Give for Good sets up day to benefit 77 nonprofits
Give for Good is an event that has the potential to live up to its name.
The Community Foundation of North Louisiana will kick off the first 24-hour online giving day May 6. During that period, the Community Foundation along with its sponsors will amplify all donations made to participating organizations. Organizations can also receive extra cash prizes throughout the day.
“The Community Foundation wanted to host a community-wide day of giving for several reasons,” Jennifer Steadman, director of external relations for the Community Foundation, said.
“One was to raise awareness about the nonprofits and the services they provide to our community. Another reason to hold this type of event is to create a new generation of donors for our community. According to a study from the Chronicle of Philanthropy, 84 percents of young donors [younger than the age of 35] want to give online. The foundation believes if you provide the platform and the opportunity for online giving, this will cultivate a new generation of young donors for our community.”
Steadman said The Give for Good website, www.giveforgoodnla.com, makes donating to nonprofits easy.
Locals can also watch a live-streaming leaderboard on the site.
Steadman said in this era of steep budget cuts, nonprofits are in greater need of unrestricted dollars that donations provide.
“Our goal in hosting Give for Good is to reach new donors and show them how important it is to give to local causes in North Louisiana. We also want to use this opportunity to build a new generation of philanthropists for our community,” Paula Hickman, executive director of The Community Foundation, said. “Other metropolitan areas that have held similar events raised more than $1 million in a single day, and we’re challenging the people of North Louisiana to show a similar commitment to our local nonprofits.”
The event begins at midnight and ends at 11:59 p.m. During these hours, all dollars raised through The Community Foundation’s giving website will be amplified with $239,000 dollars from the Lagniappe Fund. The Community Foundation has committed $100,000 to the Lagniappe Fund with special thanks to the other Lagniappe Fund donors: Grayson Foundation; Powers Foundation; Cook, Yancey, King & Galloway; Chesapeake Energy; and Bistro Byronz.
One nonprofit excited to participate is Renzi Education and Art Center.
Renzi, located on Egan Street in the Highland area, offers after-school programming such as tutoring by professional teachers and art classes taught by professional local artists.
“We often see kids who start Renzi classes timid, uncertain and anxious become outgoing, self-confident and more relaxed within just a week of taking classes,” Jennifer Hill, development director at the Renzi, said. “Donations all go toward making that happen. We use them to pay our teachers, buy supplies, buy snacks, pay our electricity and Internet bills – all that it takes to run our facilities and the programs the facilities house.”
Hill has high hopes for what the Give for Good campaign can deliver for Renzi.
“One hope is obviously to raise funds we need to keep our free After School Program and free Summer Camp going,” Hill said. “Our fundraising goal is $5,000 – before winning any prizes or receiving additional money from The Community Foundation’s Lagniappe Fund. But what we hope even more is to have more people in the area find out about the Renzi Center’s mission and how we give at-risk youth opportunities to help them become financially stable and civic-minded adults.
“We also hope that more people in Northwest Louisiana learn about how other participating nonprofits make this region better and a more desirable place for people to live and start businesses,” Hill said.
In all, 77 nonprofit organizations are participating in Give for Good, representing a wide spectrum of causes. Besides Renzi, other arts and education programs like Noel Community Arts Program and Montessori School for Shreveport have signed up. Cultural groups such as Shreveport Opera, Little Theatre of Shreveport and Robinson Film Center; health organizations like Philadelphia Center, Susan G. Komen Northwest Louisiana, and CHRISTUS Foundation Shreveport; and animal advocacy groups such as Robinson Rescue, Yogi and Friends Exotic Cat Rescue, and Chimp Haven are all included.
The minimum donation that can be made is $10, and anyone can participate by visiting www.giveforgoodnla.com, or by stopping by one of the many events happening May 6. A list of events can be found at giveforgoodnla.com/#events. The community is encouraged to watch the live-streaming leaderboard throughout the 24 hours to see the total dollar amount being raised.
–Kirk Fontenot
