It’s the season of giving — not only for family and friends, but also nonprofits in need of donations and funding.
In just a few weeks, the Blue Grass Community Foundation and Smiley Pete Publishing, owner of Business Lexington, will launch its monthlong GoodGiving Challenge, an online campaign designed to engage and inspire the Bluegrass to support local nonprofits that make a difference in their community.
“We wanted to assist nonprofits through funding but also help build on their Internet and social media presence,” said Chuck Creacy, a publisher at Smiley Pete. “Some of these places couldn’t accept donations online; now they can easily. The experience they’ve acquired can last a lifetime.”
GoodGiving
The Blue Grass Community Foundation helps individuals, families, businesses, communities and nonprofit organizations to establish charitable funds and guide their resources to support the causes that matter to them. One of the more prominent ways that they do this is through the annual GoodGiving Challenge, which aims to make charitable support easy and fun for both the nonprofits and the donors who participate. The Challenge is modeled from a similar program, the Give! Guide, established in Portland, Oregon.
The challenge, which focuses on raising funds for 120 Central and Eastern Kentucky charities, takes place this year from Tuesday, November 29, at 9 a.m. to Saturday, December 31, at 11:59 p.m.
There will be a launch party at 10 a.m. on Nov. 29 at Fifth Third Pavilion with food, entertainment and an opening address from Mayor Jim Gray. Attendees are encouraged to arrive by 9:30 a.m.
Launched in 2011, the GoodGiving Challenge has raised more than $5.5 million for Kentucky charities. In five years, it has grown to become one of the more successful giving campaign events in Lexington, with totals last year exceeding $1.3 million. Not only will participating charities receive funds from donors, they also will have the opportunity to compete for $5,000 endowment prizes.
“We are dedicated to the idea that one person can make a powerful impact,” said Lisa Adkins, president and CEO of Blue Grass Community Foundation. “But we also know we have the biggest impact when we work together. At Blue Grass Community Foundation, we believe in investing together for our community, and the GoodGiving Challenge is the perfect opportunity for charitable giving to be fun, accessible and rewarding for the whole community.”
Through the BGgives.org website, an online giving website featuring 120 hardworking nonprofit organizations, potential benefactors have the option to discover, research and donate to one or more of these nonprofits.
For a list of requirements on how to get involved with the Blue Grass Community Foundation or the GoodGiving Challenge as an intern, nonprofit or donor, visit www.bgcf.org.