charities, found out what they did and what they needed. We took turns presenting the charity to the others. People would give $10, $15 or $20, then we'd just socialize and have fun."

After their presentations, the four, including Forrest Griffen and Tricia Fries of Clifton, and Dave Nieter of Mt. Auburn, asked others to present a charity. The Philanthropists' membership now totals about 250, ages 21 to 70. About 60 attend each month.

"The neatest thing is that we've been able to continue this long," said Griffen, 31, a waiter at Tink's CafÈ, Clifton, and a disc jockey at 97X in Oxford.

Nieter said making the evening a social event seems to help.

"We came up with a concept of going to different places each week ... to bring in people from various parts of town,'' said Nieter, 39, a field consultant for Subway corporate offices.

Each month they learn about another charity's needs, and each week those who attend learn ways they can help. Many have time to commit, and "a presentation may strike a chord in their hearts and they will pursue it further," Nieter said.

All founding members except Fries still serve on the board. Job and personal commitments forced her to step down, but she still helps out, Downing said.

Bill Hutchinson, a regular attendee, said he's impressed by the "wonderful, creative, concept."

"They have helped fund so many groups," said Hutchinson, vice president of the board of Project Connect Homeless Children's Fund. "I don't hang around bars, but I really look forward to these meetings because I know these people are going to be doing something for a wonderful cause. I presented Project Connect, and they raised about $700 for us.''

Other recipients include churches and the American Cancer Society.

Meeting sites are rotated, usually between Neon's on 12th Street; Milton's Prospect Hills Tavern at Milton and Sycamore; Daniels; Preacher's, Northside; and Meiner's Tavern, St. Bernard. The next meeting is 6:30 p.m. Friday at Milton's. The presentation begins about 8:30. Meeting details are e-mailed to members. To be on the list, e-mail Fridaynightphilanthropists@hotmail.com.

Do you know a Hometown Hero -someone in your community dedicated to making it a better place to live and helping others? E-mail Janet Wetzel at jjwetzel@siscom.net, or fax to 513-755-4150.