ML - Vegas Magazine

2014 - Issue 8 - December

Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.

Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/419349

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 67 of 135

photography courtesy of Julie Murray (casa de luz) VIEW FROM THE TOP Julie Murray's inclinations and inspirations. What are some of your favorite spots in vegas? "Red Rock. We live in this beautiful desert, and only 20 minutes outside of town you can go hiking and be on top of a beautiful mountain overlooking the valley. My favorite peak is called Turtlehead; it's an hour-and-a- half climb to the top. Growing up here, I used to love waterskiing on Lake Mead, back before the water dropped." What are you reading noW? "Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life by Dacher Keltner. I've been doing some public speaking, and so I'm reading Talk Like TED: The 9 Public- Speaking Secrets of the World's Top Minds by Carmine Gallo, and The Hiltons: The True Story of an American Dynasty by J. Randy Taraborrelli, about Eric Hilton and his family." g raduated f rom high school, a rate t hree t imes higher than that of their peer group. The founda- tion then raised more than $225,000 annually to help t hose g raduates go to college. Before t hat , Mu r ray spent seven yea rs r u n n i ng t he ph i la n- thropy division of Harrah's Entertainment. She also worked closely with Barbara Buckley, then- speaker of the Nevada Assembly, on building the country's first senior citizens assisted-living/afford- able-housing site on Bureau of Land Management land. The project added politicians to her already bulging Rolodex of Vegas-area change-makers. "If you can bring elected officials and funders and volun- teers together," she enthuses, "the power is so strong." Clea rly, Mu r ray is u n iquely qua l i f ied for t he position of power broker. Not only does she adroitly bring together those who want to help and those who need it ; she a lso helps people discover t heir own generosit y. "Philanthropy is a win-win," she says. "You lift your spirit and you help your com- munity." moonridgegroup.com V Murray believes that people genuinely enjoy giv- ing, but she knows they want to be smart about it. Her cu r rent vent u re, Moon r idge Group, helps individuals, foundations, and corporations set phil- anthropic goals, then finds the best investments for them. "Three Square let me see the impact funders ma ke when t hey do it st rateg ica lly," she says. "I wanted funders to get a good return on their phil- anthropic investments." Murray is now leveraging her considerable con- nect ions i n Moon r idge's newest vent u re, Boa rd Match ma ker. A s it s na me suggest s, Boa rd Match ma ker br i ng s toget her i nd iv idua ls, who answer questions about their interests and their financial and time availability, with organizations looking to grow their boards of directors. In the data- base are educational, arts, cultural, environmental, and health and human services organizations. Moonridge clients include the mining company Barrick Gold, the new art museum The Modern at Luminous Park, and the Nevada Regional Medical Center. Murray is particularly proud of her compa- ny's work on water conservation and education with the One Drop Foundation, which includes a collab- orat ion w it h Ci rque du Solei l. Moon r idge a lso brings like-minded advocacy groups and compa- n ies toget her to work on solv i ng problems. T he Greater Good Cou nci l, t he Nevada Cor porate Giving Council, and the Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition Committee on Homelessness are all examples of such consortiums. Mea nwhile, Moonr idge cont inues to build on Mu r ray's ot her successes, i nclud i ng her st i nt a s national campaign director for the Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation. She raised $36 million to bu i ld t he A nd re Aga ssi Col lege P repa rator y Academy, a K-12 charter school for Vegas's most at- r isk st udent s, wh ich g rew out of t he "I Have a Drea m" Fou ndat ion L a s Vega s, cofou nded by Murray. As part of that venture, she oversaw the education of 55 young children from a Las Vegas public housing project. Most of them— 83 percent— Murray's desk displays evidence of her good works: awards and honors and a photo of Murray with community organizer Punam Mathur and Senator Harry Reid. below: Murray (far right) with Cindy Santana (fourth from right) and friends offering free drum lessons at the church Casa de Luz. The church received $500,000 from a collective-impact philanthropy project led by Murray. 66  vegasmagazine.com PEOPLE Power Strip

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of ML - Vegas Magazine - 2014 - Issue 8 - December