INDUSTRY MATTERS: Jewelers for Children’s Sara Murphy on the industry’s never-ending generosity
Almost all successful businesses and individuals reach a stage in life where they feel like they want to give something back and be more altruistic. In the US watch and jewelry industry, Jewelers for Children (JFC) has been the go-to platform for such charitable thoughts and donations since 1999 when it was launched. Since then, it’s donated over $65 million and positively affected the lives of literally hundreds of thousands of children, both in the States and around the world. JFC’s executive director Sara Murphy spoke with Watch Insider’s Daniel Malins about how in awe she is of the generosity of the industry and her fellow board members, but also how much more there is to achieve.
Watch Insider: Can you explain the background of Jewelers for Children? What do you think has made it so relevant in the US watch and jewelry industry?
Sara Murphy: The key to Jewelers for Children and the key to why it’s still relevant in the industry is that the watch and jewelry industry is incredibly philanthropic. You look at this group of people and when they started JFC 27 years ago, I think the impetus for that was “we can give back, we have the opportunity and the privilege to be able to help other people.” If you look at who needs our help most in the world, you often come up with this idea that kids don’t have control over their own lives. So, what can we be doing to really help them succeed? And because the industry is so philanthropic, Jewelers for Children came out of this idea that we want to give back as an industry.
It started as a dinner. The heart and soul of Jewelers for Children is our dinner in Vegas. So, the organization’s been doing that dinner for over 27 years; the dinner predates JFC by a couple of years, and we were lucky enough to have these incredible jewelers start JFC who wanted to invest long-term in nonprofit organizations. In the nonprofit world, the dream is to have a private foundation that’s going to support you for years. What’s great about JFC is some of our nonprofits we’ve been working with for 27 years, so we have been funding them since the beginning of the organization — that means that they know they can rely on us. There are a lot of benefits to having been around this long and keeping those partners.
The history of JFC is the history of the industry. We started as an organization where people came together loosely and then incorporated as a 501(c)(3) [a US-based nonprofit], but always at the center of what we do is all of these opportunities for the industry to get together. The watch and jewelry industry loves interacting, they love celebrating, and that’s the core of what we do with JFC — we celebrate all the success of the funds that we’re able to give to these kids.
In the last two and a half to three years, we’ve really been working at JFC to further build that network and to involve more people. JFC started as something that some people felt was exclusive, and we’re working really hard so that people understand that it has always been for the whole industry. Jewelers for Children doesn’t belong to me, it doesn’t belong to the board; it belongs to everyone in the watch and jewelry industry — it’s your nonprofit and you should be a part of it because you’re inherently involved. Our board has 65 people; those are the people that are really making decisions for JFC. All of our committees are open committees, which means anybody in the industry can join them and be a part of what we do, and we try to make it fun and inclusive in that way. It doesn’t have to be a $10,000 gift — that $25 that funds a backpack is also really valuable for us.
WI: You mention that $25 can buy a backpack, and I think people love feeling like there’s a direct connection between their donation and the tangible benefits it leads to. History, unfortunately, is littered with corruption at government and charitable level where people don’t have as much accountability as maybe they should. I’ve sensed the desire for a bit more transparency about where people’s money is going has grown. How do you address this issue, and to what extent does that influence who you choose as nonprofit partners?
SM: All of the organizations that JFC funds have pretty transparent financials. We get financial documents from them or they’re public. We did bring in four new partners last year, which is something we’re very proud of and very excited about, but the things we’re looking at are: do we feel like they’re appropriately funding their mission and the work that they’re doing? Are they taking care of their staff? What does turnover look like? Are they, as an organization, thinking about how they can be growing and improving?
At the same time, I think because we’ve been with so many of our partners for 27 years, there’s an inherent trust there. We know we’ve worked with them for a long time; we’ve seen their financials every year, and we know the people who run the organization — it’s nice to know that I can have faith in the work that they’re doing.
The heart and soul of Jewelers for Children is our dinner in Vegas. The organization’s been doing that dinner for over 27 years.”
For example, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, who we work with — we know everyone at that organization. It’s easy when we get their financials to see what has changed because we’ve been looking at the same financials for 27 years. The newer organizations, we really do an analysis, and we have a committee that decides who gets grants in what amount from JFC, made up of the jewelry and watch industry. It’s a really outstanding group of people who take the time to get to know these nonprofits and make decisions. One of the questions they’re always asking is: is the appropriate amount of money going to these kids? How much money is actually going to the services for the children? It affects how we give funds, and those numbers change and the work changes, but all of the nonprofits we work with are using their funds appropriately. We’re seeing the success of the work — and that’s what we’re looking for.
For example, we work with the Organization for Autism Research and the program that we fund there includes these kits that go into classrooms so that kids can learn about their classmates on the autism spectrum. Because if you think about elementary school kids, when bullying is happening, it’s the result of them not understanding each other. These kits give them the information that they need to understand their autistic classmates better. I don’t need to see where every one of those kits went, I don’t need to know where every dollar went, but we do get stories from teachers who say: “My classroom is a different place now that these kids have done this training.” And we hear from parents who say: “My child didn’t want to go to school before, but now they do.” The impact of the work is the driver, but also is the measure of whether or not our dollars are going to the right place.
WI: Regarding the companies — both retailers and brands — that you’ve had a close working relationship with for years, how does the dynamic tend to look, or does it vary on a case by case basis? Are they one-off donations or do they pay a monthly standing order, for instance?
SM: Most of our donors donate around JCK and the Vegas week. That being said, we have a number of donors who are supporting JFC in other ways. We have a round-up program, which is like when you go to check out at the store and it’s $4.83 and you want to round-up to $5. All of the stores that are participating in round-up are having a really good time with it. It’s a program that’s great because it gets your community and your staff involved.
We also do these 5Ks [5 kilometer runs] — we call them rings of strength. The story is about two kids who both had childhood cancer, and one of them gave the other one a ring before he passed, and it is her ring of strength. We tell that story and walk and run in their honor. It’s not a fast race, nobody comes to run their best 5K, but we have people who do that 5K over and over again, and it’s a part of their year that they count on and that they’re there for. So, there are opportunities throughout the year to support JFC, and some of them are super impactful. Last year, a very drunk man came up to me in Vegas when I was standing at the start line. People were arriving and he said: “What is this for?” And I said: “It’s a nonprofit, we give money to help children in need.” And he just handed me $5 and walked away.
WI: Do you have to be fairly thick-skinned in the role you play? Stories like the one you just mentioned with the two children who had cancer and one giving the other one a ring — they must hit deep, no?
SM: I’ve worked in nonprofits my whole career, and so I do think I’m a little bit more thick skinned. Last year, our committee that chooses who gets a grant read about 140 applications, and some of them afterwards said to me: “I had a really hard time reading this one.” You have to distinguish between: “Did this pull at my heartstrings,” and “Are they doing the best work for the kids?”
One of the organizations hit me hard and I had to walk away from it and come back and say: “I had an emotional reaction to that, but I think some of the other organizations we’re looking at are doing work that is helping more kids in ways that mean more.” I’ve had this problem my whole life. As my daughter gets older, I struggle with kids that are like her.
WI: How strong is the correlation between confidence in the economy and your financial performance? Is it as simple as saying that when confidence is high and the economy is booming, people are more charitable and vice versa?
SM: Our contributions are fairly stable, but what I will say is that when people are worried about the economy the timing is different. When people are not worried about business and the economy, donations come in a little bit earlier for us. If not, people wait, but I have found they still make very kind gifts.
The other thing I will say is that the jewelry industry is not getting bigger; it is in so many ways getting a little bit smaller. Two companies become one company more often than not, and that has affected JFC’s fundraising. But there’s so much of the industry that we’re not touching on, that we’re not reaching out to, and that’s something in the next few years we’re really focusing on — how can we reach more independents? Where can we be in a luxury space that we aren’t in right now? I am so impressed that no matter how nervous everyone is about the economy, the industry still finds ways to support JFC and be there for us.
WI: It’s a dream position to be in if your biggest donors ringfence their donations to you, consciously or subconsciously. You mentioned that you want to reach more independents, but how big is your team? And are your staff on the books or do you have partnerships with agents across the country, for example?
SM: JFC is just two people. It’s my colleague Barbara [Fonseca] and me in terms of employees. But we have this incredible gift in that we have this 65-person board, and then there are all of these amazing ambassadors for JFC. I’ve worked with boards my whole career. I’ve spent almost 20 years managing and supporting board work. JFC’s board comprises some of the most outstanding people I’ve ever worked with. I took this job when Jeffrey Cohen from Citizen was our board chair and it took me so much time to understand that if I said: “Hey Jeffrey, we need this,” that he was going to make it happen, and that continued with Craig Stern of Rogers & Hollands as our board chair. The entire board is there to support — our treasurer is Mark Goldberg from Rolex, and I can call Mark anytime and say: “Can you help?” And he always does. To reach these retailers, it’s not necessarily me — so much of it are these great people that we have out in the world.
I am so impressed that no matter how nervous everyone is about the economy, the industry still finds ways to support JFC and be there for us.”
A few years ago, Jewelers for Children started this thing called the Rising Leaders Council, which is for the next generation of jewelers and watchmakers. It’s sort of our associate board, our young person’s board, but there’s no age limit. If you feel like you want to meet more like-minded people in the industry who are starting out, then that’s a good place for you. What’s been incredible about that group is anytime there’s a gathering of jewelers they’re talking about Jewelers for Children. In so many ways, there are people out there just willing to do that work with the independent retailers. Eric Horowitz of Citizen runs our fundraising committee currently, and I can’t tell you how many phone calls I’m on with him. Everyone is so willing to talk about JFC and get more people involved.
WI: Can you explain the evolution of the Facets of Hope dinner? What does it look like today versus what it used to look like? How can people be involved, or is it a closed shop just to celebrate the work of the board members and a handful of others?
SM: It really is an introduction to a lot of people about JFC, and we love a full room. It started as a formal seated dinner, and it has evolved — it’s not that anymore. Personally, if you ask me to sit at a table with 300 people I don’t know, I want to go home. So, it’s reception-style. We have two ballrooms at JCK, which is incredibly kind of them. You show up, we do a cocktail reception, and then we do a presentation, which for me is really the highlight of the evening. We have a kid come and speak about how JFC funds have affected them, but it’s not sad. I don’t want anyone crying. We really are celebrating the joy of these kids.
Last year we had a teenager speak. He came with his mother, and his mother was HIV positive, but because of the work of Elizabeth Glaser he was born HIV negative, which is really an extraordinary story and something that wasn’t necessarily possible 30 years ago. This kid’s whole life is on a different trajectory because of the work of Elizabeth Glaser, but we didn’t focus on that. We talked about what he wanted to do in Vegas. Our MC, Nick, who’s brilliant with the kids, asked him in rehearsal: “What do you love about your mom?” And this kid couldn’t think of anything. Teenagers — this is not their forte! And then in the room, Nick asked him and he gave us an incredible answer about how she was the center of his life and he was so grateful to have her. But it wasn’t a sad moment, it was a celebration of all his potential and all that he could be.
Then we move into the second ballroom and we have what I call a ‘walking dinner’ so everybody can network and move around. We have some activities. We have a photo booth. We have a letter writing station. This year, I think we’re doing “pin the band-aid on Nelly,” since Nelly is the entertainment at JCK Rocks. At about 8:45pm, there’s a parade to JCK Rocks where everybody walks over together. Anybody who attends Facets gets VIP access to JCK Rocks. We sell tickets and sponsorships — anybody can come. Tickets are $600. We have sponsorship packages, we have ads, and all of that’s on our website. They could either go there and sign up, or they can always email me and I’m happy to put together a package.
This article was first published in the May 2026 edition of Watch Insider.
