Givers, Doers, & Thinkers—A Podcast on Philanthropy and Civil Society

Episode 49: Marcus A. Ruzek & veteran philanthropy

January 10, 2024 Season 5 Episode 9
Givers, Doers, & Thinkers—A Podcast on Philanthropy and Civil Society
Episode 49: Marcus A. Ruzek & veteran philanthropy
Show Notes

This week on Givers, Doers, & Thinkers, Jeremy speaks with Marcus A. Ruzek about how to help and how to hurt our nation's veterans.

Marcus Ruzek is the Senior Program Director at the Marcus Foundation. Marcus is a combat veteran who served as an Army Special Forces Officer (Green Beret). He served in the Army for 13 years and received three Bronze Star medals. His work at the foundation focuses on military veterans and free enterprise programs. 

Jeremy starts this conversation by hearing more about Marcus' background in the military and transition to the Marcus Foundation, created by Bernie Marcus, co-founder of Home Depot. Marcus highlights the foundation's approach toward veteran-focused entrepreneurial philanthropy. He also shares the challenges facing veteran services: entitlement culture, healthcare bureaucracy, mental health, and traumatic brain injuries. 

You can find Givers, Doers, & Thinkers at Philanthropy Daily, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Buzzsprout, and wherever you listen to podcasts.

We’d love to hear your thoughts, ideas, questions, and recommendations for the podcast! You can shoot Katie Janus, GDT’s producer, an email anytime!

Center for Civil Society's YouTube Channel