Early giving begins this week for donors looking to support nonprofits participating in East Texas Giving Day. The 18-hour online event is officially slated for Tuesday, April 28, 2020 from 6am to midnight, but donors are encouraged to start making donations now at www.EastTexasGivingDay.org. More than 180 nonprofits from across the region are participating in the crowd funding campaign.
“Giving Day is happening at an unprecedented time of need,” said Kyle Penney, President of East Texas Communities Foundation. “Nonprofits are responding to an increased demand for services in their communities meanwhile, donations have slowed due to the postponement of public fundraising events due to concerns of the community spread of the corona virus.”
The purpose of an area-wide Giving Day is to bring the region together on one day and as one community, raising money and awareness for East Texas nonprofits. The initiative, organized by East Texas Communities Foundation (ETCF), provides citizens across ETCF’s 32-county service area an easy platform to support the mission of local nonprofits.
“East Texas Giving Day provides a safe and secure opportunity for our community to help local charities regain financial support that has been lost during this crisis,” said Kyle Penney, President of East Texas Communities Foundation. “Many of the normal fundraising activities held every spring have been cancelled or postponed leaving a huge funding gap in annual budgets. Giving Day is a virtual event and could go a long way in helping nonprofits continue to provide their services”
One of the pillars of ETCF’s mission is to provide simple ways for donors to achieve their charitable goals. By providing an 18-hour online fundraising event, ETCF will give the public an opportunity to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to support the life-changing work of local nonprofits without leaving their homes.
Donors can access the donation portal from any device including their smart phones. “2019 was the first year that our data showed more than half of donations were made on a mobile device,” said Penney. “With people working remotely this year, we anticipate that number to increase dramatically.”
New to the platform, donors can find information on immediate needs at nonprofits due to the impact of COVID-19. “It is important for nonprofits to be able to share information, quickly to donors,” said Penney. “We added a COVID-19 search filter to assist donors that want to know how agencies are being impacted.”
Donors can double their donation by contributing to nonprofits that have secured their own matching funds. 67 participating nonprofits have secured a match for this year’s event. “Matching funds are a way for donors to make their dollars go further,” said Penney. “So far, over $750,000 in match funds are available on the Giving Day site.”
Donors can also make an additional donation to the Community Cares Fund. Donations made to the Community Cares Fund will be divided equally between nonprofits that raise funds on the Giving Day site. “The Community Cares Fund is a bonus fund,” said Penney. “This fund is a convenient way to impact over 180 charities with one contribution.”
“Our goal in hosting East Texas Giving Day is to reach new donors and give them simple access to support local causes,” said Penney. “With so much news focused on what has been taken away from us because of social distancing, Giving Day is an opportunity to virtually come together and join forces to better our communities.”
The minimum donation that can be made at www.EastTexasGivingDay.org is $10. Ongoing updates about the event will be posted on ETCF’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SimplifiedGiving and the foundation’s website www.etcf.org.
About ETCF
East Texas East Texas Communities Foundation is a nonprofit corporation serving 32 counties in East Texas. The Foundation distributed $12 million in grants in 2019 and currently manages over $110 million in over 374 unique charitable funds which support non-profit organizations and student scholarships. The Foundation, which was formed in 1989, has awarded almost $100 million in grants and scholarships since its inception. Philanthropy builds community and changes lives. East Texas Communities Foundation supports philanthropy by offering simple ways for donors to achieve their charitable goals.
