Just three weeks in to the six-week campaign to benefit 155 area nonprofits, the GoodGiving Guide Challenge is almost half way to its 2014 goal of $2,000,000. The current total is just under $940,000. Organizers Smiley Pete Publishing and Blue Grass Community Foundation expect the pace of donations to pick up as people get into the holiday spirit.
“We are happy to be where we are at this point in the campaign. This community is incredibly generous, but there is a lot of hard work ahead and plenty of giving left to do if we are going to reach our goal. Thanksgiving is the time of year when people tend to take stock and realize that they have a lot to be thankful for, and a lot to share,” said Chuck Creacy who is the publisher at Smiley Pete Publishing and a GoodGiving Guide founder. “I think people who’ve been on the GoodGiving Guide website at BGGives.org, or who have a had a chance to look through the printed guide are just a little overwhelmed by all of the nonprofit options," he says. "There is something in there for everyone. Hopefully the Thanksgiving holiday will give people a chance to sit down with their families figure out which nonprofits they want to support.”
Creacy went on to emphasize that a big part of the mission of the GoodGiving Guide Challenge is to engage younger, first-time donors. They want to give parents a chance to involve their children in philanthropy and to educate everyone about the community’s nonprofits. “It is a fun and easy way to learn about and discuss the importance of helping others.” he said.
Willamette Week
Colorado Springs Independent’s
The GoodGiving Guide campaign is one of several similar campaigns around the country. The Kentucky effort is currently in the lead among the friendly competitors, but Portland Oregon’s Give!Guide whose current total is $426,000 will likely pull ahead again this year. The Give!Guide's goal this year is 2.6 million dollars. The Indy Give! campaign is at $468,000 and California’s Monterey County Gives! is at $347,000.
“Every one of these communities is a big winner. These fundraisers are an efficient way to give and cost very little to do so. We’ve all been collaborating and trying to improve our respective efforts," Creacy says. "Will we make our goal? I think so. I’m starting to get notes from the other publishers asking if I’d like to wager a bottle of bourbon on whether the GoodGiving Guide Challenge could finish at the top this year. I really can’t say, but Kentuckians love a good horse race. Maybe we’ll win by a nose.”