WHY WE
STARTED WAVE
WAVE began with a conviction: that generosity, practised well, changes both the giver and what is given. We work with individuals, families, and organizations who want their giving to carry the weight — and the story — it deserves.
-
WAVE Philanthropy began with lived experience — not just strategy. Our founder, Keith Brewster, didn’t enter philanthropy as a corporate pivot. He came to it as someone who grew up on the receiving end of generosity: food banks, social supports, subsidized housing, and summer programs that quietly carried him through childhood in Northern Ontario. That first-hand understanding of what giving can truly mean shaped a lifelong commitment — to help others give not just more, but better.
After his doctoral training, Keith built a career in the food industry, a path that led him to personal success and into the circles of high-net-worth individuals eager to give back through their businesses and private foundations. What he discovered was a gap: philanthropy too often felt cold and institutional, or shallow and transactional. What was missing was the very thing that had carried him through his life — depth, intention, and human connection.
WAVE was built to close that gap. Today the practice runs along three lines: strategic philanthropy — the design, structure and governance of how a family gives; family office counsel — philanthropy held to the same standard as every other allocation; and legacy and story — creating authorized biographies, documentary production, and the family media archives that record why any of it was built. For some families we advise on one. For a few, we carry all three.
Keith has now sat on both sides of the ledger — as a recipient of generosity, and as counsel to those with the means to extend it. That is the perspective WAVE was built on, and it is why the work runs deeper than the transaction: what is built matters, but so does the record of why.
OUR MISSION
WAVE exists because families take far more care building wealth than tending to what it means. Our mission is to close that gap — to help families give with the same rigour, clarity, and intention they bring to the rest of what they've built.
OUR PURPOSE
WAVE advises families, foundations, and family offices on strategic giving, governance, and the stories that carry both. We help translate values into structure — a giving plan, a foundation, a documented legacy — so that generosity outlasts the person who began it.
WHO WE ADVISE
WAVE advises individuals, families, and family offices ready to bring more rigour and more meaning to how they give — and, for some, to how their story gets told. The families we work with are not looking for inspiration — they already know why they give, or why their life's work deserves to be remembered well. They are looking for the structure, discretion, and craft to do it right.
► Private Family Foundations
► Family Offices & Their Advisors
► Founders Preserving a Life’s Work
► Values-Led Companies
► Families Engaging the Next Generation ► Founders With A Story Worth Telling
MEET THE TEAM
-
![Digital Media at Wave Philanthropy | Elevating Generosity]()
Jared Putnam
DIGITAL MEDIA & STORYTELLING
At just 21, Jared founded his multimedia firm, New Parallel, and has been shaping stories through film and design ever since. Today, he brings that same creativity and entrepreneurial spirit to WAVE—shaping how the families are remembered. His ability to capture both the heart and the detail of a story ensures every expression of generosity is as compelling as it is authentic.
Jared’s connection to WAVE is deeply personal. We first met on a volunteer mission trip to Peru, where his talent and passion for service quickly shone through. Since then, we’ve travelled the world together with clients and friends, using media not only to tell stories but to open doors to impact, connection, and good in places near and far.
-
![Founder of Wave Philanthropy | Elevating Generosity]()
Keith Z. Brewster
PRINCIPAL & FOUNDER
Keith brings a rare blend of scientific research and methodology, entrepreneurial success, and personal purpose to the world of giving. With a background in psychology and neurovascular physiology—paired with early ventures in bariatric surgical care, food science, and business development—he built a career rooted in research, innovation, and transformation.
Today Keith advises a small number of families, foundations and offices — on philanthropic strategy and governance, on the structures that hold it, and on the record of why it was built. He writes authorized biographies, produces documentary work, and serves several families as their CEO of Family Foundations and/or Director of Philanthropy and Legacy.
-
![Finance at Wave Philanthropy | Elevating Generosity]()
Gabrielle Kim
FINANCE & GOVERNANCE
A trained accountant with a rigorous eye for stewardship, Gabrielle leads all aspects encompassing Finance and Governance at WAVE, ensuring every dollar entrusted to us is deployed with precision, integrity, and lasting impact. Her expertise spans fund deployment, asset management, accounting, CRA compliance. She brings particular depth to Donor-Advised Fund integration, helping clients give more strategically and see their generosity go further.
Gabrielle believes that sound governance is what turns intention into enduring good. Behind every story of impact is a foundation of trust, transparency, fiscal oversight, and tailored management and advisory. That foundation is what she builds and protects.
