Fridrikh Furman was born in 1931 in Ukraine, and lived most of his life in that country. He graduated from Odessa State University majoring in Political Economy, taught in colleges and business schools, and worked in different capacities in chemical industry research institutions. He earned a Candidate of Sciences degree in Management and Economics in 1971, and published two monographs (1977 and 1989) on economy of new enterprises in chemical industry.

After his arrival in the USA (New York City) in 1998, the author worked as a consultant to assist students from Russian universities working on their Master’s degree and studying the economics of small business in America. During the last decade, he has been working as a volunteer for local charity organizations, and researching the history of American philanthropy and the development of nonprofit sector in the USA – the theme of this book.