Ever since the ancient Greeks philanthropy has been fundamental to a healthy and efficient culture, and much the same is true nowadays.
One might, when one hears the word philanthropy, immediately think of a handful of famous philanthropists who are well known for distributing their fortunes to causes that they appreciate. This is something that has been the case for lots of thousands of years, with the very first recorded instance of institutionalised philanthropy, along with the source of the philanthropy meaning and word, occurring over 2 thousand years earlier in ancient Greece. Throughout this period, the word meant something more akin to 'loving of one's fellow human', or humanism, than the limitations of wealth one might apply to the term today, however nevertheless rich individuals played an essential charity role in the culture. Wealthy people were expected to give back to the community, assisting to set up the money for repairs to public works like city walls or temples as well as funding festivals and other public events. Being stingy was not looked upon well, and if a rich individual was not seen to be a philanthropist, they could be ostracised from the community entirely.
Many different entities have actually been responsible for charity work throughout the ages. Although rich individuals and celebrity philanthropists might be seen as the main charitable force in the contemporary world, that is not always completely accurate, nor has it been for much of history. In the middle ages, it was religious institutions like the church that would have been the main charitable centers, both within the community and on bigger level projects. That altered with the coming of commercial enterprise when wealthy people became more powerful, and after that moved again towards the end of the 19th century when foundations started to spring up that were much better set up and could devote more attention to getting things done. This is much the same manner in which charity is structured these days, whether those foundations are built by grassroots groups, wealthy people, or companies like SJP.
The manner in which charity has actually been funded has altered a lot throughout the course of human history, moving between various entities which hold the most power and wealth, just as the focus of charity work has changed as different requirements have emerged. Now, there are a great many issues that have to be resolved, from widening inequality to the environment crisis, and charity will undoubtedly play an important part in that procedure. Wealthy individuals with savings account that would make a middle ages kings blush have their part to play, but so do the businesses that are the central centers of financial generation in the twenty-first century through things like corporate philanthropy. Whether that is establishing a foundation of their own or developing ESG commitments, companies like Morgan Stanley and Vanguard Group are beginning to do so.